Hip Problems

Hip Problems - Get Help Quickly

Hip problems come in many different forms and affect both younger and older people. The most common causes of pain are, in older people, osteoarthritis and in younger people, developmental dysplasia.

If you are in pain make sure you seek professional advice. Don't rely solely on information provided on any website or by anyone who isn't a trained specialist. Problems can come in many forms and, in most cases, it takes skill and experience to make a proper differential diagnosis.

As an example my triage physiotherapist sent me to see the surgeon with a suspected trocanteric bursitis and labral tear. He took one look at my x-rays and said "forget about that what about the severe osteoarthritis in both hips!". Now the physio had noticed some arthritis and she'd pointed it out to me but it had not been her main concern. For the surgeon it pushed everything else out of the picture. Luckily for me my physiotherapist knew the limits of her competency and referred me on.

Friends. and even friends of friends, like to help you understand your problems but they tend to limit the scope of their "diagnosis" to the same one they had.

Don't Delay

We all hope that pain will wear off with time and a bit of rest but sadly that is not always the case and walking on a painful joint may cause it to deteriorate quicker.

Do not put off visiting your doctor. Delay may cause your condition to deteriorate to a point where simpler or less invasive treatments are no longer available.

The main types of hip problems

Osteoarthritis (Also known as degenerative arthritis), is caused by the wearing away and eventual loss of cartilage in a joint.
Rheumatoid Arthtritis is an autoimmune disease which is a chronic, inflammatory, systemic form of arthritis.
Avascular Necrosis (sometimes called osteonecrosis). Where the blood supply to the bone is restricted or interrupted causing he bone tissue to die.
Traumatic Arthritis A form of arthritis caused by an injury to the joint. The injury may be a result of a road traffic accident, a sporting injury, a dislocation or a bad fall.
Hip dysplasia Hip dysplasia refers to a condition where the relationship between the head of the femur (thigh bone) and the acetabulum (hip socket) does not develop properly.
Hip Fracture A break to one of three places in the hip joint - the sub-trochanteric region, the inter-trochanteric area or the femoral neck (follow the link for a diagram)

Follow the links for more information

Pain is debilitating. You really don't have to live with it. We live in an age where so many options are available. Please don't suffer. Get help and heal quickly.