Pincing, sciatica inflammation - symptoms and treatment

As is known, the sciatic nerve starts from the lumbosacral plexus and, descending along the leg, branches into two directions - the tibial and peroneal nerves. His pinching is accompanied by acute pain, which affects both limbs and limits the movement of the patient.

To remove symptoms of sciatic nerve inflammation and to correct the situation with a pinch can only complex treatment, which includes physiotherapy treatment and a set of special exercises. However, in an acute period, drug therapy is inevitable.

In this article we will consider the basic principles of treatment for inflammation, pinch of the sciatic nerve in adults, and also tell about the first symptoms and the causes of this ailment. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments.

What is it?

Pinch of the sciatic nerve - inflammation of one of the longest nerves in the body, manifested in the lumbosacral spine with severe pain. In medicine, this phenomenon is called sciatica.

Sciatic nerve inflammation is a syndrome or manifestation of the symptoms of other ailments. In this regard, inflammation can be caused by problems in the work of other organs and body systems, but in most cases the occurrence of pathology is associated with problems in the spine.

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Reasons for

What is it, and why is it developing? The disease is more common in people over 30 years of age, although recently younger people are also affected by pathologies, which is associated with the early formation of degenerative changes in the soft tissues around the spinal column.

The most common factor in the development of sciatic nerve inflammation is the pathological process, localized in the lumbar and sacral segment of the spine.

Therefore, the most common cause of jamming is:

Full or partial displacement of the intervertebral disc, accompanied by a pinch of the sciatic nerve, narrowing of the spinal canal, accretions on the spine;
Pear-shaped muscle syndrome;
Damage to organs or the muscular apparatus of the small pelvis due to injuries or heavy physical exertion;
Subcooling, infectious processes;
Presence of neoplasms.

Inflammation of the sciatic nerve can have the character of a primary lesion, the causes of which most often are hypothermia, infection, trauma. Secondary pinching occurs when the nerve roots that form the sciatic nerve are infringed, as a result of protrusion, a herniated disc, bone sprains around the spine, muscle spasms due to osteochondrosis, physical overload, etc.

Symptoms of Sciatic Nerve Inflammation

If the sciatic nerve is progressing, the symptoms of the pathology are expressed in an acute form, significantly disrupting the patient's habitual quality of life. The main symptom of the disease is pain syndrome, the intensity of which depends on the cause of inflammation:

pinch of the sciatic nerve of hernia;
influenza, malaria and other infections that lead to inflammation;
stenosis;
spondylolystosis.

Be sure to take into account the nature of pain. This helps doctors to accurately diagnose, then begin to treat inflammation. Therefore, jamming in the lower part of the spine is divided into three groups:

symptom of planting - the patient can not sit down;
symptom Lasega - the patient can not lift a straight leg;
symptom of Sikar - pain is aggravated by bending the foot.

In addition to pain, there are also characteristic symptoms of sciatica nerve inflammation associated with impaired conduction of nerve impulses along motor and sensitive fibers:

Sensitivity deterioration( paresthesia) - in the initial stage is manifested by a feeling of numbness, tingling of the skin of the buttocks and legs on the back surface. As the symptoms progress, other types of sensitivity decrease, down to their complete disappearance.
Disorder of the function of the pelvic organs - arises due to compression of the fibers of the vegetative( sympathetic and parasympathetic) nervous system passing in the sciatic nerve. There are violations of urination( incontinence) and defecation in the form of constipation. This symptomatology develops in severe cases of sciatica with a significant infringement of the spinal roots.
Failures in the motor function of the are a result of the infringement of the motor fibers of the nerve. In humans, there is weakness of the gluteal, thigh and leg muscles. It is expressed in changing gait in a one-sided process( limping on a sick leg).

If the above symptoms occur, treatment should be started immediately, as pinch of the sciatic nerve can lead to a complete loss of sensation in the legs.

Diagnosis

To determine how to treat a pinch of the sciatic nerve, it is imperative to find out its etiology and, if possible, eliminate all factors that may provoke the development of the disease.

To clarify the diagnosis, a comprehensive examination of the patient is necessary - it should include:

methods of clinical and biochemical laboratory diagnostics;
examination of a neurologist, and if necessary - a vertebrologist, rheumatologist and vascular surgeon;
X-ray images of the spine in several projections( always in the supine and standing position);
tomographic studies.

Emergency medical consultation of is required if:

on the background of pain increases body temperature to 38 ° C;
on the back appeared edema or skin reddened;
pain gradually spreads to new areas of the body;
there is severe numbness in the pelvic region, hips, legs, interfering with walking;
appears burning sensation when urinating, there are problems with retention of urine and feces.

These studies help to find out what to do in order to relieve pain in the shortest possible time, and to remove inflammation in the sciatic nerve.

How to treat pinch of the sciatic nerve

If symptoms of pinching of the sciatic nerve arise, treatment should be started as early as possible, and the specialist will prescribe the appropriate therapy according to the result of the performed diagnostic:

First of all, is determined because of what the pinch of the sciatic nerve occurred. The reason can differ treatment. For example, with neoplasms, surgery may be required.
Medication treatment .The first stage of this treatment is aimed at anesthesia and the removal of the inflammatory process. For this, muscle relaxants and NSAIDs are used.
Group B vitamins ( kombilipen, milgamma) contribute to the normalization of metabolism in nerve cells. In the acute period are appointed intramuscularly for a period of 10 days, then switch to oral administration.
Physiotherapy treatment .Such treatment includes electrophoresis, the use of electromagnetic fields or ultraviolet radiation, massage( impact on certain points, canned, vacuum types of massage), therapy through paraffin procedures, hydrotherapy.
Non-traditional treatment of , which currently includes many different methods. It includes acupuncture, application of Kuznetsov's implants, stone therapy, hirudotherapy, herbal medicine, moxibustion.
Treatment with folk recipes .So, if you are jammed, you use horse chestnut, bay leaf tincture, flour and honey cakes, potato packs, beeswax, spruce and pine buds, dandelion tincture and many other ways.
Diuretics are used to reduce edema in the area of nerve roots( furosemide).
Therapeutic gymnastics .Helps to improve blood flow in the affected area and strengthen the musculature. What kind of exercises to perform in this or that case, the doctor decides, based on the degree of neglect of the disease, the severity of the pain syndrome, the presence of the inflammatory process and other factors.
Surgical treatment of .With ineffectiveness of drugs and physiotherapeutic procedures, the only option to eliminate pinching is surgical intervention: disketomy and microdiscosetomy.

It is worth noting that the treatment of inflammation or pinching the sciatic nerve at home is a complex, lengthy exercise that does not always give an immediate effect, so your health has to be dealt with for a long time.

If pain persists for several months, the patient is prescribed steroid injections injected epidurally into the area of the affected area. This procedure reduces the symptoms of inflammation at the local level, giving at once a temporary but very tangible effect.

Mode

One of the main components of the treatment is the creation for the patient of a medical-protective regime.

The patient should lie on a rigid bed, the possibility of movement is recommended to restrict to the abatement of bright signs of inflammation. It shows the observance of bed rest until the condition is improved and pain syndrome is eliminated.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

The most effective painkillers are NSAIDs. This pharmaceutical group of medicines is represented by drugs that stop the action of the enzyme COX and have anti-inflammatory effect, they include:

"Meloxicam"( "Movalis", "Ameloteks") - is manufactured in tablet and injection forms, is one of the safest preparations of the groupNSAIDs.
"Piroxicam" - available as a solution( 1-2 ml ampoules), tablets, suppositories, gel, cream, can be applied either locally or injectively - 1-2 ml once a day to relieve an acute pain attack.
"Nimesulide"( "Naise", "Nimesil") - is available in the form of powders, tablets, capsules. The usual dosage of 100 mg per day, in the first days may increase to 200 mg.
"Celebrex" capsules, the recommended daily dose is up to 200 mg, but with severe pain it can be increased to 400-600 mg in the first dose, followed by a lower dose to 200 mg.
Ketonal, Ketanov( Ketoprofen) - available in ampoules, capsules, tablets, suppositories and as an ointment, with sciatica most often used intramuscularly( up to three times a day for 2 ml),but the symptoms are well removed and topical application( ointment).

With the increase of pain and inflammation, steroid hormones are sometimes prescribed, in short courses, they relieve pain, but do not eliminate the cause of inflammation, and their use has a lot of side effects and contraindications.

See also how to choose effective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for the treatment of joints.

Muscle relaxants and vitamins

Muscle relaxants are prescribed to reduce reflex local muscle tension , due to pain syndrome. These are:

Midokalm;
Tizalud;
Baclofen;

Also anti-inflammatory effect is produced by multivitamin complexes based on B group vitamins :

Neurobion;
Milgamma;
Kombilipen;
Trigamma;
Neurovitan.

When physiotherapy and medications do not help, resort to surgical methods - microdiscosetomy, disketomy, in which part of the disc that presses the sciatic nerve is removed.

Nontraditional treatment

Specialized clinics and medical centers use various non-traditional methods for the treatment of pinch of the sciatic nerve:

phytotherapy;
acupuncture;
acupressure;
heating with wormwood cigars;Stone therapies or stone massage
;
vacuum or can massage;
hirudotherapy-treatment with leeches and others.

Sanatorium treatment

Only outside of the exacerbation, a sanatorium treatment for sciatic nerve inflammation is recommended, mud therapy, hydrotherapy with radon, hydrogen sulphide, pearl baths, underwater traction courses are especially effective.

Climatotherapy always helps to strengthen immunity, reduces the frequency of colds, rest improves mood and creates a positive mood, which is so important for recovery.

Massage

Massage procedures may be performed after the acute inflammatory process subsides.

Thanks to this technique, the conductivity of the damaged sciatic nerve increases, the local circulation and lymphatic flow normalizes, pain decreases, and the already developed muscle ischemia decreases.

Exercises

After recovery, useful physical exercises are especially needed, but only those in which the load is evenly distributed to both sides of the body( light jogging, walking, swimming, leisurely skiing).

In addition, there are special exercises that are ideally suited to all patients in the remission phase. Here is an example of exercises that can be easily performed at home lying on the floor.

All exercises are performed 10 times, with a subsequent increase in the load:

Legs lead to the trunk, hug them under the knees. With your hands, press your feet to yourself, keep this position for 30 seconds, then return to the starting position.
Feet is even, the socks look up, hands along the body. Stretch the heels and the back of the head in different directions for 15 seconds, then relax.
Turn to one side, pull your legs towards you. Pull the socks. Then go back to the starting position and turn to the other side.
Turn over on the abdomen, lift the trunk on your hands, perform push-ups. Do not strain your legs.

However, it is necessary to know that if a pinch of the sciatic nerve is provoked by a herniated intervertebral disc, it is necessary to select a complex of physiotherapy together with your doctor.

Treatment with folk remedies

Special importance is attached to folk medicine to cure the pinch of the sciatic nerve. After all, its remedies are almost the only way to treat it, for example, if the nerve has infected a pregnant woman or there are any contraindications to the medications being taken, physiotherapy procedures.

At home, the following treatment can be performed:

Tincture from bay leaf .It is necessary to take 18 medium-sized laurel leaves, pour 200 ml of good vodka, insist for 3 days in a dark cool place. At the end of this period, the infusion obtained must be rubbed into the sacrum area with massaging movements. After the fourth procedure, a positive effect is observed.
For the night, you can attach to the sore spot honey cake .To do this, it is necessary to heat a tablespoon of honey on a water bath, mix it with a glass of flour, form a cake and put it on the sore spot. Close the cellophane and wrap it all with a warm kerchief. Such a compress will relieve the pain.
Infusion of potato sprouts is prepared from sprouted potatoes, or rather, its shoots .To do this, take a glass of sprouts and pour a half liter of vodka. In this form, the mixture is infused for two weeks in the dark. After it is ready, you need to rub it into the affected area twice a day and wrap it for a while with warm cloth.
In 200 ml of alcohol solution( at least 70%), dissolve 10 tablets of analgin and add a 5% iodine vial of .The resulting mixture should be removed to a dark place for 3 days. Ready tincture to rub in the problem area before going to bed, after wrapping the waist with a scarf and sleeping until the morning.

Remember that home treatment can not replace complex medication, they are designed only to reduce the manifestations of the disease.

Prophylaxis of

When pinch of the sciatic nerve is diagnosed, the medication removes pain and general discomfort;but it is also recommended to study preventive measures to prevent relapse:

is required to sleep only on a stiff surface,
to avoid weight lifting
hypothermia of the extremities,
not to make sudden movements.

To which doctor should

If symptoms of sciatica appear, you need to consult a neurologist. In the treatment involved physician-physiotherapist, masseur, manual therapist.if necessary, the patient is examined by a neurosurgeon.