Sciatica in Grantwood Village, MO. Anyone who has ever experienced sciatica will struggle to find words powerful enough to convey the intensity of pain it causes and just how disabling it can become. If you have been diagnosed with or believe you suffer from sciatica, or a condition that affects the sciatic nerve, get the care you need right away.

Axes Physical Therapy is a group of multiple physical therapy treatment locations positioned near Grantwood Village, MO and throughout Missouri. Our locally-owned and operated movement wellness offices bring you thoughtful, personalized, strategic care for your sciatica or other conditions near Grantwood Village, MO. Contact a physical therapist in the Grantwood Village area about sciatica care for you today or make an appointment online now.

What You Should Know About Sciatica

Sciatica is the irritation of the sciatic nerve, the most extensive nerve in the human body. The sciatic nerve originates from the nerve roots in the lower spine to the pelvis, where it then splits off 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 radiates from this precise nerve path.

Sciatica itself is not a diagnosis, as many people believe. In fact, sciatica describes a set of symptoms tied to the sciatic nerve that surface when an underlying medical condition results in the irritation, inflammation, pinching, or compression of the sciatic nerve. Sciatica symptoms range greatly, but often 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), you may find that your sciatica symptoms exist down into the buttock, hamstrings, calves, or feet and heels.

Symptoms of Sciatica

The type and severity of sciatica symptoms vary from case to case. Your sciatica’s exact presentation is dictated by the positioning of the pressure or damage to the nerve root. Symptoms that accompany sciatica include pain, numbness, weakness, tingling, and pain that is aggravated by being in certain positions.

The hallmark of sciatica is the sensation of pain that travels along the sciatic nerve which begins in the lower spine and travels through the hips and posterior, down the back of each leg. Most of the time, symptoms appear 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 down both nerve paths. This simply depends on where on the sciatic nerve the irritation or compression occurs.

With sciatica comes undeniable pain for anyone with the condition in Grantwood Village, MO. Pain from sciatica varies from:

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

If debilitating sciatica pain is preventing you from living your life, reach out to a medical professional specializing in spine health right away. The physical and occupational therapists of Axes Physical Therapy near Grantwood Village, MO will lead you in your recovery and craft a treatment approach to return you to the life you want to live.

Causes of 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 Grantwood Village area targeted specifically to the source of nerve inflammation, or may even resolve 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.

A lot of times, people with sciatica do not know what caused their pain to begin with. You may have been in an accident or developed nerve irritation over time. Whatever the case may be, our Grantwood Village, 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

Risk Factors for Sciatica near Grantwood Village, MO

You may be at a higher risk of developing sciatica and other physical and neurological conditions based on your background and activities. You are more likely to suffer from sciatica based on the following risk factors:

• Age. Over the years, the tissues in our bodies undergo natural wear and tear and the bone and soft tissue in joints including the spine can wear away and increase your risk of sciatica.
• Weight. The more weight on your body, the harder your back muscles have to work, and the more pressure the tissue in your spine and pelvic joints face.
• Other medical conditions. Diabetic patients are suseptable to nerve damage, and joint-related diagnoses like osteoarthritis can cause pain and pressure on your spine and sciatic nerve.
• Occupation/Daily activities. Trades 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.

Finding the Right Grantwood Village, MO Area Sciatica Treatment

There are a number of treatments that are commonly used to treat sciatica patients. Different treatment solutions, ranging from conservative recommendations like cold and heat applications to intensive procedures, vary in their accepted level of efficacy. The one thing that medical professionals agree on when it comes to sciatica treatment is that physical activity is an essential part of managing and treating sciatica. This directly contradicts previous advice to confine patients to bed rest, which we now know does not improve disabiity or pain in patients.

Remember that it is your responsibility to seek the advice of a licensed medical professional before taking any actions related to your medical care. Our Grantwood Village, MO area physical and occupational therapists with Axes Physical Therapy are committed to providing Grantwood Village, MO with access to healthcare that maximizes movement health and quality of life. For you, that means understanding your medical history, sciatica symptoms, and other key details. Your dedicated Axes Physical Therapy movement healthcare provider near Grantwood Village, MO will provide a free screening before treating you so that we can truly understand your condition and formulate an individualized treatment plan for you.

In addition to specializing in treating Grantwood Village, MO area sciatica patients, our experienced Grantwood Village area providers have what it takes to give you the care you need. We apply our knowledge and experience working with kinesiology and the musculoskeletal system toward providing people like you in Grantwood Village, MO with many forms of care, including the following

• Back Pain Treatment
• 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

Popular Treatments for Sciatica in Grantwood Village, MO

Healthcare professionals and especially those specializing in spine health and neurology have found the following methods to be helpful in the treatment of sciatica for certain patients. Your primary care physician, Axes Physical Therapy doctor in Grantwood Village, MO, and all other members of your treatment team will collectively to provide you with the sciatica care that is right for you.

• Medications. There is some conflicting information surrounding which drugs are recommended for patients with sciatica, but as with any other drug, pharmaceuticals come 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 sciatica care method that should be included in most sciatica treatment plans. Your physical therapist will use a wide range of treatment services that target comprehensive movement health and repair the underlying cause of your sciatica pain. Working with a physical therapist in the Grantwood Village, MO area can help you achieve freedom from pain, improve your mobility, become physically healthier, halt or prevent permanent damage and disability, and reduce the risk of future injuries or sciatica flair-ups. Your Grantwood Village, MO physical therapist will treat your sciatica pain with treatment methods that improve your posture, bring your body into balance, increase flexibility, improve strength, and release pressure.
• Injections. For some patients with sciatica, a doctor might recommend one more more injections to the affected area. Common injection treatments for sciata are nerve root blocks, which apply the steroid and anesthetic combination directly to the root of the irritated nerve, or epidural injections, which deliver the steroid and anesthetic to the epidural space surrounding the nerve. Injections for Grantwood Village, MO area sciatica patients are often used to temporarily aleviate the irritation of the nerve for the purposes of pain relief and potentially preserve the ability to function. Injection treatment effects can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months.
• Surgery. Because of the risk involved, surgery is usually not considered unless you have severe symptoms or your condition has not successfully healed with more conservative treatment methods. There are different operations for sciatica depending on the cause of the condition, such as a microdiscectomy where the surgeon removes the herniated disc or a laminectomy to remove bone spurs or parts of vertebrae putting direct pressure on your sicatic nerve. For best chances of success, surgery should be paired with pre- and post-operative physical therapy care.
  You may be a candidate for sciatica surgery if:
  • you lose control of your bowel and/or bladder
  • imaging shows that you have spinal stenosis, where bone spurs are putting direct pressure on your sciatic nerve
  • you have significant neurological dysfunction
  • other treatment methods have not helped or are no longer effective

Benefits of Grantwood Village, MO Physical Therapy for Sciatica

The primary directive for sciatica patients is to stay active. Practicing physical activity, stretching, and practicing exercises that target the source of your sciatica are proven, necessary parts of any Grantwood Village, MO sciatica treatment plan.

Coincidentally, these are all major elements to any physical therapy care we provide Grantwood Village, MO area sciatica patients through the Axes Physical Therapy network of physical therapy offices. By working with a physical therapist near Grantwood Village, MO, you can strengthen and mobilize tissues in the lower back, pelvis, abdomen, buttocks, and thighs and find true relief from your sciatica.

Physical therapy for sciatica and other conditions is meant 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 Grantwood Village, 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. Your Grantwood Village, MO physical therapist will act as an integral player in 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 Grantwood Village, MO now to discuss your sciatica treatment options, including a quality, tailored physical therapy plan.

Get Relief for your Sciatica in Grantwood Village, MO Now

When the excruciating pain and infuriating limitations of sciatica get in the way of the life you want and the activities you enjoy, find a trustworthy sciatica treatment provider right away. Swift and personalized physical therapy for your sciatica in the Grantwood Village, MO area can relieve your pain and restore the movement you depend upon to live your life.

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