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Numbness, weakness, radiculopathy, and sciatica are all neurological symptoms. These symptoms indicate that neural tissue, such as your nerve roots and/or spinal cord, is compressed (i.e., pinched) and/or irritated.
Numbness
Numbness is a manifestation of abnormal nervous system activity. Numbness is felt when nerve impulses are not traveling properly from the skin to the brain.
Weakness
Weakness occurs when signals do not travel properly from your brain to your muscles or from changes in your muscles themselves. There are many reasons people experience weakness related to low back pain, but the most common cause of overall systemic weakness is inactivity.
Radiculopathy
The term radiculopathy is used to specifically describe pain, and other symptoms like numbness, tingling, and weakness in your arms or legs that are caused by a problem with your nerve roots. The nerve roots are branches of the spinal cord that carry signals to the rest of the body at each level along the spine.
Sciatica
Sciatica occurs when a herniated lumbar disc compresses one of the contributing roots of the sciatic nerve. This type of low back pain is less common than other causes of low back pain.


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| Published: March 17, 2005 |
Updated: March 17, 2005 |
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