Sitting too much, young man has piriformis syndrome

Having to sit a lot in an office job, the young man was worried after experiencing pain in his right buttock for about 2 months. At the medical facility, he was diagnosed with piriformis syndrome - a rare musculoskeletal disease.

Sitting too much puts office workers at risk of bone and joint diseases - Illustration photo

Piriformis syndrome due to sitting too much

For about 2 months now, NVT (25 years old, in Hanoi) has had pain in his right buttock, which increases when sitting for a long time or when pressing and massaging. His lumbar spine has mild mechanical pain and fatigue, and his right foot feels numb when sitting for a long time.

Worried about the unusual pain and the effects on his quality of life and work, Mr. T. went to MEDLATEC General Hospital for examination.

Mr. T. said that he works in an office and sits a lot. He has no history of any bone or joint injuries, but last April, he went to the doctor and was diagnosed with a herniated disc L5/S1.

Through examination, Dr. Le Thi Duong - musculoskeletal specialist at MEDLATEC General Hospital - preliminarily diagnosed Mr. T. with buttock pain in deep gluteal syndrome.

After performing additional lumbar spine MRI and further evaluation of the piriformis muscle, the doctor diagnosed the patient with piriformis syndrome - right piriformis hypertrophy and L5/S1 disc herniation.

Mr. T. was advised by the doctor on his lifestyle, given exercise instructions (stretching exercises) and given outpatient medication as prescribed by the doctor.

What is piriformis syndrome?

According to Dr. Duong, the piriformis muscle (also known as the pear-shaped muscle) is a flat, pear-shaped or pyramid-shaped muscle, classified as a gluteal muscle. This muscle layer lies deep inside the gluteus maximus muscle and right next to the upper edge of the hip joint.

The piriformis muscle has very important functions such as supporting leg lifting, hip rotation, leg and foot rotation outward, the piriformis muscle runs diagonally across the sciatic nerve.

Piriformis syndrome occurs when this muscle becomes swollen and spasmed. This is a fairly rare condition. Many people believe that piriformis syndrome is the cause of sciatica.

However, according to Dr. Duong, common causes of sciatica include:

Spinal involvement: Lumbar disc herniation, spondylolisthesis, foraminal stenosis (facet joint degeneration, ligament thickening), spinal tumor, spinal abscess.

Extraspinal: Piriformis syndrome, Herpes Zoster, traumatic injury (pelvic fracture, posterior hip dislocation, femoral fracture), biceps femoris hematoma.

Causes of piriformis syndrome

Piriformis syndrome is caused by trauma to the hip joint, buttocks, strong impact, tripping, traffic accident injuries; sitting for a long time, often seen in office workers, drivers, cyclists; athletes who lift heavy objects too much: weightlifting; anatomical abnormalities: split piriformis muscle.

When there are signs such as buttock pain spreading to the legs, increased pain when moving the hip joint, when sitting for a long time; pain when pressing on the hip defect, pain when bending, closing, rotating the hip joint, you need to go to a medical facility for examination. In particular, office workers should go for examination to differentiate from other musculoskeletal diseases such as lumbar spine degeneration, herniated disc.

Depending on the condition and severity of the disease, the doctor will advise one or a combination of treatments such as medical treatment: limiting painful movements; physical therapy or medication.

If the above methods are not effective, your doctor will recommend surgery to relieve the pressure.

How to prevent disease?

To prevent disease, doctors recommend living and working in the correct posture. Before exercising or playing sports, you need to warm up thoroughly.

Do not exercise too hard or too suddenly. Increase the intensity of exercise gradually so that the body can easily adapt and avoid causing injury during exercise.

If pain occurs during exercise, rest until the pain subsides. For those with illness, regular physical therapy is needed to reduce the risk of recurrence.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ngoi-nhieu-nam-thanh-nien-mac-hoi-chung-co-hinh-le-20241118122609791.htm