Sciatica

Valley Medical and Wellness

Chronic Pain Medicine & Addiction Medicine located in Burnsville, Minneapolis, Plymouth, Woodbury & Rochester, MN

As much as 40% of the population in the United States experiences the shock-like pain of sciatica. At Valley Medical and Wellness, our pain management specialists understand how overwhelming chronic sciatica pain can be. Our team provides comprehensive solutions for sciatica pain relief, including innovative regenerative medicine therapies.

Valley Medical and Wellness proudly servces the Twin Cities metropolitan area, including Eagan, Bloomington, St. Paul, Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, Plymouth, Maple Grove, and Brooklyn Park. Our offices are located in Burnsville, Minneapolis, Woodbury, Rochester, and Bemidji Minnesota. Find out more about your options for relieving pain related to sciatica by calling the office nearest you.

Sciatica Q & A

What is sciatica?

Sciatica describes pain in your lower back that results when pressure is put on the sciatic nerve. This large nerve travels from your lower back down into your buttocks and each of your legs, providing sensation in these areas.

Pressure on the sciatic nerve can result from direct injury to your lumbar spine, lower back, or due to conditions like:

Obesity
Bone spurs
Herniated discs

Spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinal canal, can also be the root cause of sciatica-related pain.

If you sit for long periods of time due to an inactive lifestyle or because of your job, you may also be at increased risk for sciatica.

What are the symptoms of sciatica?

The hallmark symptom of sciatica is a shock-like pain that occurs when you move your lower back. This type of pain is especially common when you make sudden movements, such as coughing, sneezing, or laughing.

Pain can also radiate down into the areas where your sciatic nerve travels, such as your buttocks and legs, and can lead to other symptoms like:

Weakness
Numbness
Tingling sensations

Sciatic pain can worsen over time, and without treatment, it can become debilitating. When you can no longer find relief of lower back pain due to sciatica, schedule a consultation at Valley Medical and Wellness.

What treatments are available for sciatica?

The medical team at Valley Medical and Wellness offers customized care plans for persistent sciatica pain. Initially, they may suggest physical therapy or osteopathic manipulative treatments to relieve pressure on your sciatic nerve.

The physicians may also combine these therapies with oral or topical pain relievers or anti-inflammatories to further increase your comfort and allow your sciatic nerve time to heal.

In some cases, regenerative medicine may be an option for repairing damage in the sciatic nerve or surrounding tissues. This therapy involves injections of either platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or natural substances like saline to stimulate the body’s natural healing processes.

PRP also contains important growth factors that help repair damaged tissue and improve the efficiency of your healing.

The team at Valley Medical and Wellness continues to monitor the effectiveness of your treatment to ensure your pain is well-controlled. They can also recommend lifestyle changes, such as avoiding long periods of sitting and engaging in at-home exercises to prevent additional sciatica-related pain.

Contact Valley Medical and Wellness today

Don’t be limited by the chronic pain of sciatica. Call the Valley Medical and Wellness office nearest you.