What is sciatica?

Sciatica is a pain that travels down from your lower back or buttock, to your foot.

The sciatic nerve runs down through the back, into the buttock, down the back of the leg and round to the outside of the lower leg and foot.

When the nerve gets irritated, the brain interprets the pain as coming from the buttock or leg instead of the back, where the source actually is.

The pain is often a severe shooting pain, sometimes accompanied with pins and needles or numbness.