Sciatica Red Flags

Look carefully at the list of sciatica red flags below. You should arrange to see your doctor if you feel you have sciatica, especially if all self-care attempts at easing the symptoms have failed, or the pain lasts for several weeks; but you should seek immediate medical attention (as in: go to your hospital's Accident & Emergency department now) if you have any of the following further symptoms or conditions, since they may indicate a problem that is not simply sciatica:

• You are younger than twenty or older than fifty-five when you first get sciatica symptoms
• The sciatica symptoms appear after a violent injury, such as a fall from a ladder, or a car crash
• The sciatica pain is constant, has not improved over several days, or is getting worse
• The sciatica pain is in the back of your chest
• You have had cancer, or you have it now
• You are taking steroids
• You are an IV drug abuser, or have HIV
• You have unexpectedly lost a significant amount of weight recently
• You have great difficulty bending forwards
• You have developed an obvious structural deformity in your spine
• You have numbness or weakness in your legs (or perhaps other parts of your body), and this is increasing
• You lose control of your bowels or bladder or have numbness in your genitals.
• You have unexplained fever and chills, and have back pain

Go to the hospital now and have a check-up!