We often suffer from body pain, some are severe and some not. Today let’s discuss one such pain known as Sciatica pain and What Causes Sciatica To Flare-Up?
Contents
What is Sciatica?
Symptoms of Sciatica
The hallmark of sciatica pain is when the pain radiates from the lower spine to your buttocks and moves down the back of your leg. This pain can extend up to the foot or the toes. It depends on where the sciatica nerve is affected.
Sciatica pain differs from person to person. For some, sciatica pain may be severe, and for some, the pain might be infrequent and irritating but can also get worst.
Common symptoms are
- The pain in the leg is worse, especially while sitting.
- The pain in the hips
- Tingling or burning of the leg.
- Pain on one of the sides
- The pain makes it hard to get up
- Difficulty in moving a leg or feet.
- Experiencing pain in the lower back.
Symptoms also include pain, which can be worse when you cough or sneeze. And, also sitting for long can aggravate the symptoms.
What causes sciatica to flare-up?
Knowing, about what causes sciatica to flare-up and also how you can treat it.
Sciatica is usually a hidden problem. Sometimes, it can be easily treated with pain killers and can also through lifestyle changes.
The below include Sciatica pain
- Sitting for a very long period.
- Carrying heavy objects or lifting them in improper form.
- A soft mattress or in an awkward sleeping position.
- Improper form while exercising or lifting weights.
- Wearing heels for a long time
- A sedentary lifestyle.
- Unhealthy habits like smoking
- Diabetic patients
- Overweight
Now let us know about the causes of sciatica pain.
Lumbar spinal stenosis
Bone spurs
A bone spur is an overgrowth of the bone which causes Sciatica pain, occurring on the vertebrae. It develops due to injury or from the wear and tear of the spine due to age. It can cause by irritating sciatica nerves. The lower back pain from a bone spur is common among people in or around the age of 60, can be hereditary, due to poor nutrition, and injury, causing them to develop at an early stage.
Herniated disc
It is also known as the protruding disc. When cushioning disc between vertebrae exerts force through a crack in the outer casing, it irritates the sciatic nerve leading to sciatica pain.
Degenerative disc disease
Spondylolisthesis
It is a common problem that occurs when a vertebra slips onward onto the bone below it. Athletes stressing on their bones in the lower back are prone to such conditions.
Tumors
It is a rare scenario, the tumor is the cause of sciatica pain, where the tumor affects the sciatica nerve. Also, there are different kinds of spinal tumors.
Sciatica pain either goes away or stays for a long time. The flare-ups can last up to 6-8 weeks, are characterized by acute cases. Seeking medical consultation on time can save you from a lot of pain.