Coccyx Pain eMedicine PMR

Description: Coccyx pain (tailbone pain) can frustrate patients and significantly impair quality of life, but relief is possible. Coccyx pain was first documented in 1588, and the term coccygodynia was coined by Simpson in 1859.1 Currently, the term coccydynia is used somewhat more commonly than coccygodynia. The 2 terms are interchangeable and indicate pain localized to the coccyx. Neither term specifies the underlying etiology. Coccyx pain can occur from local trauma or a tumor, but most cases are idiopathic and have no identifiable cause.
Synonyms and related keywords: coccydynia, coccyx pain, sacrum, coccygeal vertebrae, coccygodynia, tailbone pain, sacrococcygeal pain, sacrococcygeal joint dysfunction, levator ani, coccygeus, iliococcygeus, pubococcygeus, anococcygeal raphe, sacrospinous ligament, sacrotuberous ligament, ischial tuberosity, sacrococcygeal articulation, sacrococcygeal palpation, ganglion impar, ganglion of Walther, pelvic pain, pudendal neuralgia (pudendal nerve pain), tail bone pain syndrome
Foye, Buttaci & Sorensen 2007