Hip Pain: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, Prevention and Special Considerations for Children

The muscles of this part of the body form a vital link in the connective chain of the lower part of the body.

These are 17 muscles that provide balance, stability, and range of motion for all your daily activities.

The blast effect is significant when one or more of these muscles are injured or tensed.

The hip is a spherical joint that connects the leg with the torso of the body.

In the hip joint, the head of the femur (thigh bone) rotates inside the acetabulum, the alveolus, formed by pelvic bones.

While many causes of hip pain can arise from the joint itself, numerous structures surround the hip that can also be a source of pain.

While overuse, a sudden fall, or another injury can affect the flexibility of the hip, tense hip muscles are often due to lack of activity.

 

Sitting on a desk all day can quickly cause hardening and shortening of the muscles.

The result of any of these factors causes the muscles of the hips to lack the proper range of motion and strength.

When the hip flexors become rigid and do not perform their functions typically, the lower back and the hamstrings have to compensate by doing the hip work of flexing and extending the leg and hip.

Strengthening the hip is as essential as maintaining flexibility to reduce the risk of injury and maintain long-term mobility.

Reduced flexibility not only affects your ability to perform everyday tasks but is one of the leading causes of injury.

Causes of hip pain

Like the spine, the hip is a vital part of your body, and this pain can have far-reaching adverse effects on daily life.

Unfortunately, because we use our hips so regularly, they can quickly become vulnerable, and many problems can cause hip pain. Such as:

  • Arthritis: osteoarthritis is the most common cause of hip pain in people over 50 years; there are other types of arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritisankylosing spondylitis, arthritis associated with inflammatory bowel disease ( Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis) ).
  • Bursitis: is an inflammation of the area of ​​the joint; the trochanteric bag is a sac on the outside of the hip that serves to protect the muscles and tendons when they cross the greater trochanter (a bony prominence in the femur).
  • A bone fracture or other injury, such as a fall or impact: bones may also be weakened due to other diseases that have affected the hip bones. A pathological hip fracture describes this situation, and osteoporosis is only one cause.
  • Tendinitis: is an inflammation of the tendons. Hip tendonitis can occur when a muscle is used excessively and pulls on the tendon that attaches it to the bone. The tendons play an essential role in the hips by keeping the muscles attached to the thigh bone (femur) as the legs move.
  • Stretched or tense muscles: are muscle injuries, often due to physical activity, are common and can vary from minor to severe, depending on the incident. Most often, they occur in the calf, thigh, or groin.

Symptoms of hip pain

Each case of hip pain is different, and depending on the cause of your pain, you may experience it in different ways.

Hip pain can be a constant or short, sharp pain that only affects when you move the joint in specific ways.

In addition to feeling pain, if you have an injury or illness that damages functionality or hip, you may also experience:

  • Reduced mobility of the joint.
  • Difficulty putting weight on the injured leg.
  • Rigidity and spasms of the muscle that surrounds the joint.
  • Numbness in the hip area
  • Produce sounds when you move.

Hip pain can make it difficult to walk, stand or even sit in certain positions.

However, with proper exercises and treatment, mobility and comfort of the joint can be restored.

Treatments for hip pain

Medications to relieve pain, relieve inflammation, delay bone loss, modify the course of an inflammatory disease or prevent joint damage are an essential part of the treatment for many hip problems.

The types of medications commonly used in the treatment of the hips are:

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are used to help relieve the pain and inflammation of arthritis. Topical preparations are also on the market, such as Voltaren Gel and Pennsaid.

Corticosteroids: these are fast-acting medications that are used to control inflammation.

They are used in the inflammation of the hip due to a systemic autoimmune disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis, polymyalgia rheumatic, or bursitis; the doctor may prescribe oral corticosteroids or inject them directly into the inflamed joint or bursa.

Analgesics: Analgesics are among the most common medications for arthritis, including hip arthritis. They can also be used to relieve pain from hip injuries and surgery.

Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs: these are drugs that work slowly to modify the course of inflammatory disease and may be helpful in several different forms of hip arthritis that include rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriatic arthritis.

Drugs for gout: some medications for gout are designed to reduce uric acid levels in the blood to prevent future attacks of joint pain and inflammation.

Biological response modifiers: the last category of drugs used for rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory forms of hip arthritis are the biological agents used in juvenile arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriatic arthritis.

Medications for osteoporosis: medications for osteoporosis are used to decrease bone loss or help the body develop new bone. Although not explicitly used to treat hip problems, strong bones are less prone to fracture.

Certain medications, called bisphosphonates, in this category are also used to treat Paget’s disease of the bone, which, in rare cases, is a cause of pain in the hip.

In addition to medications, rest, heat and cold therapies, hip lift or physiotherapy, and hip replacement surgery reduce pain and provide many years of more comfortable movements.

During hip replacement surgery, damaged hip joint parts are removed and replaced with an artificial implant or prosthesis.

Special considerations for children

Children who complain of pain in the leg or hip should be taken seriously, and the pain should not be ignored. If the pain is persistent, if there is a limp, or if the child has a fever, you should contact a health professional.

Possible concerns in children with hip pain include:

  • A sliding upper femoral epiphysis is a condition in which the bone growth plate of the femoral head moves out of place.
  • Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, or vascular necrosis of the femoral head.
  • Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis or Still’s disease.

If there is a fever, there may be septic arthritis or an infection of the hip joint. This may be due to a virus or bacteria.

Symptoms include fever, pain, lameness, and inability to walk.

Viral infections are the most common cause of synovitis in babies and resolve without treatment.

Prevention

Prevention options include:

  1. Stretching and strengthening programs that help rehabilitate the injury are often the same ones to help prevent it.
  2. Starting a sport without stretching is a risk of injury and should ensure adequate warming before beginning any exercise.

Every time the foot’s heel hits the ground, a shock wave travels through the body, all the way to the head. A healthy body will absorb this impact.

But if the feet are not in their correct operating position, more of this shock is allowed to move through the body to weaken other joints, including the hips and spine.

Healthy feet should be maintained, bows should be well supported, and shoes should provide maximum shock absorption.