How to tell whether the pain starts in your back, a nerve root, or the knee joint Yes, can sciatica cause knee pain? It can, although knee pain is not the most typical sciatica symptom. Irritation of nerves in the lower back can send pain, tingling, numbness, or weakness into the thigh and around the knee. In other cases, sciatica changes the way a person walks, which places extra stress on a knee that already…