Some pain patterns are hard to figure out. Take for example this case study of one-sided testicular pain. A 36-year-old policeman had back pain for five years. Sometimes he also had testicular pain with it. He was unable to wear a bulletproof vest because of back and groin pain.
His symptoms got worse with sharp buttock pain and leg numbness. Pretty soon he couldn’t wear his police belt. He couldn’t lie down flat to sleep at night. Long periods of sitting and standing made his symptoms worse. He was unable to run and couldn’t do his job.
An MRI showed a small disc problem at the bottom of his thoracic spine. This section at the bottom of the rib cage is called T12/L1. He was sent to physical therapy to help manage his pain. The therapists report the findings in this case study. The buttock pain was caused by pressure on the T12/L1 spinal nerve as it passed through the muscle.
A similar problem caused the testicular pain. The nerve to the scrotum travels up and passes through the psoas, a hip flexor muscle. A treatment program was started to improve spinal movement and hip flexibility. Mobilization of the spine and stretching were used.
The patient’s buttock and groin pain went away after the fourth treatment session. The patient was taught how to use trunk and stomach muscles correctly. Trunk and leg strengthening were also included. By the end of 12 sessions, the officer could wear his police belt and vest for an entire eight-hour shift with no pain. Two months later he was still pain free and back to work full-time. He was also able to resume his workout schedule at the local gym.
The therapists conclude that knowing anatomy and nerve pathways made it possible to find and treat the problem correctly. This case shows how problems in the spine can cause testicular pain. Physical therapy can play a vital role in cases like this.