This isn’t your first go-around with sciatica, and you know the all-too-familiar signs that this common lower back condition is about to rear its ugly and uncomfortable head again.
The reality is that the lifetime prevalence of sciatica ranges between 10% and 40% of the general population. More concerning is the fact that sciatica tends to recur — one study shows that leg pain comes back in slightly more than 50% of patients within 3 years, and 70% experience low back pain again within the same time frame.
So, if you find yourself dealing with sciatica again, our team of experienced spine health experts at World Medical Group dba Neuropathy & Pain Centers of Texas wants to review some great, non-surgical treatments that can help you get back on your feet again and moving without pain.
We know that you’re here because your sciatica is recurring, so you probably know a little bit about this common condition. Just in case, we’re going to quickly review what happens with sciatica.
In reality, sciatica is a group of symptoms that develop when your sciatic nerve — the largest nerve in the human body — is compressed in your lower back. This compression of sensitive nerve roots can lead to local low back pain, as well as symptoms that travel down the nerve and into one side of your lower extremities. These symptoms often include pain, numbness, tingling, and weakness.
At our practice, we emphasize non-surgical solutions. For sciatica, these include:
With our M6 MLS Robotic Laser system, we deliver two wavelengths of light energy into your lower back to:
This non-invasive approach to sciatica is incredibly effective; the light energy works on a cellular level to create the ideal healing and regenerative environment in your lower spine.
A great way to relieve the pain and inflammation around your sciatic nerve fibers is through interventional corticosteroid injections in your low back. These injections work quickly to relieve the pain and inflammation that's causing the sciatica symptoms, which allows you to pursue longer-term sciatica solutions, which we get into next.
One of the key ways to manage a sciatica flare-up and prevent the condition from recurring is through stretching and strengthening exercises for your low back.
At our practice, we offer comprehensive physical medicine services, which includes targeted PT for sciatica. These exercises are designed to relieve the compression in your spine by stretching and strengthening the surrounding muscles to reduce the pressure on your nerves.
At the heart of chiropractic care is ensuring that your spine is in alignment — and it usually isn’t when sciatica develops. By correcting misalignments along your spine through chiropractic adjustments, we can relieve the pressure on your nerve and encourage healing resources to flow more freely to your spine, which can speed up recovery.
To figure out which approach is best for your sciatica flare-up, it’s a good idea to contact us sooner rather than later. To sit down with one of our sciatica specialists, call or message one of our offices in Arlington or Fort Worth, Texas, today to schedule an appointment.
