The bothersomeness of sciatica: patients’ self-report of paresthesia, weakness and leg pain

Abstract

The objective of the study was to investigate how patients with sciatica due to disc herniation rate the bothersomeness of paresthesia and weakness as compared to leg pain, and how these symptoms are associated with socio-demographic and clinical characteristics. A crosssectional study was conducted on 411 patients with clinical signs of radiculopathy. Items from the Sciatica Bothersomeness Index (0 = none to 6 = extremely) were used to establish values for paresthesia, weakness and leg pain. Associations with socio-demographic and clinical variables were analyzed by multiple linear regression. Mean scores (SD) were 4.5 (1.5) for leg pain, 3.4 (1.8) for paresthesia and 2.6 (2.0) for weakness. Women reported higher levels of bothersomeness for all three symptoms with mean scores approximately 10% higher than men. In the multivariate models, more severe symptoms were associated with lower physical function and higher emotional distress. Muscular paresis explained 19% of the variability in self-reported weakness, sensory findings explained 10% of the variability in paresthesia, and straight leg raising test explained 9% of the variability in leg pain. In addition to leg pain, paresthesia and weakness should be assessed when measuring symptom severity in sciatica.

Comorbid subjective health complaints in patients with sciatica: A prospective study including comparison with the general population

“…Neurobiological research suggests that pain and emotional distress are driven by overlapping pathophysiological processes in the brain and body [37][38][39]. In sciatica, other symptoms than pain, namely paresthesia and weakness, are also associated with emotional distress [40]. Because symptoms like fatigue, sleep problems, abdominal discomfort, and dizziness are used to diagnose anxiety disorder and depression it may be difficult to make clear distinctions between the phenomena of emotional distress and somatic symptoms.…”

Individualised physiotherapy as an adjunct to guideline-based advice for low back disorders in primary care: a randomised controlled trial

“…Primary outcome measures were activity limitation (Oswestry Disability Index21 22) as well as back pain and leg pain (NRS23). Secondary outcome measures were global rating of change,24 25 satisfaction with physiotherapy treatment and with treatment results,26 the Sciatica Frequency and Bothersomeness Scale,27 28 self-reported number of LBD-related work days missed,26 29 degree of interference with work,26 29 Örebro Musculoskeletal Pain Questionnaire score19 30 and health-related quality of life (EuroQol-5D) 31. Adverse events were documented by trial physiotherapists in the clinical notes and collected via open questioning of participants on questionnaires.…”

Patientsʼ Own Accounts of Sciatica

“…W hile clinical and epidemiological studies of sciatica have increased [1][2][3] and the assessment of patientcentered outcomes such as "bothersomeness" 4,5 and "goal attainment scaling" 6 has been developed, reports of patients' own accounts of sciatica are still relatively scarce. 7 This is in contrast to research on low back pain (LBP) where many studies have focused on how sufferers live with their condition on an everyday basis and make physical, social, and psychological adjustments that often require changes in their perceptions of themselves and their future.…”