Sciatica Treatment in Visalia

If you are looking for sciatica treatment in Visalia, always see a physical therapist first for sciatica symptoms.

The sciatic nerve is the largest single nerve in the entire body. It runs from the each side of the lower spine through the buttock and into the thigh, all the way down to the foot. This nerve serves an important role in communicating messages from the spinal cord to the legs and feet, and when it’s damaged, a problem called sciatica can come about.

Sciatica is not necessarily a medical diagnosis itself, but a set of symptoms that are related to an issue with the lower back. Common lower back problems that can cause sciatica include a lumbar herniated disc, degenerative disc disease, spondylolisthesis and spinal stenosis. In each of these conditions, the sciatic nerve becomes either irritated or compressed, which brings about symptoms.

The most common sciatica symptoms include the following:

Constant pain on only one side of the buttock or leg pain that gets worse with sitting
A burning, stinging or searing pain in the leg
Weakness, numbness or difficulty moving the leg, foot or toes
Pain that radiates down the leg and possibly into the foot
A sharp pain that makes it difficult to stand or walk

If you happen to notice any of these symptoms, you may be dealing with a lower back condition that is causing sciatica. Although some individuals with sciatica may be under the impression that surgery is necessary to fix it, the truth is that physical therapy is usually just as effective and will save patients from many of the troubles of surgery. In fact, the findings of a recent study show that both surgery and non-surgical (conservative) treatment that included physical therapy led to very similar results:

Surgical and conservative treatments had long-term beneficial effects on sciatica symptoms in patients with lumbar disc herniation. Compared with conservative treatment, surgical treatment relieved back pain faster, but no relevant clinical difference was observed after three months.
Reference: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/12/e012938.full

This study shows that there is no added benefit of having surgery instead of physical therapy for sciatica symptoms. On top of this, surgery is more expensive and associated with many more risks than physical therapy. For these reasons, we strongly encourage you to choose physical therapy first if you happen to notice any symptoms of sciatica.

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Looking for a Back Pain Specialist in Visalia?

The experienced clinicians at Bacci & Glinn Physical Therapy are a great choice if you are looking for a back pain specialist in Visalia. Physical therapy is the best option available for almost any type of back pain.

Back pain is one of the most common of all possible medical problems. In fact, at any given time, about 25% of Americans report experiencing back pain at least once within the past three months. So if you’ve never had back pain, there’s a strong chance you’ll encounter it at some point in the future.

Back Pain is Most Common in the Lower Back

Pain can develop in any region of the spine, but the lower back is affected more than any other part. In the majority of cases, low back pain is classified as nonspecific, which means no known cause has been identified that is responsible for the pain. Aside from nonspecific low back pain, there are a number of other conditions that can lead to back pain. These include a herniated or ruptured disc, lumbar spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease, sciatica, osteoarthritis, spondylolysis, spondylolisthesis and injuries like a pulled muscle or ligament.

Regardless of its cause, back pain can result in similar types of problems for anyone experiencing it. The pain will usually make it difficult to perform many daily activities, especially those that require any bending of the spine, as well as trouble exercising or playing certain sports. For some people, back pain may get so bad that might not be able to perform their job and will have to miss work as a result.

We are the Back Pain Experts in Visalia

The good news is that help is available for just about any type of back pain*, and that help comes in the form of physical therapy. Physical therapists are experts at identifying the cause of back pain, and then creating a personalized treatment program designed to reduce pain levels with a number of different techniques. Any concerns about serious problems (cancer, etc.) can be picked up by our clinicians during the initial evaluation.

After a thorough evaluation and assessment of your condition, a treatment plan is developed. A typical physical therapy treatment program for back pain usually consists of the following:

Strengthening exercises
Stretching exercises
Manual (hands-on) therapy performed by the therapist
Functional training
Education on how to prevent future back pain

The benefits of physical therapy for back pain treatment in Visalia can be found time and time again in research studies that evaluate its impact on patients. In one recent study, it was found that a hands-on technique performed by physical therapists called spinal manipulation helped to reduce pain and improve function in patients with low back pain.

So if you’re dealing with back pain of any sort, we strongly believe that seeing a physical therapist is your best option available. Rest assured, the therapists at Bacci & Glinn Physical Therapy will get directly to the root of your problem, and then address it with a variety of treatments that have been proven to work no matter what kind of pain you have.

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*Ankylosing spondylitis and spinal infections have a prevalence of less than 1 per cent and the prevalence of prolapsed inter-vertebral disc is low – between 1 and 3 per cent. Up to 3 per cent may have spondylolisthesis (the slipping of one vertebra over another). Less than 1 per cent of back pain is due to more sinister pathologies including cancer (about 0.7 per cent – generally unlikely unless the patient has previously had cancer), and spinal infections (0.01 per cent). Reference