What Causes Sciatica Pain?

At San Antonio Pain Consultants, we understand how significant conditions like spondylolisthesis can impact your daily life. Spondylolisthesis occurs when one vertebra slips forward over the vertebra below it, disrupting the normal alignment of your spine. This abnormal positioning can compress or irritate nearby nerve roots, especially those forming the sciatic nerve.

The sciatic nerve starts in your lower back and extends into your legs, providing feeling and movement to your lower limbs. When vertebral slippage from spondylolisthesis occurs, it often narrows the spaces through which your spinal nerves travel. This narrowing can lead to inflammation, irritation, and compression of nerve roots, resulting in symptoms such as radiating pain, numbness, tingling, or muscle weakness that travels down your buttocks, thighs, calves, and potentially into your feet.

Furthermore, spinal instability caused by vertebral slippage can alter normal biomechanics, placing additional stress on surrounding muscles and ligaments. At San Antonio Pain Consultants, our specialists recognize how these changes can worsen nerve compression and irritation over time, leading to chronic or intensifying sciatic nerve pain that significantly reduces your ability to comfortably perform daily activities.

Our team is committed to providing individualized, evidence-based care designed to effectively manage sciatic pain caused by spondylolisthesis. We typically begin with conservative approaches, including physical therapy, personalized stretching exercises, anti-inflammatory medications, and minimally invasive treatments such as epidural steroid injections. In cases where conservative treatments do not adequately relieve symptoms, our expert team will coordinate closely with leading spine surgeons to discuss surgical options aimed at restoring proper spinal alignment and relieving nerve compression.

Spinal stenosis is a common condition we regularly address at San Antonio Pain Consultants. It occurs when spaces within the spine narrow, placing pressure on the spinal cord and nerve roots. Because the sciatic nerve originates from nerve roots in the lower back, lumbar spinal stenosis can frequently lead to sciatica. We have extensive experience diagnosing and managing this condition. Patients experiencing compression or irritation of the lower back nerves due to stenosis often report symptoms such as pain, numbness, or tingling sensations that radiate along the sciatic nerve, traveling down the buttocks, legs, and feet.

At our practice, treatment for spinal stenosis-related sciatica typically begins with conservative, non-surgical approaches. Our specialists often recommend personalized programs designed to strengthen supportive muscles, enhance posture, and increase flexibility, ultimately reducing nerve pressure and alleviating discomfort. Additionally, we may prescribe medications, including anti-inflammatory agents or muscle relaxants, to further relieve inflammation and pain.

San Antonio Pain Consultants also specializes in advanced non-surgical procedures such as epidural steroid injections. These injections precisely deliver powerful anti-inflammatory medication directly around the irritated nerve roots, significantly reducing swelling and providing effective, targeted pain relief.

Should conservative treatments no longer provide adequate symptom relief, or if symptoms worsen and significantly impact your quality of life, our specialists collaborate closely with trusted surgical partners. Procedures like lumbar laminectomy, which involves removing a portion of the vertebrae to widen the spinal canal and relieve nerve compression, or spinal fusion surgery to enhance spinal stability, may be considered.

We recognize that each patient’s condition is unique. We emphasize personalized care, partnering with our patients to develop tailored treatment plans based on individual symptoms, overall health, lifestyle, and personal treatment goals. Our dedicated team is committed to helping you achieve lasting pain relief and improved quality of life.

At San Antonio Pain Consultants, our specialists understand that a herniated or ruptured disc can significantly impact your daily life. A herniated disc occurs when the soft, gel-like inner core of an intervertebral disc pushes out through a tear or weakened area in its tougher outer casing. This protrusion frequently puts pressure on nearby nerves, especially the sciatic nerve—the largest nerve in your body—which runs from your lower back, through your buttocks, and down each leg, providing sensation and muscle control.

When a disc herniation compresses or irritates the sciatic nerve roots, inflammation and nerve irritation occur, resulting in the characteristic pain known as sciatica. Patients experiencing sciatica commonly report sharp, shooting, or burning pain radiating down from their lower back into the buttocks, thighs, calves, and sometimes into the feet. Numbness, tingling, and muscle weakness may also accompany these painful sensations, significantly impacting daily routines.

We recognize that the severity and exact location of your symptoms depend greatly on the specific nerve roots affected by the disc herniation. Pressure on different nerve roots can lead to varying patterns of discomfort and functional impairment. You may notice that activities such as prolonged sitting, bending forward, lifting heavy objects, or even coughing or sneezing can intensify your symptoms by increasing pressure on the nerve.

Our dedicated team prioritizes accurate diagnosis, personalized treatment, and comprehensive management of disc herniations and associated sciatic symptoms. By effectively addressing the underlying cause of your condition, we aim to alleviate pain, restore normal function, and help you return to the activities you enjoy most. For more details, contact us or schedule an appointment online. We are located at 3903 Wiseman Blvd, Ste 117, San Antonio, TX 78251. We serve patients from San Antonio TX, Helotes TX, Alamo Ranch TX, Leon Valley TX, Shavano Park TX, Balcones Heights TX, Fair Oaks TX, Fair Oaks Ranch TX, Castroville TX, and surrounding areas.