Sciatica Treatment

Dr. Lutz utilizes a patient-centered approach which incorporates his extensive training in chiropractic, rehabilitation and sports performance to quickly decrease pain associated with sciatica, without the use of drugs or surgery.

Sciatica is not a diagnosis, but rather a symptom. Sciatica is pain that originates in the low back or hip that can travel down one or both legs, buttock, knee and in some case, even the ankle. This pain can be described as achy, dull, sharp, numb and/or tingling. It can range anywhere from minimal to debilitating.

Why Sciatica Pain Occurs

Sciatica is caused by the compression of the sciatic nerve. Sciatica is named after the sciatic nerve. This nerve begins in your lower back and pelvis and travels down your leg.

The nerve consists of five spinal cord segments (L4 through S3) that originate from your spine which come together to form the sciatic nerve. The nerve then travels down the outside of the hip and leg before stopping at the knee where it then branches off to innervate the calf and foot. This anatomy is important to understanding the root cause of sciatica pain.

What Causes Sciatica Pain

Common causes of sciatica are piriformis syndrome, herniated or bulging disc, degenerative disc disease, stenosis, pregnancy, childbirth, sacroiliac joint dysfunction, arthritis, trigger points or a tumor. This is why a proper examination is essential to correctly diagnosing your sciatica pain.

At Motion ChiroTherapy, you will be given a thorough medical history and physical examination to make sure you receive a proper diagnosis and treatment. If we find you are a good candidate for conservative care (i.e. without the use of drugs, injections or surgery), we can begin treatment on your first visit.

Sciatica Treatment and Recovery

Treatment at Motion ChiroTherapy will always be in a 1-on-1 setting with the doctor for every visit. We will evaluate and reevaluate your unique symptoms and design a treatment plan to get you back to doing what you love, as quickly as possible.

If we determine that we cannot quickly reduce your sciatica pain, we will refer you to a specialist. Our goal at Motion ChiroTherapy is to be your musculoskeletal advocate and get you back to pain-free living, as quickly as possible.

It is important that you do not ignore sciatica symptoms. Prolonged compression on a nerve can cause permanent nerve damage that may not be restored.

Furthermore, a more serious underlying condition could be present if you have progressive leg weakness and/or any loss of or change in bladder or bowel function. If you have these symptoms, please call 911 and seek care at your nearest hospital emergency room.

It is important that you receive an accurate diagnosis from an experienced spine expert for sciatica recovery and discovery of any serious underlying conditions.

The good news is that with a proper diagnosis and treatment, most of our sciatica patients in Florida get better quickly with conservative care (without drugs, injections, surgery) in few weeks or months (for severe cases).

When a case is outside our scope of care, we quickly refer you the proper specialist – whether that’s a pain management doctor or surgeon to correct the dysfunction.