I’m Dr. Dennis Barley from Barley Wellness Chiropractic here in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. Today I’m talking about the best treatment options for sciatica and how we can do three at-home tests to determine where that sciatic is coming from.
In a previous video, I talked about how a subluxation or a misalignment of the vertebra can cause irritation to a nerve, which can lead down the sciatic nerve. Remember, the sciatic nerve is the nerve that goes from the lower back.
Common Causes For Sciatica Pain In Fairhaven, MA
From the two lower back, nerve roots in the lumbar spine and in the sacrum can go down the back of the leg and can cause excruciating pain in the leg. Subluxation or misalignment can create that problem. So can a disc herniation or bulge. If the disc bulges back towards the hole where the nerve root comes out and compresses that can cause sciatic nerve down the leg.
Sciatica can be created by what is called the piriformis muscle so a muscle can do it too. And remember that the piriformis muscle comes from the hip, which is over here, okay, and crosses over and attaches to the sacrum. And this sciatic nerve, which comes to the five nerves coming together that goes down the leg that sits either underneath, and sometimes the sciatic nerve sits in between that muscle and if that muscle tighten tightens, it can cause issues there.
Piriformis Test For Sciatica Pain In Fairhaven, MA
So what are the three tests that I can do? Well, the first one is called the piriformis test. And we’re going to take and look at the muscle to see if the muscle is creating the problem. So the first thing I do is I take the affected leg, the leg that has sciatica and I take the ankle and put it on the knee. And I sit tall, and I pretend that someone’s pulling me straight out from my tie. And I lean forward. If it creates leg pain increase in leg pain, that’s probably a good indicator that the sciatic muscle is tight. And I’ve just loosened it a little bit more tightened it a little more than more and caused a little more irritation there. So we know that that could be the reason for the problem being the muscle.
Slump Test For Sciatica Pain In Fairhaven, MA
The second test that I want to check on is to see if I actually have a disc bulge or herniation. It’s called the slump test. And what I’m going to do there is I’m going to slump and I’m going to lift my legs straight out. If that indeed increases pain down the leg. It’s more than likely due to a disc bulge or herniation.
Milgram’s Test For Sciatica Pain In Fairhaven, MA
And then the last one is something called the milgram’s test. That’s to see if you’ve had a misalignment or subluxation. That one simply I’m going to lie on my back for that one. Simply you’re lying straight on your back and with milgram’s test, you lift your leg straight off the table. And if there’s irritation in the lower back and down the leg, more than likely that problem is due to a subluxation.
This is what chiropractors take care of every day in the office, whether it’s due to that muscle irritation by the piriformis muscle, a disc bulge or herniation, or subluxation in your lower lumbar and pelvic spine.
