Painful Tailbone (Coccydynia)

Usually related to some traumatic event where the patient has landed quite heavily on their buttocks resulting in severe pain at the tip of the tail-bone(coccyx).

Painful Tailbone (Coccydynia)

Symptoms

  • Localized to the tip of the coccyx. It does not radiate into the lower extremities or the pelvis.
  • Increases with sitting on hard surfaces
  • Increases when rocking forwards to transfer from sitting to standing position
  • May increase during sexual intercourse or bowel motion

Causes

  • Direct trauma
  • Fracture/dislocation of the tip of coccyx
  • Hypermobile sacro-coccygeal joint
  • Tumours

Non-surgicalTreatment

  • Anti-inflammatories
  • Analgesia
  • Local steroid block
  • Hot/Cold packs
    Painful Tailbone (Coccydynia) Painful Tailbone (Coccydynia)
  • Special cushions

SurgicalTreatment

For persistent pain that is not alleviated with non-surgical treatment and/or activity modification, surgical removal of all or a portion of the coccyx (coccygectomy) is an option.

Coccygectomy surgery is rarely recommended and performed. While the surgery itself is a relatively straight-forward operation, recovery from the surgery can be a long and uncomfortable process for the patient.

  • Westmead Private Hospital
  • FRACS
  • Neuro Surgical Society
  • the University of Sydney