Piriformis syndrome: a real pain in the buttock?
One article on PainSci cites Halpin 2009: A Guide to Sciatica Treatment for Patients
PainSci notes on Halpin 2009:
The elusive piriformis syndrome: as unproven as Bigfoot, but with a lot more credible “sightings.” Halpin & Ganju:
“A nonpartisan review of the medical literature pertaining to PS revealed that the existence of this entity remains controversial. There is no definitive proof of its existence despite reported series with large numbers of patients.”
original abstract †Abstracts here may not perfectly match originals, for a variety of technical and practical reasons. Some abstacts are truncated for my purposes here, if they are particularly long-winded and unhelpful. I occasionally add clarifying notes. And I make some minor corrections.
OBJECTIVE: Herein, we provide an unbiased review of piriformis syndrome (PS), a highly controversial syndrome for which no consensus exists regarding diagnostic criteria or pathophysiology.
METHODS: A review of the literature in the English language.
RESULTS: A nonpartisan review of the medical literature pertaining to PS revealed that the existence of this entity remains controversial. There is no definitive proof of its existence despite reported series with large numbers of patients.
CONCLUSION: PS remains a controversial diagnosis for sciatic pain. The debate regarding the clinical significance of PS remains active. Nonetheless, there may be a subset of patients in whom the piriformis muscle is a source of pain. The syndrome should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with unilateral lower extremity pain.
related content
- “Piriformis Syndrome with Variant Sciatic Nerve Anatomy: A Case Report,” Emily Kraus, Adam S Tenforde, Christopher F Beaulieu, John Ratliff, and Michael Fredericson, PM & R: The Journal of Injury, Function, and Rehabilitation, 2015.
- “Piriformis syndrome--a rare cause of extraspinal sciatica,” Shumaila Arooj and Muhammad Azeemuddin, J Pak Med Assoc, 2014.
- “Anatomical variations between the sciatic nerve and the piriformis muscle: a contribution to surgical anatomy in piriformis syndrome,” Konstantinos Natsis, Trifon Totlis, George A Konstantinidis, George Paraskevas, Maria Piagkou, and Juergen Koebke, Surg Radiol Anat, 2014.
This page is part of the PainScience BIBLIOGRAPHY, which contains plain language summaries of thousands of scientific papers & others sources. It’s like a highly specialized blog. A few highlights:
- Relationships Between Sleep Quality and Pain-Related Factors for People with Chronic Low Back Pain: Tests of Reciprocal and Time of Day Effects. Gerhart 2017 Ann Behav Med.
- Modulation in the elastic properties of gastrocnemius muscle heads in individuals with plantar fasciitis and its relationship with pain. Zhou 2020 Sci Rep.
- Association Between Plantar Fasciitis and Isolated Gastrocnemius Tightness. Nakale 2018 Foot Ankle Int.
- No Added Benefit of Combining Dry Needling With Guideline-Based Physical Therapy When Managing Chronic Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Stieven 2020 J Orthop Sports Phys Ther.
- Effectiveness of customised foot orthoses for Achilles tendinopathy: a randomised controlled trial. Munteanu 2015 Br J Sports Med.