Sciatica can be experienced as a burning, numb/tingling, shooting pain, or weakness down the back or outside of the thigh and down past the knee, sometimes even into the foot. This is due to irritation of the sciatic nerve at several points along the nerve’s path down the leg, but most notably at the nerve roots located just outside the lumbar spine (low back). Sciatica can be en emergency if there is loss of bowel or bladder function associated with it, but most cases are non emergent.