If you experience lower back pain, sharp, shooting pain in your legs, or numbness in your legs or feet, it might be due to lumbar radiculopathy. At Tarpon Interventional Pain & Spine Care, with offices in West Plano and North Plano, Texas, the interventional spine pain team can help you find relief. They offer advanced diagnostic and treatment options to reduce the discomfort caused by lumbar radiculopathy without using surgery or other invasive procedures. To learn more, schedule a consultation online or by phone.
Lumbar Radiculopathy Q & A
What is lumbar radiculopathy?
Lumbar radiculopathy is the term for compression of the nerve roots in the lumbar spine. You have five lumbar nerves on either side of your spine that come from your spinal cord, exit through spaces between your lumbar vertebrae, and travel down your legs to your feet. If these nerves become compressed, pinched, or irritated by something along their normal pathway, you can develop symptoms of lumbar radiculopathy.
What are the symptoms of lumbar radiculopathy?
Lumbar radiculopathy symptoms usually appear on one side of your body, but can happen on both sides in more complicated cases. Symptoms generally include:
- Lower back pain
- Sharp, shooting pain from the back to the front or side of your thigh, lower leg, and foot
- Numbness and tingling in your leg or foot
- Weakness in the muscles of your leg and foot
- Decreased coordination or tripping
Symptoms may also present in specific areas of your leg or foot, depending on which nerve root is being compressed. Based on the location of your symptoms, the team can narrow down the potential cause of your discomfort.
What causes lumbar radiculopathy?
Anything that compresses, pinches, or irritates a lumbar nerve root can cause lumbar radiculopathy. Common causes of lumbar radiculopathy include:
- Arthritis
- Spinal stenosis
- Degenerative joint disease
- Degenerative disc disease
- Facet disease
- Spondylolisthesis
- Disc herniations
- Muscle spasms
- Scar tissue from trauma or prior back surgery
To determine the exact cause of your symptoms, the team performs a comprehensive evaluation and physical exam, including imaging like X-rays or an MRI when needed. Based on their findings, the team explains your diagnosis and outlines what treatment options are available for you.
How is lumbar radiculopathy treated?
Treatment for lumbar radiculopathy depends on the cause of your condition and the severity of your symptoms. The team works with physical therapists in the area to provide rehabilitation and conservative therapies for mild to moderate cases.
For more severe or complex cases, or for those cases that don’t resolve with conservative care, the team also offers interventional spinal procedures, such as:
- Facet injections
- Epidural steroid injections
- Joint injections
- Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)
- Nerve blocks
- Spinal cord stimulation (SCS)
These therapies may be used by themselves or combined, depending on your symptoms and response to treatment. In most cases, the team can help reduce your need for surgery through minimally invasive treatment measures.
Call (972) 596-1059 Tarpon Interventional Pain & Spine Care or use online booking to schedule a visit for lower back or nerve-related pain today.