My Leg Pain is Killing Me! Is It Sciatica or Disc Herniation?

The Answer Might be NEITHER!

To simply put, other conditions may cause leg pain.

Yes, both sciatica and disc herniation (aka “slipped disc” although discs don’t slip) may be commonly known conditions for leg pain.

Interestingly enough, I find the condition that I will be talking about today, actually THE most common condition that causes leg pain. Before I get to it, I’d like to briefly clarify what sciatica is and its relationship with disc herniation. 

Sciatica is a symptom, not necessarily a condition. It simply means “pain due to sciatic nerve irritation or inflammation.” This can be the symptoms of disc herniation, foraminal encroachment, stenosis, or local compression of sciatic nerves such as piriformis syndrome.

If you’d like to read more about the blog post, go to the “Sciatica” post.

Back to today’s topic, the most common cause of leg pain that I see among my patients that mimic sciatica or disc problem is GTS (Gluteal Tendinopathy Syndrome), also known as DBS (Dead Butt Syndrome). 

This condition will cause leg pain that stems most commonly from gluteus medius muscles (although it can be from Maximus or Minimus muscles) near sacroiliac joints or lower lumbar area. The typical causes of this are straining activities such as exercises, repetitive squatting, lifting, walking, or climbing. Once the muscles are affected and stressed, they will form “trigger points” on those muscles that will cause the tissues to be bunched up together and lose control of muscle fiber. This will results in pain in the muscles, referred pain in the legs, and even loss of strength in severe cases.

The clinician has to rule out possible sciatica or disc involvement by performing certain orthopedic tests or MRIs in some cases. However, the patients often present the aggravated leg pain with pressures on the involved muscles.

There are several treatment approaches to this. If the symptoms are mild, manual trigger point pressure with an adjustment at the sacroiliac joint will simply resolve the pain and help the return of functions. In severe cases, I find the dry needling (Trigger Point Needling) quite effective as the needles may address the trigger point directly and normalize the contraction/relaxation pattern of the tissues. Please, see the video below on how the needles are applied in the area.

Typically, folks with this problem often present with subluxated or fixated pelvic (sacroiliac) joints. So, they need to be adjusted to restore the function of the joint that will keep the muscles in check. Certain stretchings will be necessary to prevent further problems and keep the muscles strong and functioning!

Hope this gave you some insight into your leg or gluteal pain!

 

 

 

 

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Disclaimer: These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The products mentioned on this page are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The content in this blog should not be used as a substitute for the professional advice and/or recommendation of qualified healthcare practitioners or licensed physicians. The content presented in this blog is intended for information purposes only. Consult your doctor or healthcare practitioners for your current conditions.