Located in the pelvis, the sacroiliac joint (SI joint) can be the cause of sciatica, resulting in back pain that radiates down the leg. A recent study compared physical therapy, chiropractic manual therapy, and joint injections of corticosteroids. The study found that manual therapy was the best choice for sacroiliac joint dysfunction. The success rate for chiropractic manual therapy was 72%, 50% for corticosteroid injections, and 20% for physiotherapy. Researchers found manual therapy resulted in significant improvement in pain severity, while neither physical therapy nor injections resulted in significant pain relief. In our experience, adding Active Release Techniques treatment makes the chiropractic work even more effective for treating SI joint pain.
European Spine Journal, August 2013