Remedies for Sciatic Nerve Pain

Having constant pain due to sciatica can drive anyone up the wall. Most people will do anything just to get rid of the pain. There are a few options that one can utilize to get reel relief from sciatica pain. There are pain killers, anti inflammatory medicine, muscle relaxer medicine, exercise, surgical procedures and non surgical procedures that can be used.

Surgery is the most radical and invasive procedure that can be done but it is seldom necessary to perform surgery to cure sciatica pain. In milder cases you can relief the pain with over the counter medicine like Ibuprofen or Aspirin. Mostly doctors will prescribe anti-inflammatory medicine for a start.

When no results are apparent with above mentioned medicine stronger medication such as Codeine will be prescribed. It is important to note that such medicine should be taken with care as it can lead to addiction.

Another form of pain relief comes with muscle relaxers. This form of medicine can make you drowsy and therefore should not be taken while driving for obvious reasons.

Exercise is another form of pain relief and has a positive effect in the long term on sciatica pain. Exercise causes the muscles to get stronger and to relax more. This in effect reduces the pressure that the muscle exerts on the sciatic nerve, causing a long term cure from sciatica pain. This is why it is commonly believed that exercise is the best way to alleviate sciatica pain.

After exhausting all other options a doctor may suggest surgery. This is a last resort option and should only be considered after all other avenues have failed. There are a few different surgeries' that might be considered depending on the type of sciatica pain that is experienced.

1. Microdiscectomy is done by removing material from a herniated disc to remove pressure from the root of the sciatic nerve that is being compressed thereby relieving the patient of pain.

2. A Lumber laminectomy is done by removing material from the "lamina" area of a vertebra creating more space for the nerve bundle in the spinal column.

3. An Open discectomy or commonly known as a Discectomy is a very invasive and old procedure which involves removal of muscle bone and other tissue to alleviate the pain caused by compression of the sciatica nerve. This procedure is not recommended because there are better options to consider. Options like Microdiscectomy, Endoscopic Discectomy, and Laser Discectomy. These are all procedures done creating the same result with different instruments and methods.

4. The last option and not so commonly used is Spinal fusion. It involves binding together some of the vertebrae to stop chafing like movement on the sciatica nerve. The disadvantage is that it severely reduces a person's movement within the spinal column. This is only done as a last resort after osteoporosis set in and nothing else can be done to stop the back pain caused by the sciatic nerve being irritated.

It is important to note that although there are a lot of options not everyone will experience the same results from using them.The best is to consult with your medical practitioner and together decide on the best course of action for your case.