Sciatica

Category: Muscles, Bones & Joints · All muscles & joints symptoms

What it can feel like

Sciatica is pain that travels from the lower back or buttock down the back of the leg, sometimes to the foot, often with tingling, pins and needles or numbness in the same distribution. It means the sciatic nerve or one of its roots is irritated or compressed, most commonly by a slipped disc.

Possible causes

A symptom can have many causes, and most are not serious. The lists below group conditions this symptom can be associated with — common causes first. They are possibilities to discuss with a clinician, not a diagnosis.

Common causes

Sciatica can be associated with a disc bulge pressing on a nerve root, age-related narrowing of the spinal canal, and irritation of the piriformis muscle in the buttock (uncommon).

Other possible causes

Sciatica can also be associated — rarely — with the emergency compression of the bundle of nerves at the base of the spine (cauda equina), and with tumours, fractures or infection affecting nerve roots.

Red flags — when to seek help promptly

Sciatica with numbness around the genitals or bottom (saddle numbness) — emergency
Sciatica with difficulty passing urine, retention, or loss of bowel or bladder control — emergency
Weakness in the leg or foot that is progressing, such as a dragging foot
Sciatica in both legs, or after major trauma

What a clinician may do

A clinician will test leg strength, reflexes, sensation and the straight-leg-raise manoeuvre, and check bladder function and saddle sensation. Most sciatica settles with activity and time; MRI is arranged for warning patterns, progressive weakness, or when injections or surgery are being considered.

Watch: related videos

Examination and clinical videos from the MedicalVideos.com library relevant to this symptom. Some clinical footage is graphic — that is the nature of a medical video library.

▶ WatchSciatic nerve blockWatch on MedicalVideos.com ▶ WatchUltrasound guided sciatic nerve blockWatch on MedicalVideos.com ▶ WatchSciatica painWatch on MedicalVideos.com

Related guides on MedicalVideos.com

Frequently asked questions

How long does sciatica take to settle?

Most episodes improve substantially over six to twelve weeks as the disc inflammation subsides. Severe leg pain that is not improving by around six weeks, or weakness at any stage, should be reviewed — options include physiotherapy, medicines for nerve pain, injections and, for selected cases, surgery.

What is cauda equina syndrome?

Compression of the bundle of nerves below the end of the spinal cord. Its warning signs — saddle numbness, bladder or bowel change, leg weakness — need emergency assessment and usually emergency MRI and surgery, because delay risks permanent bladder and leg damage.

Related symptoms — Muscles, Bones & Joints

A joint that locks or gives way Aching and stiffness in the shoulders and hips Aching muscles Ankle pain Back pain Elbow pain

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Please note: This page is educational information about a symptom. A symptom alone cannot diagnose any condition, and the causes listed here are possibilities, not a diagnosis. If you are worried about a symptom — especially one that is new, severe, getting worse or not going away — please see your own clinician, who can examine you and arrange tests. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.