How Does SI Joint Pain Happen?

Trauma to an SI joint can result from a number of different causes.  Sometimes these are serious injuries from events like a car accident or fall onto the buttocks, but sometimes small or repetitive forces weaken the ligaments around the SI joint.  

A few major causes of SI joint pain and injury include:

• Missing a step or landing on one foot 
• Repetitive rotational movements like golfing, bowling, batting, throwing, etc., and axial loading of the spine (Axial loading is when the spine is loaded with weight and the compressive forces transfer down through the spine into the sacrum and SI joints causing the joints to nutate.  This is common with weight lifters and body builders)

How do I know if I have an SI joint dysfunction?

The only way to be certain if you have an SI joint dysfunction is with a detailed examination and consultation.  

However, some of the common secondary conditions that result from an SI joint dysfunction are pain in the low back, buttock, hip and/or groin.  

The pain may be worse when sitting with the legs crossed, bending forward, and even extending backwards.  Sometimes the pain may be felt as stiffness, achiness, burning or numbness and it may travel down the leg. 

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