Spinal stenosis can start with a tingling sensation or numbness in your leg. Symptoms will develop slowly over time, but walking or standing upright will become painful. The only reprieve is when you’re sitting or lying down.
Spinal stenosis, which can be debilitating, is when the lower back spinal nerve roots are compressed, producing sciatica (that tingling, weakness or numbness you feel from the lower back and into the buttocks and legs). The word “stenosis” comes from a Greek word meaning “choking.” It occurs when the lower back spinal nerves are “choked.”
Spinal Stenosis Symptoms
Spinal stenosis can develop with age. As you become older, your bones will become more brittle and can degenerate, which can lead to spinal stenosis. Symptoms and severity will vary per patient, but the three commons ones include:
- Leg pain (sciatica)
- Leg pain with walking (claudication)
- Tingling, weakness or numbness that radiates from the lower back into the buttocks and legs.
If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, you are not alone. About 400,000 Americans are diagnosed with spinal stenosis and suffer from debilitating leg and lower back pain. Spinal stenosis is common in older men and women over the age of 60. More than three-quarters of adults that experience it experience it in their lower backs, or lumbar spine.
The pain from those “choked nerves” may force you to change or moderate some of your former activities, but it doesn’t have to.
If you’re experiencing any lower back pain or tingling, the offices of William Capicotto M.D. may be able to help you restore motion to your spine and move on in your life. If you’re feeling any pain, be sure to consult a professional and experienced spine specialist like William Capicotto M.D.
