THE RED DOOR CLINIC · MELLIEĦA
Sciatica
Pain or other symptoms that can travel from the lower back into the buttock or leg. The assessment looks for the cause.
Sciatica is a description of symptoms, not a diagnosis on its own. People use the word for pain, tingling or heaviness that travels from the lower back into the buttock or down the leg. Several different problems can produce that pattern. At The Red Door Clinic in Mellieħa, an assessment looks at the story and the movement before anyone names a structure.
Reviewed by Andrew George, Lead Physiotherapist · 5 October 2026
What people mean by sciatica
The typical picture is pain or altered feeling that starts in the lower back or buttock and travels into the thigh, and sometimes below the knee. It can feel sharp, burning, heavy or electric. Sitting, bending or a long drive often stirs it up.
That pattern can come from a nerve being sensitive, from a joint or disc in the lower back, or from muscles around the hip. Location alone does not tell those apart.
Common contributors
A change in sitting, lifting, driving or training load is a frequent backdrop. Sometimes there is a clear moment, a lift, a twist, and sometimes the leg pain builds over days.
We do not assume a disc problem from the travel of the pain. The assessment tests which movements ease it and which reproduce it.
Symptoms people describe
Pain into the buttock or leg, pins and needles, a leg that feels weaker, or pain that is worse sitting than standing. Coughing or bending can stir some patterns and not others.
Numbness in the saddle area, or a change in bladder or bowel control, is not a clinic question. That needs emergency care the same day.
When to seek urgent care instead
Most muscle and joint pain is not an emergency. Go to accident and emergency, or call emergency services, if you have a suspected broken bone, a joint that looks deformed, pain after a significant fall, chest pain, trouble breathing, a head injury with confusion or vomiting, numbness in the saddle area, or loss of bladder or bowel control. A limb that is cold, pale or blue, or sudden severe swelling, also needs urgent medical care rather than a clinic appointment.
Pain in the shoulder or arm that arrives with chest pressure, breathlessness, sweating, nausea or feeling faint can be a heart symptom. Call emergency services. Do not wait for physiotherapy.
If you are unsure, use emergency services first. For everything else, contact the clinic and describe what happened. We do not diagnose by message.
How the clinic can help
A consultation and assessment with Andrew George, our lead physiotherapist, is €55, and follow-up physiotherapy is €45. The assessment looks at the movement that hurts and the story around it. You leave with a plain-language explanation and a plan that fits the week you actually have.
Where massage helps alongside physiotherapy, the clinic houses qualified massage therapists in the same building. Massage does not replace an assessment when pain, injury or a change in movement is the concern.
Book through the contact form, by phone on 2152 4199, or by WhatsApp on 7924 1880. Describe your symptoms and the team will help you choose the right first appointment.
LET’S FIND YOUR NEXT STEP
Not sure where to start? Start with us.
Tell us what hurts, what has changed, or what you want to get back to.
YOUR NEXT STEP
Related conditions and next steps
A LITTLE CLARITY
Frequently asked questions
Is sciatica always a trapped nerve?
No. The word describes where symptoms travel, not which structure is involved. An assessment is how we tell a sensitive nerve pattern from a joint or muscle pattern.
Should I rest completely?
A short easing-off is often sensible. Weeks of doing nothing usually makes the back and leg harder to trust. The plan keeps you moving in ways that do not keep poking the pain.
LET’S FIND YOUR NEXT STEP
Your next chapter starts with a conversation.
Tell us what hurts, what has changed, or what you want to get back to.