leg pain

[vroni1973]

I have this pain in my leg it only hurts below my calf and my thigh and it only really hurts when I sit or sleep can you help me?

[Tuckamore]

Hi Vroni,

Welcome to the Pain Management Forum of MedHelp. I am sorry you are experiencing pain in your leg. You do not say what type of pain it is. Is it a sciatic type pain? Is it sharp, shooting, throbbing or burning pain? I frequently have sciatic pain and it hurts all the time. How long have you had this pain? It is very possible it could be related to your spine but there are other many other possibilities.

Is your calf red or warm or swollen? You could have a deep vein thrombosis or a phlebitis. If you have DVT this is an urgent medical condition and you should be seen by a physician asap.

Atherosclerosis can block blood flow in the arteries which will cause pain in your leg due to poor circulation. Tendinitis or over use of the muscle can cause pain as can a muscle strain. This could be related to lack of fluids also. The list of possibilities is long.

This could be referred pain, meaning the place where the pain is felt is not the place where the pain originates. An example would be a pinched nerve in the spine and the pain could be felt in the leg.

I am sorry I can not be more specific but without more information than just pain it is difficult to narrow the possibilities. I would suggest that you consult with your PCP.  

Good luck to you. Please let us know how you are doing. I will look forward to your next post. And please take care and be cautious until you do have a diagnosis.

Peace, Tuck

[Mollyrae]

Hello vroni and welcome to the Pain Forum:

Sorry to hear of the nagging leg pain you have been experiencing. There are many things that can contribute to the type of pain you have. Back troubles are one of the most common causes namely Sciatica pain. Have you informed your Doctor of the pain symptoms? If not, then I would do this. You may require some imaging like MRI or CT Scan of the area. Sciatica pain can can flare and be very painful while trying to sleep or get up to a standing position. Also, with Sciatica, Pain often radiates down one leg.  In the mean time, here is some info that might interest you regarding the type of pain your experiencing......

Pseudo-Sciatica - Gluteus minimus
The smallest and deepest of the gluteal muscles, lying beneath the gluteal medius, its fibres run from the pelvis to the hip. Like the overlying gluteus medius it has a split role in life; the anterior fibres medially rotate the thigh whilst the posterior fibres assist lateral rotation, all fibres contribute to abduction of the thigh. It also helps to stabilise the pelvis during ambulation.

Symptoms

Hip pain that may cause a limp during walking. Lying on the affected side may be too painful and result in disturbed sleep. Pain on rising from sitting and standing up straight. The pain in the hip area can be severe and constant with no let up either lying down or walking. As this muscle lies close to the Piriformis, the pain patterns are similar. Like the Piriformis it can cause SI joint dysfunction. But whereas the Piriformis pain pattern can extend down to the knee, the minimus pattern includes the calf and the thigh. Low back pain in the sacral and sacroiliac regions is most likely be due to problems in the gluteus medius. Pain referred from trigger points in the gluteus medius is less likely to involve the thigh; gluteus maximus trigger points restricts flexion at the hip whilst Piriformis trigger points restricts medial rotation.

I hope this was helpful. Please take care and good luck in finding a diagnosis.

Mollyrae