Anyone know anything about Cyclists' Syndrome?

Beginners & Basic Tips
#1

Hi Everyone,
I’m a reasonably fast 50 year old male recreational cyclist.
This last few months i’ve suffered with the Cyclists’ Syndrome: pudendal neuralgia. I have pretty much had to give up cycling, and sitting down in general, due to the constant tingling, burning and pain in my nether regions.

I’ve tried to go onto a low-inflammation diet, started taking CBD oil, spent time off the bike and bought a standing desk but it’s still with me all the time and it’s a literal pain in the ass.

Has anyone come across this before?

#2

Dear RCCO, I am so sorry to hear of your diagnosis. The pudendal nerve is usually well protected within the soft tissues of the area but low body fat, poor bike fit and wrong saddle choices can cause the injury. You have taken all of the low hanging therapeutic fruit and I would recommend you keep doing all of those things. If you were in the USA/Colorado I would suggest you see a pelvic floor specialist. They are usually a neurologist, urologist or physical therapist and a group of all in one place. The groin, perineum or nether regions(as you call it) is where urology, neurology, gynecology and orthopedics all come together, and sadly rarely over lap. Do your research and find a pelvic floor specialist in the UK! Good Luck

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#3

RCCO-

I used to get referrals from Stan Antolak, a urologist who specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with pudendal neuralgia. They would come to me for CT-guided pudendal nerve injections and I saw many people’s lives transformed, at least temporarily, by the procedure.

https://www.ajronline.org/doi/pdfplus/10.2214/ajr.181.2.1810561

He practices or practiced in Minneapolis, MN. I think he may be at least partially retired, but his son, Chris has taken over care for his patients. You could reach out to one of them to see if they have a referral for someone in your region.

Good luck!

#4

Thank you for the help @acjohnson99 and @andrewpruittedd!

I thought this case report might be an interesting one to add to the reading list as well.

Pudendal nerve entrapment in an Ironman athlete: a case report

Good luck!
Ryan

#5

Thanks everyone for the information. That case report had some good clues - i’m going to take a good look at the obturator internus muscles and do some work on them.

I have a suspicion that if i’d done some of the advised S&C work over the years i might have avoided this…

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