HEP: Piriformis Syndrome
Patient Education
What’s going on?
The sciatic nerve is a large nerve that runs through muscles in your hip and passes down the back of your leg.
Compression or irritation of the nerve usually occurs due to tightness or overactivity of one of your hip muscles.
This tightness may be a result of joint stiffness or poor muscle coordination.
Symptoms include pain, numbness, or tingling in your buttock and in the back of your leg.
This pain is often triggered by sitting, driving, or crossing your legs.
How long will it take?
If you make the necessary adjustments to your activities to decrease stress on the sciatic nerve and surrounding tissues, you will likely see significant improvements in six weeks.
How will we treat your condition at IHSM?
At IHSM, a doctor of physical therapy will perform a detailed physical examination to determine what specific tissues and joints in your buttock and leg have brought on your pain. Based on the findings, your therapist will design a specific treatment plan to help you recover.
This will include an exercise program to open up pathways for the nerve in your hip.
Modalities such as acupuncture, ice, infrared heat or electrical stimulation may also be used to control the pain in your hip and leg.
Your therapist may also work with you to explore ways to perform bothersome activities in a more comfortable manner.
What can you do to help yourself?
Adherence to the home exercise program is essential to ensure an optimal recovery.
Avoid overstretching the piriformis muscle.
Refrain from performing activities that exacerbate the pain like crossing your legs while sitting or sitting on your wallet.
If you prefer side sleeping, add pillows between your legs to minimize a stretch on the hip through the night and to help reduce tissue irritation.
You may apply ice or heat pack to your hip to increase decrease pain and increase blood flow.
Instructions:
You may do all of these exercises right away.
About IHSM
Integrative Health and Sports Medicine, LLC is a one-stop health and wellness center. Our mission is to restore our patients to a healthy, pain-free, and productive life. By combining orthopedic physical therapy techniques, sports medicine, acupuncture, and Chinese medicine, we are able to treat conditions and achieve results in cases that have not responded well to modern Western medicine.
We are located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Please email us at info@integrativesports.com to schedule a consultation and let us help you on your journey to optimal health.