Sciatica

Patient Presentation:

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36 years old female patient with right side back pain due to sciatic nerve. She has been living with this pain for over 5 years and put up with it because it was “part of life”, until it started to really bother her. She did not want to undergo another surgery or have to take medications so she decided to give acupuncture a try.

Her pain is mostly felt from the right buttock and radiates down to her feet. She had back surgery about 5 years ago but it did not completely relieve her of the pain. She complain that the pain has been constant lately and disrupts her sleep. It is also hard for her to get out of bed due to the constant discomfort and stiffness. During clinic observation, she was asked to bend forward and (she) was only able to bend 45 degrees before feeling a “pull” that extends from her lower buttock to her heel. Pain level was a constant 5/10.

 

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Result: After the first treatment, she reported her pain level went down to 1/10. She was able get out of bed without difficulty and bend 60 degrees before feeling some tension and discomfort. After the 2nd treatment, patient reported that she was able to bend forward completely and the pain was no longer constant but occurs when she is very active or during a busy work shift. After the 3rd treatment, the pain was completely gone. She was able to get out of bed without any issue. She also reported better sleep at night and felt less stressed. Patient came in 1x/week for 4 weeks then 1x/every 3 weeks.

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Treatments: 4 until the pain was completely negligible.