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    Categories: Chiropractic Care

Sciatica…Oh My Aching Back

Sciatica symptoms can increase in severity until the sciatic nerve becomes very inflamed.
Most commonly, sciatica results when a spinal disc ruptures in the lower lumbosacral region of the spine. Instead of acting as a gelatinous cushion between the bony vertebrae of the spine, the disc squeezes out from between the vertebrae and presses on one or more of the spinal nerves that form the sciatic nerve, causing inflammation. When back stiffness and lack of flexibility, such as when you get into or out of a chair or car, are left untreated for as little as two or three weeks, symptoms can increase in severity until the sciatic nerve becomes very, very inflamed.

Who’s at risk?

People who sit for a living are at slightly higher risk of back related problems than people who have physical jobs, such as workers in forestry, mining, farming or construction. Sitting at a desk or a computer for eight hours a day, five days a week, can aggravate compression of the spine, which, in turn, can lead to lower back stiffness, back pain and inflammation of the sciatic nerve.

Read the complete article: sciatica_oh-my-aching-back which originally appeared in Canadian Health magazine.