Overview. A pinched nerve occurs when too much pressure is applied to a nerve by surrounding tissues, such as bones, cartilage, muscles or tendons. This pressure can cause pain, tingling, numbness or weakness. A pinched nerve can occur in many areas throughout the body.
While some “pinched nerves” may resolve independently with a little TLC, some nerve compression problems worsen over time. If you ignore your symptoms, you could wind up with permanent nerve damage, along with chronic pain, muscle weakness, and mobility problems.
Complete recovery of the acutely compressed nerve can range from weeks to years. In contrast, chronic compressions, as seen in carpal tunnel syndrome, are progressively worsening conditions that persist without proper intervention.
Pinched nerves can last from a few days to about a month, depending on how you treat it. It is typically a temporary condition that you can treat on your own, but it's important to not ignore long-lasting or acute pain as it could be the sign of a bigger problem.
If a nerve is pinched for only a short time, there's usually no permanent damage. Once the pressure is relieved, nerve function returns to normal. However, if the pressure continues, chronic pain and permanent nerve damage can occur.
An MRI may be able help identify structural lesions that may be pressing against the nerve so the problem can be corrected before permanent nerve damage occurs. Nerve damage can usually be diagnosed based on a neurological examination and can be correlated by MRI scan findings.
When the nerves are damaged, they can't send the signals they usually send to your muscles to tell them what to do. This leads to muscle weakness and problems with movement you may experience as an initial symptom of the damage or injury. Muscle weakness due to nerve damage is most often in your arms and legs.
Anticonvulsants, such as gabapentin (Neurontin) and tricyclic medications such as nortriptyline (Pamelor) and amitriptyline are often used to treat nerve-related pain. Corticosteroids, given by mouth or by injection, may help minimize pain and inflammation.
Walking can also increase blood circulation to the damaged nerve, which may facilitate healing and reduce pain.
“A pinched nerve feels different than a muscle sprain or strain,” says spine and neurosurgeon, Anthony Conte, M.D. “It's a sharp, intense pain that extends beyond a single body part.”
You can opt for physiotherapy for nerve compression which is much more effective than treatments. Your doctor may ask you to go for the following treatment and therapies: physical therapy to help build and maintain muscle strength.
In these cases, massage therapy can offer safe, effective relief for your symptoms. One of the main goals of massage is to encourage your muscles to soften, lengthen, and relax. If soft tissues are the cause of your nerve compression, massage can ease some of that painful pressure off the nerve.
Nerve pain often feels like a shooting, stabbing or burning sensation. Sometimes it can feel as sharp and sudden as an electric shock. You may be very sensitive to touch or cold. You may also experience pain as a result of touch that would not normally be painful, such as something lightly brushing your skin.
Your doctor will also check for numbness in your arm or hand. If your history and symptoms suggest a pinched nerve, tests such as these can confirm the diagnosis: Electromyography and nerve conduction studies: These tests measure the electrical signals in your muscles and can indicate whether you have nerve damage.
Your doctor may also recommend the use of specific over-the-counter medications and/or prescribe medications to treat the symptoms of a pinched nerve and help improve daily functioning. If your symptoms persist or worsen, you might benefit from neurological surgery.
Surgery for a pinched nerve may be required once the symptoms caused by pressure on the spinal nerves have become chronic or severe.
Pain that radiates below the knee is a red flag for a herniated disc or nerve root compression below the L3 nerve root. This is based on the dermatomal distribution of the nerve roots and the fact that the pain associated with inflammation radiates along the entire pathway of the nerve.
A traumatic injury can cause swelling or shift bones and ligaments, compressing a nerve. Tumors or cysts can press against a nerve. Pregnancy hormones cause ligaments to loosen and stretch, which can result in nerve compression. Rheumatoid arthritis causes inflammation in the joints, which can lead to nerve entrapment.
Recovery is a slow process, and the biggest thing you can do to regain nerve sensation and function is to move consistently. You may experience tingling feelings and possibly sensations similar to electrical shock, which is a good sign of having new sensitive nerves.
For example, if you've ever heard someone say they have a “crick in their neck,” they could be referring to a pinched nerve. A compressed nerve refers to the squeezing of the roots of nerves in the spinal cord.
Seruya wants his patients to know that after a period of 12-18 months nerve damage can become permanent.