A common complaint among people who do sedentary work is back pain on one side and leg pain radiating from it. Because of this, they often don’t put their full weight on their side, which can cause additional locomotor problems after a while. That is why it is worth investigating the problem in time and having it treated. Dr. Éva Váradi, a specialist in active pain relief at the Pain Center, explains the common root cause of the complaint.
Piriformis syndrome
The pear-shaped piriformis muscle participates in the outward rotation of the hip and connects the sacrum to the buttock. Since the sciatic nerve runs below it, if the muscle is under pressure, it is accompanied by discomfort and pain, which can often radiate to both the thigh and leg.
Its causes most often include some kind of trauma, inflammation, bad posture, or a congenital disorder (e.g. lower limbs of a different length), as a result of which the muscle tenses, spasms, and then shortens over time. In addition to all of this, sitting work can also trigger the condition, because then the hip joint is in the same abnormal position for a long time, which causes the muscles around the pelvis to tighten – and this also affects the piriformis muscle.
Symptoms
- back pain
- leg pain radiating from the buttock, numbness (usually unilateral)
- the pain increases when sitting
Based on the symptoms, it is often confused with disc herniation, but a significant difference is that there is no lower back pain with piriformis syndrome. Nevertheless, it is of course possible to make sure of the exact diagnosis with an imaging test, says Dr. Senior physician Éva Váradi, specialist in active pain relief at the Pain Center.
There is a solution to the pain
Although home remedies and stretching the muscle may seem like a good idea, if there is inflammation in the area, it can only make the condition worse. That is why it is worth asking for help, since the primary task is to eliminate the inflammation. Active pain relief offers an excellent solution for this, since the substance responsible for inflammation is quickly removed due to the increase in circulation with the injection-infiltrative technique that forms its basis. After this, muscle relaxation is required with the help of physical therapy, which can be supplemented with relaxing, pain-relieving alternative treatments (e.g. guna therapy, acupuncture).
Source: Pain center
Source: www.patikamagazin.hu
