Pain in the hip

Hip pain is localized where the femur joins the pelvis. It is this connection of bones that provides a person with normal leg movement in any plane. The hip joint is considered to be the largest movable joint in the human body and helps it to move completely.

Just like many other joints in the body, the femur and pelvis can be damaged. In the event of a break in work, the patient feels how the hip joints hurt. Bones, muscles, joint circumference, cartilage, vessels, tendons, nerves and adjacent joints can be affected by the pain syndrome. In such a case, a person suffers from unpleasant symptoms that interfere with normal life. When such pains are felt, a person is immediately interested in the question of how the syndrome developed and what to do to eliminate it.

Etiology

Hip joint pain has a variety of causes. The junction of the femur and pelvis can become inflamed due to injuries, diseases of the joints and tendons, from the manifestation of systemic disorders, infectious processes.

The reasons for the formation of pain syndrome can be such non-traumatic factors:

• arthrosis;
• arthrosis;
• insufficiency in the blood supply to the bones and in the formation of the joints.

With the development of such disorders in the hip joints, degenerative changes occur in the joint surfaces. In humans, the cartilage and the periarticular sac are damaged, the synovial membrane of the joint is destroyed, the amount of joint fluid decreases, which leads to severe pain and ruptures in the joint.

To get rid of an unpleasant syndrome, the patient must identify the reason why the hip joint hurts. To make the correct diagnosis, the patient must undergo a comprehensive examination. Doctors have determined that hip joint pain when walking has a fairly simple cause. The following indicators were attributed to the category of the most common provoking factors:

• infectious inflammation;
• degenerative changes;
• dislocations;
• fractures;
• aseptic necrosis of the femoral head;
• bursitis;
• inflammation of a non-infectious nature with autoimmune diseases of connective tissues;
• tuberculosis.

It is quite difficult to establish the cause of the onset of pain, since it can be triggered not only by injuries and ailments, but also by pathological processes in the abdominal cavity, lumbar region and genitals.

Pain in the hip joint when walking is often caused by damage to the joint of the bones. Injuries that can provoke a similar syndrome include not only dislocation or fracture, but other reasons as well:

• contusion of the pelvis;
• rupture of the acetabulum;
• elongation;
• violation of the structure of the ligaments and capsule of the joint.

In addition, the causes of the appearance of pain syndrome can be toxic synovitis, primary and secondary oncological pathologies, osteomalacia and osteomyelitis.

Unlike adults, children have slightly different exacerbation factors. If the hip joint hurts, the reason most likely lies in the epiphysis, Legg-Calve-Perthes disease, Still's disease, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, etc.

For women during pregnancy, there are also characteristic pains in the hip joint. During this period, the woman's body changes significantly and the functionality of many organs changes, so pregnant women can often feel pain in various areas of the body. Pain syndrome in the movable joint of the pelvic region can develop for the following reasons:

• hormonal changes;
• growth of the uterus, which increases the load on the hip joint;
• increased load on the legs;
• exacerbation of early lesions;
• lack of calcium;
• the occurrence of a focus of inflammation in another area, which radiates to the groin.

All of the above etiological reasons can be identified after a thorough examination and examination by a doctor. During pregnancy, pain in the hip joint is a significant inconvenience for a woman, but after giving birth to her all syndromes disappear.

Classification

The unpleasant sensations that a person experiences are associated with intra-articular and extra-articular factors. The first category of reasons includes the formation of effusion in the joint, increased stress, fractures of the trabeculae and rupture of the intra-articular ligaments, stretching of the joint capsule, inflammation of the synovial membranes.

Extra-articular factors include muscle spasm, impaired venous outflow, which causes congestion in the subchondral bone and inflammation in the periarticular tendon area.

Doctors also identified the types of pain by type:

• mechanical - manifests itself with a load on the joint, increases in the evening and subsides after sleep;
• initial pains - are formed with reactive synovitis, progress with physical activity, and then subside a little or, in general, disappear;
• against the background of tendonitis or tendobrositis - exacerbate in places where damaged tendons and muscles are involved;
• based on the spasm of the periarticular muscles;
• pain in the hip joint at night - decreases with movement. The syndrome of stagnation of blood in the subchondral parts of the bone is aggravated;
• syndrome of damage to the synovial surface by osteophytes.

Symptoms

The causes and treatment of the syndrome are interrelated, therefore, to determine the method of therapy, the doctor must identify the clinical picture.

During damage to the hip joint, the cartilage and cartilage fragments become thinner, causing inflammation of the inner surface of the pelvis and femur. It is this process that causes pain to appear. If there is no cartilage in the joint, the exposed femoral bone rubs against the pelvic bone, which manifests itself in severe pain syndrome.

Quite often, the patient has sensations that pass from one part of the body to another. Patients often experience pain in the hip while walking, which can move to the knee, but also to the buttock and lumbar regions. At first, the syndrome may be unstable and not very pronounced, however, as the damage progresses, the intensity of the symptom increases. At this time, the pain becomes constant, it can manifest itself both during movement and in a calm state.

Depending on the localization of the inflammatory focus, pain in the hip joint has different manifestations and symptoms:

• in case of damage to the hip joint - the syndrome worries the patient not only in the joint area, but also throughout the thigh and goes to the lower leg. It also often happens that inflammation of the lumbar spine can manifest itself in the area of the hip joint;
• the patient's mobility decreases - the possibility of hip flexion decreases;
• lameness may appear to the right or left, or one leg will be slightly shorter than the other;
• the joint becomes tense and inactive;
• movement can be particularly painful after prolonged sitting;
• fatigue due to the inability to travel long distances.

If the symptom is manifested by severe diseases, the patient may have more severe symptoms of the disease: high fever, swelling, headache, weakness, redness of the inflamed area.

Diagnostics

If a person continues to injure on the right or left side in the hip joint area, then he should definitely seek the advice of a specialist. With a similar problem, the patient may be referred to a rheumatologist, traumatologist, physiotherapist or neurologist.

Before treating a symptom, it is necessary to evaluate the condition and identify the presumed cause of the syndrome. In addition to the visible features of severe inflammation, the condition of the hip joint can be assessed by the following methods:

• in the supine position, look at the lower limbs - in case of dislocation or fracture, they take a forced position and not parallel to the axis of the body;
• to identify the mobility of the joint, several active movements back and forth can be performed: if the pelvic region is damaged, the patient feels severe pain;
• in the supine position, passive movements in the movable joint can be detected: clicks, crackles and muscle tension may occur;
• during the examination of the patient, the doctor must fully describe all manifestations of the syndrome.

A pain symptom in the hip region can form from various pathological processes, so it is important for the doctor to make a differential diagnosis of the disease. To establish the cause of pain in the hip joint when sitting and walking, the patient is subjected to laboratory and instrumental tests:

• X-ray of the spine, hip region;
• tomography of the spine, pelvis and hip;
• examinations for vascular patency - dopplerography, angiography and other methods;
• electromyography;
• general, biochemical, bacteriological, immunological blood test.

Treatment

If nocturnal pain in the hip joint does not develop very quickly in a person and disappears after rest, then perhaps the cause was a minor injury or joint load. In this case, doctors recommend the use of minor therapeutic measures:

• reduce loads;
• provide rest to the joint;
• use a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug;
• lying on the healthy side.

With severe, severe, constant and prolonged pain, you can not do without the help of a doctor, especially if there is a noticeable deformation of the joint, redness of the thigh, a change in the tone of the skin on the thigh and poor sensitivity. Under these circumstances, self-medication can harm the patient and advance the symptom.

Pain in the hip joint, which radiates to the leg, may subside after the doctor prescribes several methods of therapy. To eliminate the syndrome, doctors prescribe conservative treatment to patients:

• medicines;
• sports with minimum load;
• weight control;
• Physiotherapy;
• auxiliary devices: walking sticks, walkers, crutches;
• avoid heavy loads;
• balance the emotional state;
• intake of vitamins.

The treatment process necessarily consists of drug therapy. For this purpose, doctors prescribe the following drugs to patients:

• diuretics;
• anti-inflammatory;
• muscle relaxants;
• improve microcirculation;
• chondroprotector;
• vitamins and minerals.

If pain in the hip joint during pregnancy started suddenly in a woman, then she should definitely consult a doctor. You may be prescribed the use of multivitamin complexes, calcium intake, moderate physical activity and the use of a bandage. In order to reduce symptoms and prevent the development of complications, the doctor advises the expectant mother to adhere to simple rules:

• reduce the number of climbs and long walks;
• do not sit for more than an hour;
• it is forbidden to sit and lie down on a hard surface;
• with night pains, it is recommended to turn the body in parts, first the upper part, and then the pelvis;
• eat foods with a lot of calcium and vitamin complexes;
• check weight;
• wear a bandage;
• reduce the load on the pelvis and hips.

However, in addition to these methods, there are other technologies in medicine to eliminate the symptom. Therefore, what else can be done to reduce the pain syndrome, says the doctor at the reception. For mild pain in the left or right side of the hip joint, these methods can be used without consulting your doctor:

• massage;
• Physiotherapy;
• manual therapy.

Treatment of pain in the hip joint with folk remedies is still used in medicine, but doctors resort to such remedies in some cases and only as an additional therapeutic method. Patients can apply compresses, make tinctures, decoctions and lotions. Each of these agents has an analgesic effect and helps to improve the patient's condition. Patients are advised to use the following plants and ingredients:

• lilac leaves;
• honey;
• Lemon;
• saber;
• fat pig;
• ficus leaves;
• garlic;
• celery.

All the ingredients are quite familiar and are often used in traditional medicine, but can be used after consulting a doctor. If you do the wrong proportion, you can damage the body and cause complications. In the treatment of such a syndrome, it is also very important to adhere to restrictions on physical activity so as not to provoke an increase in an unpleasant symptom.