Sacroiliac Joint Pain Causes

The only reason most people have heard of sacroiliac joints is a popular song from the late 1940's that included the words "put a little movement in your sacroiliac." The song was "The Hucklebuck," which doesn't get much play these days, but which accurately portrays the role of the sacroiliac joints. 

There are two sacroiliac joints in your lower back, near the very bottom. Thanks to these joints, you can also dance to the words of a popular Chubby Checker song of the 60s called "The Twist." The sacroiliac joints facilitate twisting or torsional movements.

As you might expect, pain in the sacroiliac joints (often abbreviated to SIJ) can be especially distressing because your range of movement becomes limited.

Sacroiliac joint dysfunction is usually categorized in two ways.

• Hyper mobility - this means the joints are more flexible or "loose" than they should be.
• Hypo mobility - meaning the joints are less flexible than in should be. When this condition is severe, the joint is sometimes described as being "locked."

Either condition can negatively influence other structures in the area like muscles and ligaments. When these can't work as they should, they'll cause a number of symptoms, including lower back pain, buttock pain, thigh pain and groin pain.

Causes of Sacroiliac Joint Pain

Sacroiliac joint pain usually results from one of four causes.

Traumatic injuries - impact from an accident or blow to the sacroiliac area can result in pain. Certain contact sports that require a lot of twisting and turning (like American football) put players at higher risk for sacroiliac joint injury.

Pain in the area of the sacroiliac joints can also occur because of damage to nearby ligaments and muscles due to hyperextension.

You can also injure your sacroiliac joints if you slip and fall down hard on your buttocks.

Biomechanical dysfunction - Pain from these kinds of problems tends to occur when your joints, ligaments, and muscles are asked to perform in a way that's different from normal. For instance, someone who suffers a leg injury may walk differently to avoid pain. But by changing their gait, they may create a strain on muscles and ligaments in their back.

Someone whose legs are slightly different lengths can experience similar problems because of imbalances on the weight load supported by their back. Such situations can be especially difficult on the SIJ.

Hormonal issues - These affect pregnant women, and are among the reasons many women experience lower back discomfort as their pregnancy progresses. As she gets closer to delivery, a woman's ligaments in the pelvic area automatically relax in preparation for giving birth. As these ligaments stretch they're also asked to balance the additional weight of the growing baby. This places additional strain on the SIJ, which causes lower back pain..

Inflammatory joint disorders - Inflammatory conditions can affect the SIJ. The most common is a disorder called ankylosing spondylitis which most often affects the joints between the vertebrae of your spine and the joints between your spine and pelvis.

Symptoms of sacroiliac joint dysfunction

Pain is the most typical symptom of a sacroiliac joint problem. It can be mild or severe, and it can present on either side of the spine. This pain can radiate down to the buttocks and around to the lower abdomen and groin area. Men may experience testicular pain. This pain can feel similar to the pain caused by sciatica.

Movement may be affected: there could be too little, or too much. You may have trouble turning over in bed or bending down to put on your socks and shoes.

Sitting or driving for long periods can become uncomfortable.

Certain areas of your lower back may be tender to the touch or sensitive to pressure.

Treating SIJ pain

There are a number of treatments that can relieve sacroiliac joint pain.

• Rest tops the list.
• Avoid bodily movements and activities that may aggravate the problem (like the Hucklebuck or the Twist).
• If muscles feel tight, apply a heat pack, but avoid heat if there's any sign of inflammation.
• Take anti-inflammatory medications as recommended or prescribed by your doctor.
• Wear a back support belt.
• Have the area massaged.

If these measures fail to bring relief, you may need a corticosteroid injection or physical therapy.