sciatica

Sciatica causes pain that radiates from your lower back into your buttock and down the back of the affected leg. The quality and severity of pain can vary widely. Severe cases of sciatica can be debilitating and get in the way of completing basic daily tasks. Activities you once participated in without a thought may become impossible to do. At Gotham Holistic Acupuncture and Integrative Medicine, we offer effective acupuncture treatments in New York City to address sciatica and other related conditions to get you moving with ease again.

What Is Sciatica, and How Do You Know if You Have It? 

The sciatic nerve exits the spine at your lower back, passes through the buttocks, and then runs down the back of each leg. Sciatica is inflammation or irritation of the nerve resulting in pain. Pain may be felt anywhere along the nerve pathway including the lower back, buttock, or leg, and typically affects one side at a time. Sciatica is caused by impingement or compression of the nerve as it exits your spine at your low back. The underlying cause of this compression is typically related to a subluxation (misaligned vertebrae), a herniated disc, or spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal) in the lumbar spine. Some symptoms of sciatica include:

Piriformis Syndrome

Piriformis syndrome is a condition with symptoms nearly identical to sciatica. Like sciatica, it also involves impingement of the sciatic nerve and can cause pain in the buttock and radiating down the back of the leg. While sciatica is caused by impingement in the low back, piriformis syndrome is caused by compression of the sciatic nerve by the piriformis muscle. The piriformis is a muscle in the buttocks that runs diagonally across the sciatic nerve. If it becomes inflamed or spasms due to overuse during various activities or poor posture, it can compress the sciatic nerve as well as cause local pain in the buttocks.

Other Types of Leg Pain

You may have pain in the leg that does not travel down the back of your leg. In some cases this is due to compression of a different nerve that innervates the leg and the pain will follow the pathway of the affected nerve. In other cases you may have trigger points in the hips or muscles of the legs that are causing localized pain or referring pain to nearby areas. At Gotham Holistic Acupuncture and Integrative Medicine, we always start with a consultation so that we can provide customized treatments tailored to your specific issue. Fortunately, acupuncture is an excellent modality to address sciatica as well as many other joint, nerve, and muscle issues.

How Can Acupuncture Help Sciatica?

Studies show that acupuncture is an effective treatment for sciatica; consistently providing better outcomes than conventional treatment.¹ Our approach to treating sciatica begins with an assessment to custom tailor the treatment to you. We utilize Traditional Chinese Medicine as well as electro-acupuncture; a modern form of acupuncture that involves gentle electro-stimulation on some needles, which is excellent for treating pain conditions. We focus on bringing improved circulation to the lumbar spine and lower extremities to heal tissues and relieve pressure on the sciatic nerve. We also address any tight muscles or trigger points in the hips, glutes (such as the piriformis), and legs that are contributing to the condition. Even when disc degeneration like a herniated disc, or spinal stenosis are involved, addressing surrounding muscles is immensely important and helpful in treatment of this condition. Our acupuncture treatments also work by:

Overcome Sciatica with Acupuncture

If you are looking for a drug-free, holistic, and effective solution for sciatica, piriformis syndrome, or leg pain, acupuncture could be the answer you’re looking for. We’ve helped many of our patients to overcome sciatica and get back to living their life unencumbered by pain with our non-invasive acupuncture treatments. To learn more about how we can help you, schedule your appointment online to meet with our experienced acupuncturist and receive a personalized treatment plan.

Studies on Acupuncture for Sciatica and Piriformis Syndrome

1. Ji M, Wang X, Chen M, Shen Y, Zhang X, Yang J. The Efficacy of Acupuncture for the Treatment of Sciatica: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015;2015:192808. doi: 10.1155/2015/192808. Epub 2015 Sep 6. PMID: 26425130; PMCID: PMC4575738.
2. Liu CH, Yeh TC, Kung YY, Tseng HP, Yang CJ, Hong TY, Cheng CM, Yang JL, Wu TP, Hsieh JC, Chen FP. Changes in resting-state functional connectivity in nonacute sciatica with acupuncture modulation: A preliminary study. Brain Behav. 2020 Feb;10(2):e01494. doi: 10.1002/brb3.1494. Epub 2020 Jan 10. PMID: 31922698; PMCID: PMC7010574.
3. Liu CH, Kung YY, Lin CL, Yang JL, Wu TP, Lin HC, Chang YK, Chang CM, Chen FP. Therapeutic Efficacy and the Impact of the "Dose" Effect of Acupuncture to Treat Sciatica: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study. J Pain Res. 2019 Dec 31;12:3511-3520. doi: 10.2147/JPR.S210672. PMID: 32021387; PMCID: PMC6942513.
4. Cox J, Varatharajan S, Côté P, Optima Collaboration. Effectiveness of Acupuncture Therapies to Manage Musculoskeletal Disorders of the Extremities: A Systematic Review. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2016 Jun;46(6):409-29. doi: 10.2519/jospt.2016.6270. Epub 2016 Apr 26. PMID: 27117725.