A person experiencing cramps in the hamstrings and pain in the lower back may be suffering from sciatica, a condition in which the sciatic nerve is irritated or injured. Symptoms of sciatica include tingling, pain, numbness or weakness from the lower back all the way down a person's leg. Physical activity, including stretching and strengthening exercises, may help reduce the causes and the associated pain of sciatica.
Disc And Muscle Compression
Sciatic pain may be caused when a person's spinal discs of his back press against the sciatic nerve. The disc may be disfigured or the gel-like substance within the disk may be seeping out against the nerve. Pain may be alleviated by strengthening a person's abdominal, lower back and gluteal muscles, according to Peggy Houglum, Ph.D., in her book "Therapeutic Exercise for Musculoskeletal Injuries." Sciatic pain might also be caused when the space within the spinal canal decreases as a result of normal, age-related wear and tear on the spinal column, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. A person's piriformis muscle, a small muscle underneath his gluteal muscle, may also compress against his sciatic nerve. His piriformis may be tight due to lack of stretching or it may spasm, causing sciatic pain.
Trauma, Tumors And Shifting
An injury to the muscles, bones and joints from the origin of the sciatic nerve in the spine to its termination in each foot may also cause pain. Injury and inflammatory responses of the nerve or the surrounding tissues may generate pain sensations from her back all the way down to her foot. A tumor growing within the spinal cord, around the spinal cord or in the sciatic nerve will compress against her nerve, causing pain as well.
Heat And Fatique
Heat and fatigue can cause a person's hamstring muscles to cramp. Compression or injury to the sciatic nerve may also induce hamstring cramps, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. A person suffering from sciatica should take precautionary measures to avoid overheating and fatiguing, decreasing his risk of hamstring cramps. A short warmup followed by a quick stretch of his lower back, piriformis and gluteals, hamstrings and calves should further prevent muscle cramps; this progressively increases the temperature and range of motion of his muscles, decreasing the likelihood of compression against his sciatic nerve.
References
- "Therapeutic Exercise for Musculoskeletal Injuries"; Peggy Houglum, Ph.D.; 2005
- MedlinePlus: Sciatica
- Ortho Info: American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons: Lumbar Spinal Stenosis
- MayoClinic.com: Sciatica: Causes
- Ortho Info: American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons: Muscle Cramp
