Many patients have a combination of back pain, leg pain, leg numbness and weakness. These symptoms can be distressing but you do not necessarily require emergency medical attention.
A rare but serious back condition, Cauda Equina Syndrome, can lead to permanent damage or disability and needs to be seen urgently in the nearest Emergency Room / A&E (not minor injuries).
Warning signs of Cauda Equina Syndrome are below:
- loss of feeling pins and needles between your inner thighs or genitals;
- numbness in or around your back passage or buttocks;
- altered feeling when using toilet paper to wipe yourself;
- increasing difficulty when you try to urinate;
- increasing difficulty when you try to stop or control your flow of urine;
- loss of sensation when you pass urine;
- leaking urine or recent need to use pads;
- not knowing when your bladder is either full or empty;
- inability to stop a bowel movement or leaking;
- loss of sensation when you pass a bowel motion;
- change in ability to achieve an erection or ejaculate;
- loss of sensation in genitals during sexual intercourse.
If you experience any single or combination of these symptoms, then you need to go urgently to the nearest Emergency Room / A&E (not minor injuries). You do not require an ambulance and are safe to travel by car. You should not drive yourself because of the potential for leg weakness.