VOLUME 4 , ISSUE 3 ( September-December, 2018 ) > List of Articles
Jeshnu P Tople, Gautam T Das
Keywords : Complication of piriformis injection, Piriformis syndrome, Prolonged piriformis weakness
Citation Information : Tople JP, Das GT. Prolonged Weakness After Piriformis Injection: A Case Report. J Recent Adv Pain 2018; 4 (3):115-117.
DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10046-0122
License: CC BY-NC 4.0
Published Online: 01-12-2018
Copyright Statement: Copyright © 2018; The Author(s).
Background: Piriformis syndrome is a neuromuscular disorder where there is compression of the sciatic nerve by the piriformis muscle. It may present with buttock pain with or without radiation in the distribution of the ipsilateral sciatic nerve. There are no standardized diagnostic criteria for its diagnosis, but the diagnostic block is helpful for its confirmation. However, injection into the piriformis muscle is not devoid of complications including muscle weakness and numbness. Case description: A 60-year-old male patient presented with right buttock pain radiating along the posterior aspect of the thigh and leg up to the great toe over the dorsum of the foot. Right SLR, FAIR, Pace tests were positive, and piriformis tenderness was present. Provisional diagnosis was made as right-sided piriformis syndrome, and diagnostic piriformis block was done under fluoroscopic guidance. But the patient developed numbness and motor weakness of the right lower limb with modified Bromage scale score 4/6 immediately after the procedure, and the score was 5/6 even after 3 hours of the procedure. Conclusion: One should be cautious in a post-procedure period of piriformis injection as the prolonged neurological deficit may occur following the piriformis injection.