West Los Angeles
Sciatica Treatment

What is sciatica?

Sciatica is a widespread ailment that afflicts many individuals regularly. Its effects can range from slightly annoying to painful and debilitating pain that hinders your quality of life. The pain diverges along the sciatic nerve, which runs from the lower back down the hip and leg. If you have been suffering from sciatica for more than a few days, you probably feel discomfort and pain, even if you are not actively experiencing it.

If not treated immediately, sciatic nerve pain can lead to serious side effects like chronic pain, affecting your posture and quality of life. Many people have been suffering from this for years and have no idea how to treat it effectively. At her office in West Los Angeles, Dr. Summer Shanfar has treated many patients with sciatic shooting nerve problems and has helped them get the relief they needed.

What causes sciatic nerve discomfort?

Commonly, sciatica pain can be attributed to one of four causes:

• Irritation of the sciatic nerve; this nerve runs from the lower back down the back of the leg and into the knee.
• Inflammation or swelling of the muscles in the lower back or a surrounding disc. Discs are the cushion between the two bones of your spine.
• A herniated disc. A herniated disc is an injury, usually in the neck, that has caused pressure to an area where the spine was supposed to be able to “self-regulate” itself.
• Spinal stenosis is another common cause of sciatica. Spinal stenosis occurs when the spinal canal narrows, either through the growth of bone or due to aging. This narrowing puts tremendous pressure on the sciatic nerve.

What are the symptoms of sciatica?

According to some experts, sciatica can have symptoms that mimic those of a nerve root problem. If left untreated, spinal stenosis can cause compression of the spinal cord, which can cause inflammation, irritation, numbness in your extremities, and numbness in your hands, feet, and legs. Sciatica usually comes with tingling, numbness, and shooting pain. When the numbness becomes constant, it can become severe enough to interfere with everyday activities. Although you might not experience symptomatic sciatica every day, when it does occur, you may feel some sharp pain in your leg or back, depending on where the most pressure is placed upon your sciatic nerve. These symptoms can vary from mild to severe and are often the reason people go to the doctor in the first place.

Sciatica pain during pregnancy

Pregnancy and sciatic nerve aches often go hand-in-hand. In addition to the discomfort of sciatica caused by inflammation, irritation, and numbness, pregnant women experience long periods of sciatic nerve discomfort. The added stress of carrying a baby can be difficult on the back and spine. Long periods of sciatic nerve pain during pregnancy can lead to premature labor, miscarriage, premature birth, low birth weight, and other complications.

Chiropractic treatment for sciatica in West Los Angeles

A chiropractor can help you relieve and prevent back pain and sciatica. It is one of the few areas of medicine that have developed diagnostic techniques that enable doctors to provide a diagnosis almost instantly. Chiropractors base their diagnostic methods on spinal anatomy and physiology. This information can determine what is causing the irritation and show the appropriate treatment. In most instances, chiropractors will perform spinal manipulation or other non-surgical therapy to relieve your sciatica.

Chiropractic treatment is one of the best ways to relieve sciatica caused by common causes. Chiropractic adjustments and spinal manipulation are the most effective methods to treat sciatica. It would be best to consider chiropractic treatment before any other conventional medical treatment. Chiropractic adjustments in our West LA office can relieve pain and prevent the development of further complications. However, diverse medical conditions can cause sciatica, so it’s important to rule out the most common causes.