Piriformis Syndrome

The piriformis muscle is a flat, triangular band-like muscle located at upper portion of the buttocks. This muscle is important for stabilizing the pelvis and hips. Appropriate strength and function of the muscle allows us to walk, shift our weight and maintain balance. The sciatic nerve is a large nerve that passes through or under the piriformis muscle. With piriformis syndrome, the muscle can be injured, tight, spasm or compress the sciatic nerve causing severe buttock pain or pain that radiates down the leg. This usually will cause pain with most activities, including sitting for extended periods to time.

Usually there is no specific injury or activity that causes piriformis syndrome, but it can cause debilitating pain that will significantly limit activities throughout a patient’s day. There are many other spine disorders which can produce similar symptoms and an accurate diagnosis is essential for determining the proper treatment.

Conventional treatment for piriformis syndrome has focused on managing the pain with physical therapy, deep tissue massage, osteopathic manipulation and cortisone injections. For patients who have not responded to conservative measures, treatment with regenerative therapies such as Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) and bone marrow concentrate (stem cell) injections have been shown to be helpful for managing the pain.

Call to schedule an appointment to discuss your treatment options with one of our physicians to determine if stem cell treatment is appropriate for you.