Can Chiropractic Help with Sciatica?

Research evidence revealed that Chiropractic adjustments helped sciatica sufferers achieve relief from low back and leg pain symptoms. Sciatica represents an underlying health condition and manifests through pain, numbness, weakness, or tingling starting in the low back and radiating down the large sciatic nerve in the back of either leg. People suffering from sciatica detail a feeling of pins and needles tormenting the body at varying degrees of pain and discomfort.

Millions of people are affected by sciatica, ranging from just a slight annoyance to a debilitating problem. Most sciatica sufferers take potent prescription medications to deal with the painful symptoms which torment the body. Oftentimes medical doctors prescribe strong NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) to help patients cope with the radiating pain. All medications used for sciatica come with a list of dangerous side effects.

The cause of sciatica differs for every person suffering from the condition. Many underlying factors contribute to the presence of sciatic-type symptoms ranging from herniated discs, muscle strains, scar tissue, tissue inflammation, bone fractures, and many others. Adults over the age of 55 begin experiencing degenerative changes in the spine and stenosis in the lower back along with other complicating factors that accompany an aging body. Similar patterns of pain surface throughout these various causes.

The medical community refers to sciatica as radiculopathy. Radiculopathy involves pain, numbness, weakness, or other altered sensations which travel down an extremity. Radiculopathies down the back of either leg become labeled as sciatica. Sciatica also applies to pinched or compressed nerve pain. Chiropractic provides relief from the discomfort of sciatica due to the involvement of the spine and nervous system. Gentle, specifically administered adjustments to the spine allow the body to recover and manage the underlying conditions that lead to sciatica.

Research published in the reputable “Spine Journal” revealed a group of patients suffering from low back pain and sciatica achieved great results from Chiropractic adjustments. The research monitored patients suffering from low back pain and sciatica. Those found to have spinal misalignments (subluxations) received a low back side posture adjustment. Other patients received a placebo adjustment. Patients who received Chiropractic adjustments achieved a 55% improvement in symptoms involving shooting pain down their legs. Only 20% of patients receiving placebo adjustments reported improvement.

Those receiving active spinal adjustive care enjoyed significantly greater relief of local and radiating pain, spent fewer days with moderate to severe pain, and consumed fewer drugs for the control of the pain. This data continues to add to the expansive evidence which shows why Chiropractic care should be a primary intervention recommended for people experiencing low back pain or radiating sciatica-type symptoms. Safe and effective Chiropractic care serves as the healthiest alternative to any care plan involving harmful and dangerous drugs. Get to the source of the issue with the health benefits of Chiropractic.

The Spine Journal - March 2006
"Chiropractic manipulation in the treatment of acute back pain and sciatica with disc protrusion: a randomized double-blind clinical trial of active and simulated spinal manipulations."
V Santilli, E Beghi, S Finucci