Exams and Tests for Sciatica

Call your spine specialist if you suspect you have sciatica. (If you don't already have a spine specialist, you can find one using our Find a Back and Spine Specialist feature.)

During your visit, your spine specialist will ask you questions and perform some basic exams. This is to try to identify the cause of your sciatica and develop a treatment plan for you—a way to manage your pain and other symptoms and to help you recover.

First, your spine specialist will ask about your current symptoms and remedies you have already tried. He or she will ask some typical questions, such as:

• When did the pain start?
• Where do you feel pain?
• On a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the worst pain imaginable, rate your pain.
• What activities did you recently do?
• Does walking uphill or downhill increase pain?
• What have you done for your pain?
• Does anything reduce the pain or make it worse?

Your spine specialist will also perform physical and neurological exams. In the physical exam, your doctor will observe your posture, range of motion, and physical condition, noting any movement that causes you pain. Your doctor will feel your spine, note its curvature and alignment, and feel for muscle spasm. During the neurological exam, your spine specialist will test your reflexes, muscle strength, other nerve changes, and pain spread.

To diagnose the cause of your sciatica, you may need to have some imaging tests. You may have an x-ray or a Computerized Axial Tomography scan (a CT scan or CAT scan). If it's possible you have a herniated disc or spinal stenosis that's causing your sciatica, your doctor may order a Magnetic Resonance Imaging test (an MRI).