Hitting A Nerve: Sciatica Nerve Pain Causes

The human anatomy is comprised of a series of systems that help to maintain the health of the body and allow for the individual to enjoy their lives. Specifically some of those systems include the respiratory system, the circulatory system, the reproductive system, urinary tract system, digestive system, etc.

In addition one other critical system that is part of the human anatomy is the nervous system. This system is critical to the health of the individual because the nervous system is a network of nerves that are found throughout the body and transmit impulses through the spinal cord to the brain.

However, there are instances where nerves maybe pinched or compressed in other fashions which can cause severe pain to various parts of the body. One such painful condition that can be experienced through the pinching process is a condition known as sciatica. Therefore, if considering sciatica, it is important to know what sciatica is and what some of the sciatica nerve pain causes are.

Sciatica is a symptom that causes pain in an individual's hip or can extend down through the leg, affect the knee area as well as cause discomfort in the lower leg. This pain can be characterized as numbness, moderate pain or severe pain.

Specifically, sciatica is a symptom that affects one or both of the sciatic nerves. These sciatic nerves are the longest nerves in the human body and travel down from the lower spine with one nerve extending down the right leg and the other nerve running down the left leg.

There many sciatica nerve pain causes. One of those sciatica nerve pain causes is associated with old age. This is due to the fact that as the body grows older there is a deterioration that takes place.

One important part of the human anatomy that is affected by this natural process is the spine. Subsequently, as the spine deteriorates, the vertebrae collapse enough so that the sciatica nerves that tunnel through the vertebrae are affected or pinched causing sciatica.

Another sciatica nerve pain cause is due to a herniated disc. This condition is caused if the individual lifts heavy objects the wrong way, exercises improperly or when trauma happens.

When a herniated disc occurs the disc between the vertebrae bulges out. This in turn may cause stress or pressure on the sciatic nerve and therefore, may cause sciatica.

Also, a discussion about this painful condition should include sciatica causes and treatment. Specifically, some of the treatment methods include a cold pack treatment, exercise and movement.