PSEUDOSCIATICA

Pseudosciatica or non-discogenic sciatica (pain caused by a disk) , which causes symptoms similar to spinal nerve root compression, is most often referred pain from damage to facet joints (help support the weight and control movement between individual vertebrae of the spine) in the lower back and is felt as pain in the lower back and posterior upper legs. Pseudosciatic pain can also be caused by compression of peripheral sections of the nerve, usually from soft tissue tension in the piriformis or related muscles.

In 15% of the population, the sciatic nerve runs through the piriformis muscle rather than beneath it. When the muscle shortens or spasms due to trauma or overuse, it can compress or strangle the sciatic nerve beneath the muscle. Conditions of this type are generally referred to as entrapment neuropathies; in the particular case of sciatica and the piriformis muscle, this condition is known as piriformis syndrome. It has colloquially been referred to as "wallet sciatica" since a wallet carried in a rear hip pocket will compress the muscles of the buttocks and sciatic nerve when the bearer sits down. Piriformis syndrome may be a cause of sciatica when the nerve root is normal.