Sciatica is experienced as lower back pain and pain that radiates down the back of the legs. It is pain caused by compression, irritation, or inflammation of the sciatic nerve. It is generally experienced on one side of the body. Body movements like twisting, bending, sitting, or responses like coughing and sneezing can worsen the pain. Individuals with sciatica also experience muscle weakness, numbness, tingling, or electrical shock-like sensations. Injury Medical Chiropractic and Functional Medicine Clinic offer manual and motorized sciatic nerve decompression to stretch/realign the spine, release the compressed nerves, and relieve pain.
Sciatic Nerve Decompression
The spine consists of 23 spinal discs that are shock absorbers for the body during movement. Each disc consists of a soft inner core of a gel substance and a thick outer layer. Wear and tear of the spinal discs from aging, degenerative disc disease, repetitive physical activities like lifting and bending, obesity, and poor posture are some of the factors that can stress the spine, causing the thick outer layer of the spinal disc to crack/breakdown causing the soft inner core to leak out forming a bulging or herniated disc. This type of injury compresses, pinches, or irritates one or more nerve roots that form the sciatic nerve, triggering sciatica.
- Spinal bone spurs.
- Spinal stenosis or the narrowing of the spinal canal.
- Spondylolisthesis, or the slipping or dislocation of the spinal vertebrae in the lower part of the spine.
- Are also known sciatica causes.
Symptoms
Common compressed nerve symptoms include:
- Pain or burning sensations radiating down the leg.
- Because branches of the sciatic nerve extend from the lumbar spine through the buttocks and down the leg, pain, burning sensations or dull aching can present along the nerve's pathway if the nerve gets compressed or irritated.
- Weakness in the affected leg.
- When walking or moving the legs, the nerves transmit information to the brain, stimulating the muscles to react in specific ways.
- A pinched sciatic nerve can cause interference with relaying signals, resulting in weakness.
- Numbness.
- The compression impedes blood circulation and nerve energy transmission.
- Pins and needles sensations - paresthesia.
- Like numbness, paresthesia sensations happen when a nerve is compressed or irritated.
Non-Surgical Sciatic Nerve Decompression
Spinal decompression therapy relieves pressure on the spine by pulling/stretching it in small increments. Non-surgical spinal decompression creates negative pressure within the discs. The negative pressure pulls or vacuums back the disc material that has protruded or herniated and an abundance of nutrients to activate the healing response. The chiropractor, physical therapist, or nurse uses motorized medical equipment with sensors linked to a computer-aided system to perform the procedure. The equipment is designed to adjust the pull force accordingly to prevent muscle resistance. The adjustable table also allows the spine to be stretched at different angles to target the upper or lower back.
The objective of spinal decompression treatment is to relieve the symptoms of sciatica or disc disorders and heal the injured disc. We utilize spinal decompression as an effective tool in treating a vast array of spinal conditions.
DRX9000 Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression
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Dr.
Alex Jimenez DC, MSACP, CCST, IFMCP*, CIFM*, ATN*
email: coach@elpasofunctionalmedicine.com
Licensed in: Texas & New Mexico*
References
Berry, James A et al. “A Review of Lumbar Radiculopathy, Diagnosis, and Treatment.” Cureus vol. 11,10 e5934. 17 Oct. 2019, doi:10.7759/cureus.5934
Davis D, Maini K, Vasudevan A. Sciatica. [Updated 2022 Feb 4]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2022 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK507908/
Giuffre BA, Jeanmonod R. Anatomy, Sciatic Nerve. [Updated 2021 Jul 29]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2022 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK482431/
National Institutes of Health. (2019.) “Sciatica.” https://medlineplus.gov/sciatica.html
