Saturday 12th October
Herniated disc
One of the most common causes of sciatica is a herniated disc in L4, L5 or S1. It’s also called a slipped disc, though there’s no slipping going on. It happens when some of the disc material (the softer part between your vertebra) pushes out and onto the nerve. The pressure on the nerve causes abnormal signals to be sent to the brain, and you get sciatica.
A herniated disc can happen at any age, but becomes more common in middle age and beyond.
Spinal Stenosis
The spinal canal protects the spinal cord and the nerves that run up and down the spine. Spinal stenosis is the narrowing of that spinal canal. If this canal is narrows (most commonly caused by degeneration of the disc, osteoarthritis of the facet joints or thickened ligaments), pressure can be put onto the nerve. As the lumbar vertebrae undergo the most consistent stress and support the most weight, lumbar stenosis is the most common type of spinal stenosis.
Spondylolisthesis
The bones of the spine are stacked on top of one another, separated by discs. Spondylolisthesis occurs when one of your vertebrae moves forward on top of the vertebra below it. When this happens, the nerve that is in between the two vertebrae get compressed, pinched or irritated.
Trauma
Any type of trauma could cause issues with the nerves that make up your sciatic nerve, including falls or car accidents.
Pregnancy
You may experience muscle or joint aches, especially around your pelvis. This is due to the hormone relaxin. Its job is to help muscles in your cervix and uterus relax and help promote a healthy placenta, but its affects also cause muscles in your low back and pelvis to loosen too. As your spine, and the weight it has to bare, changes, it can cause pulling or pressure your lumbar (low back) spine and cause therefore irritate the nerves too.
