Sciatica in Crestwood, MO. If you have ever known the pain associated with sciatica, you know how difficult it is to find words powerful enough to convey the ferocity of pain that accompanies it and the degree of distress and disability the condition can wreak on your life. If you suspect that you may have sciatica or have been diagnosed with a sciatic nerve condition, seek expert medical care right away.

Axes Physical Therapy is a network of multiple Crestwood, MO area physical therapy treatment clinics. Our clinics specializing in movement health and owned and operated by our treating doctors are dedicated to providing you with sound, individualized, intelligent care for your sciatica or other conditions near Crestwood, MO. Contact a physical therapist in the Crestwood area about sciatica care for you today or make an appointment online now.

What You Should Know About Sciatica

Sciatica describes the irritation of the sciatic nerve, the most extensive nerve in the human body. The sciatic nerve begins in the nerve roots in the low end of the spine to the pelvis, where it then reaches back to each buttock and runs down and through the back of each leg. Sciatica can be distinguished from general low back pain or other conditions because the pain from sciatica follows this precise nerve path.

The term sciatica is not, in itself, a diagnosis — contrary to popular assumption. In fact, sciatica describes a set of symptoms tied to the sciatic nerve that surface when an existing medical condition causes the sciatic nerve to be irritated, inflamed, pinched, or compressed. Sciatica patients’ symptoms vary wildly, but commonly include pain sensations, weakness, numbness, or tingling that can extend from the buttock all the way down the leg. While low back pain in constrained to the immediate area around the back (though other conditions affecting the low back and lead to tightness, imbalance, and overcompensation that causes additional physical problems), people with sciatica experience symptoms down into the glute area, legs, and feet and heels.

Am I Suffering from Sciatica?

Each individual experiences sciatica symptoms differently. Your sciatica’s exact presentation depends on where the damage or pressure is along the nerve root. Sciatica typically includes symptoms like pain, numbness, weakness, tingling, and pain that worsens when in certain positions.

The hallmark of sciatica is the sensation of pain that follows the path of the sciatic nerve which begins in the lower spine and travels through the hips and posterior, down the back of each leg. Typically, a patient with sciatica will experience symptoms only on one side — either down the right buttock and leg or the left buttock and leg. There are, however, exceptions, and some sciatica patients are affected on both sides. This is determined by where on the sciatic nerve the irritation or compression occurs.

Pain is such a significant component of the sciatica experience for Crestwood, MO sciatica sufferers. Pain from sciatica varies from:

• Sharp
• Jolting
• Shooting
• Burning
• Electric
• Stabbing
• Tingling

If you are suffering from the debilitating pain and other limiting symptoms of sciatica, get in touch with a medical professional specializing in spine health right away. Axes Physical Therapy’s Crestwood, MO area physical and occupational therapists will lead you in your recovery and design a treatment plan with the best chance of success of restoring your mobility and freedom from pain.

What Causes Sciatica?

Most instances of sciatica are caused, in one way or another, by the irritation or inflammation of the sciatic nerve. Sciatic nerve inflammation is easily cured with physical therapy in the Crestwood area targeted specifically to the source of nerve inflammation, or may even heal naturally as time passes and you practice safe exercise and home care. Other cases, when the sciatica is a result of direct compression of the sciatic nerve, may call for a more invasive treatment such as surgery.

Often, people with sciatica are not aware of what caused their condition. Whether you suffered an acute injury while playing sports or being active or woke up one day with sharp pains down your left leg that you can’t explain, our Crestwood, MO area physical therapists have the clinical success and up-to-date evidence-based knowledge you need and deserve from your sciatica treatment professional.

Common Causes of Sciatica Pain

• Herniated disc
• Slipped disc
• Bone spur
• Spinal stenosis
• Piriformis syndrome
• Degenerative disc disease
• Spondylolisthesis
• Pregnancy
• Vertebral fracture

Are You at a Higher Risk of Developing Sciatica in Crestwood, MO?

You may be at a higher risk of developing sciatica and other physical and neurological conditions based on your background and activities. Risk factors associated with sciatica include:

• Age. As we age, the tissues in our bodies degrade over time.
• Weight. The back muscles in heavier individuals are forced to work harder to keep the body upright, and their spinal discs and other joints are under more pressure.
• Other medical conditions. Diabetic patients are suseptable to nerve damage, and conditions like osteoarthritis can result in pain and pressure on your spine and sciatic nerve.
• Occupation/Daily activities. Jobs where you are required to lift heavy loads, perform frequent bending and twisting motions, or drive for long periods of time (which shakes the body through the vibrations of the vehicle on the road) can cause sciatica.
• Lifestyle. Lifestyle choices like a “couch potato” daily routine or tobacco use can lead to inflammation and weakness.

What Sciatica Treatments in Crestwood, MO Are Right for Me?

There are numerous treatments that are commonly used to treat sciatica patients. These treatments, which run the gamnut from conservative recommendations like cold and heat applications to intensive procedures, vary in proven efficacy. Regardless of their respective disciplines, medical providers who work with sciatica can all agree that physical activity is a critical component of managing and treating sciatica. This is contrary to outdated recommendations to confine sicatica patients to bed rest, which is no longer an accepted treatment fo sciatica as it is not effective in addressing disabiity or pain in patients.

Ultimately, you must turn to a licensed medical professional prior to making any decisions about your own medical care. Our Crestwood, MO area physical and occupational therapists with Axes Physical Therapy have dedicated our careers providing Crestwood, MO with access to healthcare that maximizes movement health and quality of life. For you, that includes evaluating your medical history, sciatica symptoms, and other key information. Your dedicated Axes Physical Therapy treatment provider near Crestwood, MO will complete a complimentary screening prior to beginning any treatment so that we can best understand your condition and develop a personalized treatment plan for you.

In addition to specializing in treating Crestwood, MO area sciatica patients, our seasoned Crestwood area providers have what it takes to give you the care you need. Our team of experts in many different areas of the body and joint, nerve, and muscle conditions offer access to the care you need, including the following

• Neck Pain Treatment
• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation

Types of Treatments for Sciatica in Crestwood, MO

Healthcare professionals and especially those who are specialists in spinal care recommend some of the following as treatment of sciatica for certain patients. Your primary care physician, Axes Physical Therapy doctor in Crestwood, MO, and any other necessary medical professionals will collaborate to lay forth and carry out the most promising sciatica treatment plan for you.

• Medications. There is some conflicting information about which drugs are effective for treating sciatica, but as with any other drug, every medication comes with potential risks. Largely used in mitigating the experience of sciatica symptoms, some drugs that can be used for sciatca patients include:
  • Anti-inflammatories
  • Muscle relaxers
  • Antidepressants
  • Corticosteroids
  • Anticonvulsants
  • Opiod pain medications
• Physical therapy. Physical therapy is an impactful treatment for sciatica that should be included in most sciatica treatment plans. Physical therapy employs a wide range of treatment services that address the body as a whole and directly heal the underlying cause of your sciatica pain. Working with a physical therapist in the Crestwood, MO area can help you achieve pain relief, improve your range of motion, become physically healthier, halt or prevent permanent disability and nerve damage, and prevent future injuries or sciatica flair-ups. Your Crestwood, MO physical therapist will treat your sciatica pain with treatment methods that improve your posture, restore balance, increase flexibility, improve strength, and relieve pressure.
• Injections. For some patients with sciatica, a health care professional might recommend an injection or series of injections to the affected area. If you are considering injections for your sciatica, your options include nerve root blocks, which are used to inject the steroid and anesthetic combination directly to the affected sciatic nerve root, or epidural injections, which deliver the steroid and anesthetic to the epidural space enveloping the nerve. Injections in Crestwood, MO area sciatica patients are often used to temporarily supress nerve inflammation for the purposes of pain relief and potentially preserve mobility. Injection treatment effects can wear off in weeks or months.
• Surgery. Due to its risk and inherent invasive nature, surgery is usually not considered unless you have severe symptoms or your condition has not successfully healed with more conservative approaches. There are a number of operations for sciatica depending on the cause of the condition, such as a microdiscectomy where the surgeon removes the herniated disc or a laminectomy where the surgeon removes part of the vertebral bones to remove direct pressure on your sicatic nerve. To maximize your chances of success, operations should be proceeded and followed by pre- and post-operative physical therapy care.
  You should consider sciatica surgery if:
  • you have loss of bowel or bladder control
  • imaging shows that you have spinal stenosis, where bone spurs are putting direct pressure on your sciatic nerve
  • you have severe neurological dysfunction
  • you have not experienced or are no longer experiencing lasting relief or healing with other treatments

Benefits of Crestwood, MO Physical Therapy for Sciatica

Staying active is one of the most important things for people with sciatica to do. Staying active, stretching, and performing exercises designed to help address sciatica are proven, necessary in the treatment of sciatica for anyone in the Crestwood, MO area.

The physical therapy we offer to sciatica patients in the Crestwood, MO area reflects the importance of movement. By working with a physical therapist near Crestwood, MO, you can strengthen and mobilize tissues in the lower back, pelvis, abdomen, buttocks, and thighs and heal the source of your sciatica.

Our physical therapy services work to:

• Improve functional movement
• Relieve sciatic nerve pain
• Reduce muscle spasms
• Restore function of the lumbar spine and the sacroiliac joint
• Improve mobility of the lower body
• Foster a better healing environment in the lower back
• Restore overall balance and proper posture in the back and legs
• Promote neurologic adaptations to reduce the perception of pain
• Prevent future pain flareups and permanent nerve damage
• Foster confidence in your ability to move pain-free

Your dedicated Crestwood, MO physical therapist will design a plan incorporating a variety of different treatment modalities in your sciatica treatment plan, such as:

• Hot and cold therapies
• TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stiumlation
• Ultrasound
• Flexbiliby and strength exercises
• Joint manipulation
• Soft tissue mobilization
• Dry needling
• Education and training for posure, safe technique, and activity modifications

Trust your spine and musculoskeletal expert at Axes Physical Therapy to determine the sciatica treatment modalities you would benefit from most and work together with your larger healthcare team to help you manage your sciatica symptoms, alleviate the underlying irritation of your sciatic nerve, and reclaim the strength, flexibility, and full range of motion of a healthy individual. Speak to a physical therapist in Crestwood, MO now to discuss your sciatica treatment options, including a quality, tailored physical therapy plan.

Get Relief for your Sciatica in Crestwood, MO Now

When the excruciating pain and alarming limitations of sciatica get in the way of doing the activities that are important to you, seek quality care for your sciatica right away. Receiving prompt and personalized physical therapy for your sciatica in the Crestwood, MO area can relieve your pain and return you to optimal mobility.

Axes Physical Therapy offers accessible, convenient, and proven sciatica treatment near Crestwood, MO. Our fifteen Missouri physical therapy locations make it simple for you to get the care you need. Find the location nearest you or request an appointment online right now.