PIRIFORMIS SYNDROME/SCIATICA
The Piriformis is one of the small muscles deep in the buttocks that rotates the leg outwards. It runs from the base of the spine and attaches to the thigh bone (femur) roughly where the outside crease in your bum is. The sciatic nerve runs very close to this muscle and sometimes even through it! If the muscle becomes tight it can put pressure on the sciatic nerve and cause pain which can radiate down the leg.
Sciatica is pain that starts in the back and radiates down one of the legs. It is quite a common complaint and sciatica is caused by pressure on the sciatic nerve which runs down into the leg. The medical term is acute nerve root compression. The cause of pressure can be varied from a slipped (Prolapsed) disk to muscle tension (Piriformis syndrome) or something less common such as tumors, bony growths and infections.
SYMPTOMS
- Pain directly behind the hip bone near the buttocks.
- Acute low back pain.
- Pain radiating down the leg. This pain may be sharp and accompanied by pins and needles and / or numbness.
- Pain is often triggered by a minor movement such bending over to pick something up.
- Pain may be worse by sitting, lifting, coughing or sneezing.
- Pain is usually relieved by lying down, often on one side.
- Pain is often better in the morning after a nights rest.
- There may be muscle spasm in the lower back.
- Tenderness in the lower back when pressing in.
WHAT CAN THE ATHLETE DO?
- Rest
- Heat in the early stages can help alleviate discomfort and pain.
- Stretch the piriformis muscle.
