Sciatic nerve surgery

Sciatic Nerve Surgery has come a long way in the last few years. Thanks to modern medical advancements there are now a number of herniated disc back surgeries available that are much less invasive and much less painful for the patient. Better yet, the percentage of successful back surgeries is on the rise.

Sciatic nerve surgery include:

Sciatic nerve repair

Nerves can be damaged due to stretching or crushing because of a broken bone or cut from accidents with knives or saws. Not all nerve damage is permanent and some damaged nerves require only time to heal. For example, when your leg "falls asleep" due to nerves being compressed, simply changing position will result in rapid recovery. More serious injury requires assessment and treatment by a physician.

Many people worry about the process of nerve damage repair. Nerve damage, also called peripheral neuropathy, refers to the condition where the nerves branching out from the spinal cord are affected by disease, pressure or trauma. These nerves play a crucial part in transmitting information to and from the brain. Nerve damage by and large affects the nerves that coordinate information between the brain and a muscle and so its symptoms include numbness, tingling, spasms, weakness and pain.  While people of all age groups, both genders and all races are afflicted by nerve damage, diabetics are seen as having a slightly higher risk factor than the average population.

• Rest: When you are suffering from nerve damage, then the first thing required is maximum amount of rest. This will heal up the wound caused to the nerve and help in the faster recovery from the damage. It is also going to prevent any further damage to the nerve. 
• Medicines: In order to give relief to the nerve pain associated with the damage, doctors prescribe tricyclic antidepressants medicines. Other medicines that are prescribed to minimize the pain are some pain relieving medicines and anti-seizure medicines. 
• Surgery: When an irreversible damage has been caused to the nerve by some injuries then surgery is the only option left for nerve damage repair. It may involve reconnection of the disconnected end of the nerves or use of donor nerve to repair the damaged nerve using grafting techniques. 
• Treatment for the Underlying Cause: Controlling blood sugar is a must for diabetic patients. Try to keep the glucose levels in between 80 and 120 in order to reduce the symptoms of nerve damage. This can be achieved with a low glucose diabetic diet, maintaining a healthy body weight and taking medicines on time. If it is caused due to certain medicines then doctors change the drugs which is affecting the nerve. In case of nutritional deficiency, a healthy, balanced diet is recommended by the doctor. 
• Alternative Forms of Treatment: Physical therapy is an excellent alternative method of treating the damaged nerve. It strengthens the muscles and helps in restoration of coordination in the patients. Those who have undergone surgery for nerve damage repair, physical therapy is recommended for them as well for their rehabilitation. Acupuncture is another treatment which has worked wonders on some patients. Many patients have shown marked improvement in their nerve sensation after the treatment.Sometimes nerve damage is the result of some other physiological problem and in those cases, the underlying problem will need to be addressed before the nerve damage repair can happen.

Sciatic nerve damage symptoms

The most significant symptoms are broken down into three groups based on the type of functions they affect. The first group we are going to talk about affects the body’s motor skills. The motor nerves are those which control movement based on the passing of “movement commands” from the brain to the muscles, resulting in the action being performed. These are voluntary actions that are generally premeditated.

Nerve damage symptoms that can indicate an issue with motor nerves vary, but the general indication should be a hindrance in everyday movements. Sometimes the patient’s arms and/or legs may feel heavy or be difficult to move. Gripping or picking up objects can be difficult or even impossible, as well as flexing the feet or toes. Motor nerve damage may make it difficult for a person to push buttons on the telephone or remote control due to muscle spasms, and writing legibly can be a near-impossible task. General weakness of the muscles, uncontrollable twitching or “muscle jumps”, and even paralysis can result from nerve damage to the motor nerves.

The next symptoms are ones that affect the autonomic nerves. The autonomic nerve system is responsible for controlling the functions that we usually don’t think about doing or have very little control over—things like blinking, holding in urine, breathing, digesting food, as well as pumping blood throughout the body. These functions are vital to everyday functioning and a person’s overall heath can be jeopardized when the autonomic nerves have been damaged or lost altogether.

The symptoms that may crop up when the autonomic nerves are having an issue range from minor, not-so-prominent symptoms to very obvious and intrusive issues. Smaller-scale issues include dry eyes and mouth, trouble sweating or sweating too often, and lightheadedness. More intrusive problems include loss of bladder control, sexual dysfunction, blood pressure issues including temperature regulation, and nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or constipation due to insufficient digestion.

The third category of symptoms falls into the sensory range. Each of the body’s senses—sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch—can be impaired by damaged nerves. There are sensory nerves all over our body but damage to these nerves does not necessarily transmit signals of pain or discomfort to the brain, so detection can be more difficult. For example, damage to the nerves that transfer sounds from our ears to our brain only do that one thing—they won’t transmit pain sensory because “pain messages” are transmitted to the brain by other nerves.

Sciatic nerve damage and treatment

Sciatic nerve is the thickest biggest nerve in your body. It starts in the lower spinal cord. It’s formed from several nerve roots that combine into the sciatic nerve that runs in the back of your of your buttock actually and down the back of your leg, and sciatic nerve can be compressed, most often by a spasm of muscles.

Treatment for the underlying problem that caused the sciatic nerve damage depends entirely on what that problem is.  A full recovery can be achieved with some problems that cause sciatica, but other problems may leave the patient partially or fully disabled.  Complications may include loss of leg mobility, loss of feeling in the leg, and side effects from medications prescribed by the doctor to treat the underlying cause of the sciatica.  In some cases, physical therapy may help the patient recover all or some use of the leg that was affected.  A neurologist can provide the specialized medical knowledge you need to find as much of a recovery as possible.

Now, there are also other reasons such as a herniated disk that comes out between the lumbar vertebrae. That disk usually causes one root compression not the entire sciatic nerve but pain is felt the same way. That is, pain down the leg, the back of your leg all the way down to the foot sometimes from compression of the sciatic nerve.

But again, the most common cause is muscle spasm in your buttock or deeper inside, and constriction of that nerve, and pain radiates up and down the leg. And the treatment often is very effective; physical therapy, heat, muscle relaxants, painkillers, and by all means avoid surgery. Surgery is overdone. Ninety over ninety percent of back surgeries for sciatic nerve damage is unnecessary. They have done studies proving that point.

That is, if you take people who had surgery for their sciatic nerve or spinal nerve compression and people who had medical treatment, just physical therapy and medicine, after six months there is no difference. Even though those who have surgery may have quicker relief, they feel better faster, but after six months there is no difference. So, avoid surgery, maintain healthy back; that is exercise your back, don’t sit too long, and this way you can prevent sciatic nerve damage in the first place. But, if it happens, physical therapy, medications, heat, acupuncture and things like that can help you.

Home treatments for sciatica include ice and heating pads.  Ice is your best bet for the first three days, but after that you should switch to heating pads instead.  Over the counter pain relievers like ibuprofen or acetaminophen can help relieve the pain.  Also try sleeping on your side with a pillow in between your legs.  If you’re a back sleeper, place a pillow under your knees instead.  Your doctor might also recommend a steroidal injection to try and reduce the inflammation surrounding the nerve.

Sciatic nerve damage

The sciatic nerve is the the longest and thickest nerve in the human body, but it can quite easily be damaged.  The two sciatic nerves in our body begin on either side of the base of the spine and extend down through each of our legs.  These nerves have a long trajectory, but most of the time, the damage suffered by the sciatic nerve happens right at the root of the nerve, very near the spine.  This is a very sensitive area of the body, since the spine can suffer a number of traumas which affect the spinal column, and in some cases, also cause damage to one of the sciatic nerves which emanates from it.

Sciatica and sciatic nerve pain most often occur in people between the ages of 30 and 50.   It’s usually caused by regular wear and tear on the nerve, and not by any specific injury.  Doctors typically diagnose sciatic nerve damage through a review of the symptoms, followed by x-rays, MRI’s, and even blood tests.  Your doctor will carefully consider all your symptoms before deciding which tests to run to confirm sciatica and figure out what’s causing the sciatica.

Damage to the sciatic nerve is cause primarily by compressing this nerve and not allowing the blood to flow normally.  When the nerve is restricted or squeezed, this causes swelling and inflammation.  The resulting pain ranges from a mild numbness or tingling to severe spasms and cramps, and the inability to stand or walk.

Sciatic nerve damage can be caused by a number of different problems, including a slipped disk, degenerative disk disease, spinal stenosis, tumors, or a pelvic injury.  Usually pain caused by sciatic nerve damage starts out feeling similar to a mild tingling in the leg on one side of the body.  It may also feel like a dull ache or burning.  The pain and tingling can also be felt behind the calf or on the sole of your foot.  In many cases, patients who suffer from sciatic nerve damage may find themselves unable to move because the pain is so severe.  The leg that’s affected by the sciatic nerve damage may also be very weak.

The spinal cord is a soft bundle of nerves that starts at the base of the brain and runs down the middle of the back. It is the main pathway for communication between the brain and the rest of the body. The cord is covered by the protective spinal column (the vertebrae). Nerves enter and exit the spinal cord all the way down its length, passing through small openings between each vertebra. Nerve roots also stick out through these openings, exchanging nerve signals with the rest of the body.

The vertebrae are separated from each other by discs made of cartilage, a substance like bone but softer. Each disc has a tough outside layer and a soft inside part that acts as a shock absorber, cushioning the vertebrae when the body moves around. If the disc is damaged by injury or through aging, the inner part can bulge or slip through the outer layer. The "extruded" or "herniated" inner part of the disc may then compress or inflame a nerve root sticking out between two adjacent vertebrae. The disc may even injure the nerve root. If this happens in the lower back area, it leads to pain travelling down the sciatic nerve in the leg.

The presence of a herniated lower spinal disk generally results in sciatica.  The bulging of the hernia pinches the sciatic nerve, cause sciatica pain.  Once the hernia is removed, the pain disappears.  If, however, the damage to the sciatic nerve is caused by bad posture or another back injuring activity, the pain will continue if the activity is not suspended.   Sciatic nerve pain will subside and the nerve will heal naturally over the space of several weeks, if no further damage occurs.