What it is
Lumbar radiculopathy is compression or irritation of a nerve root in the lower back. Each root supplies a specific strip of the leg, so symptoms follow a recognizable path — sciatica is the most familiar version, but the exact pattern (front of thigh, side of calf, bottom of foot) points to the specific level involved.
Common symptoms
- Shooting, burning, or electric pain down one leg
- Numbness or tingling in a specific stripe of the leg or foot
- Ankle or foot weakness — difficulty on toes or heels
- Urgent signs: progressive weakness, saddle numbness, or bladder/bowel changes — seek immediate care
Why it happens
The common causes are a herniated disc, stenosis narrowing the nerve's corridor, or spondylolisthesis distorting it. Most episodes improve substantially with conservative care over 6–12 weeks.
How Dr. Pompliano evaluates it
Every evaluation starts with listening — a detailed history of your symptoms, how they behave, and how they limit your life — followed by a focused physical and neurological examination and a careful review of your imaging. The diagnosis drives the plan, not the other way around.
Treatment: conservative first
Most patients with this condition improve without surgery. Depending on your specific situation, a plan may include:
- Guided activity & therapy: staying appropriately active outperforms rest; therapy adds nerve mobility and core work
- Medication: short anti-inflammatory courses; nerve-pain agents in selected cases
- Epidural steroid injections: meaningful relief while the underlying irritation settles
Surgery is recommended only when symptoms persist despite a genuine course of conservative care, or when there are signs of progressive nerve or spinal cord compromise.
When surgery makes sense
Surgery — most often minimally invasive microdiscectomy or decompression — is considered for persistent symptoms or progressive weakness, with fusion added only when instability demands it.
Related procedures: Microdiscectomy · Posterior Decompression · TLIF