Sciatica: A Painful Accident Injury
“Oh my sciatica” sounds like a line from a bad sitcom about the elderly, but if you’ve ever had the condition, you know it’s not funny. People of any age can develop sciatica, often from an injury caused by a moving vehicle accident or a slip and fall. When you develop leg or back pain after an accident, you need to seek help from the experts at Regional Medical Group, where they offer the most advanced treatment available for accident victims of all ages.
Sciatica Basics
Sciatica is caused by pressure on the sciatic nerve, the longest nerve in the body. It begins in your lower back and then divides, running down your buttocks through the legs and into your feet. This pressure causes various levels of pain to radiate all along this path. You will often feel severe sharp pains shoot down your legs, making it difficult to sit, walk and perform your daily duties. If you have sciatica, you may also experience numbness and tingling in your leg or foot. In some of the worst cases, you can lose control of your bladder and bowels. The condition most frequently affects those between ages 30 and 50 but can occur in all age groups, including young children.
Sciatica Causes
Sciatica can be caused by a herniated disk, a bone spur, a tumor or a disease such as diabetes. If you are overweight, frequently carry heavy loads or sit extensively, you are at risk of developing this painful condition.
Accidents can also cause sciatica. Any type of trauma to the lumbar or sacral spinal nerve roots can compress the nerve, leaving you with severe pain and limited mobility. Sometimes, these accidents cause small pieces of bone to break off and push on the nerves. Motor vehicle accidents are often to blame, but slip and fall accidents and work-related injuries are also often responsible. Any type of severe impact can also cause herniated disks, which also may irritate the sciatic nerve.
Diagnosing and Treating Sciatica
A skilled physician will use various methods to diagnose your sciatica, but advanced imaging may be needed. In some cases, simply resting and taking OTC medications can relieve the condition in several weeks. More severe cases may require physical therapy and steroid injections to relieve the pain. Rarely, surgery will be necessary to bring you relief and allow you to resume normal activity.
Regional Medical Group
If you are involved in an accident in the Atlanta area, call Regional Medical Group for help. The skilled staff provides complete medical services to accident victims, including diagnosis, treatment and follow up care. They coordinate with local imaging providers, so if you suffer nerve compression or a herniated disk, they can detect it early and relieve the symptoms of sciatica and other accident-related injuries.
At RMG, you never have to worry about your financial status. The staff offers medical services on a lien, so your bill is paid out of your legal settlement. That way, you can receive all the tests and treatments that you need without worrying about your insurance status. They also provide complete case management, carefully documenting all of your treatments to better aid your legal team.
If you are an accident victim in the Atlanta area, call 404-943-9996 or visit the website for more information.
