Readers respond to recent topics.

In the Jan/Feb issue Rita Cichowlas, Cincinnati, Ohio, asked about alternatives to surgery for low back and leg pain that radiates along the path of the sciatic nerve. We wrote that gentle exercise, injections of numbing or anti-inflammatory medicines, and spinal cord stimulation are possible options. Mary Anderson, Hilmar, California, reports that regular (and low-cost) visits with a certified and licensed foot reflexologist relieve her sciatica. "Words cannot adequately express how much better I feel," says Hilmar. Barbara Kenny, Boise, Idaho, writes that her sciatic pain is near|y gone after four sessions of deep tissue massage and adds that yoga poses to stretch hip muscles also help. Jan Crawfis, Ottawa, Ohio, found prolotherapy, a procedure that stimulates tissue repair with injections of sugar water, to be a long-term solution after failed back surgery.