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Sciatica

Yancey Pain & Spine William L Yancey, MD Our Services Sciatica

Yancey Pain & Spine

William L Yancey, MD

Interventional Pain Specialist & Anesthesiologist located in The Woodlands, TX & Houston Medical Center, Houston, TX

Nearly 40% of people in the United States develop sciatica at some point. Though this common pain condition may come and go without the need for medical intervention, if your sciatica is a chronic problem, or the pain is affecting your quality of life, interventional pain specialist William Yancey, MD, at Yancey Pain & Spine can help. He takes an integrative approach to sciatica using a number of nonsurgical treatments to relieve your pain. To schedule an appointment, call the office in Houston or The Woodlands, Texas, or book an evaluation using the online booking tool.

Sciatica Q & A

What is sciatica?

Sciatica is a type of lumbar radiculopathy and common pain condition that involves your sciatic nerve. This pencil-thick nerve, which exits your lumbar spine on both sides of your body, travels through your lower back and into your buttocks and legs to provide sensory information and control the muscles in your legs. 

Sciatica occurs when your sciatic nerve is pinched or irritated. In most cases, a herniated disc is responsible for the nerve irritation or pinching. Bone spurs are also a common cause of sciatica. 

Any injury or damage to a nerve that exits your lumbar spine is generally referred to as lumbar radiculopathy. 

What are sciatica symptoms?

The most common symptom of sciatica is lower back pain that radiates down the back of your leg on one side of your body. The types of sensations you feel may range from a mild ache to debilitating pain. Other symptoms of sciatica include:

  • Burning sensation
  • Electric shock-like jolt
  • Muscle weakness
  • Numbness

With sciatica, you may notice that coughing, sneezing, or too much sitting aggravates your pain.  

Though you may be able to treat mild sciatica pain at home, if your pain worsens over time or lasts longer than four weeks, contact Yancey Pain & Spine to schedule an evaluation. You should also seek help for your sciatica if your pain is debilitating or chronic, even if your pain symptoms come and go. 

Without treatment, the underlying cause of your sciatica may lead to permanent nerve damage that may cause you to lose feeling in your leg or affect your ability to control the contents in your bowel or bladder. 

How is sciatica treated?

With his background in biomedical engineering and meticulous approach to solving problems, Dr. Yancey focuses on finding and treating the root cause of your sciatica, so you get long-lasting relief from your pain. He takes an integrative approach to treating sciatica, offering a number of noninvasive and minimally invasive options to help you avoid surgery.

Your treatment plan may include:

  • Medications
  • Physical therapy
  • Steroid injections

Dr. Yancey continues to work with you until surgery is your only option. If your surgery isn’t successful at relieving your pain, he continues to provide help afterward.

To schedule an appointment at Yancey Pain & Spine, call the office or book an appointment online today. 

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