How We Treat Low Back Leg Pain
Do you have low back pain or low back related leg pain? Luckily, the way we treat low back leg pain is one of our many specialties. Low back leg pain is a lot more common in patients than you may think. This condition is usually very complex and a result of many different problems. Let’s take a look at some treatments that may be able to help you.
First, your doctor needs to determine whether or not the leg pain is radicular or referred in nature. Radicular means that the presence of nerve root compression or a pinched nerve root. This is mostly caused by a herniated disc. Referred leg pain mainly comes from a ligament, joint, or tear in the outer layer of this disk. Determining which type of pain this is will help to figure out which part of the low back needs to be addressed.
Signs and symptoms of radicular leg pain are: Specific geographic tracing of the leg pain (exceeds the level of the knee which affects the outer, top, or inside of the foot).
Signs and symptoms of referred leg pain are: Neurological loss with sensory impairment, muscle weakness in specific areas.
This type of pain can be quite impairing. Patients describe it as a deep ache or numbness that usually stays above the knee.
There have not been many studies that show the long term benefits of using prescription medicine, epidural corticosteroid injections, or surgery to treat this low back pain. There have been studies conducted on the use of spinal manipulation being much more effective. 81 percent of chiropractors treat patients with this condition.
Treating low back pain and referred leg pain is successful with patients when combined with spinal manipulative therapy, exercise, and patient education. If you are in pain, come see us today or schedule an appointment.
