Hip Pain

How does the hip work?

Your hip is a very stable and strong joint. It’s known as a ball-and-socket joint. This is because the top of the thigh bone is shaped like a ball. This ‘ball’ sits inside a hollow socket in your pelvis. Ball-and-socket joints give the most movement of all the different types of joints in the body.

The hip joint is held together by a covering of muscles which are secured to the bones by strong cords called tendons. These muscles and tendons form a capsule around the joint and support its movements. They help move the joint, supporting your leg and upper body movement.  Inside the capsule is the synovium, which lubricates the joint with synovial fluid and keeps the cartilage healthy. The cartilage sits between the bones of your hip joint to allow smooth movement of the joint and reduces any impact when you walk or move your hip.

As the hip joint is very deep and there is a lot of muscle support it is very stable, it is unusual for the hip to become dislocated, even after a high-impact injury.

Causes of Hip Pain

Most of the time there is a very simple explanation for hip pain.

If you’ve overdone it while exercising pain is usually caused by strained or inflamed soft tissues, such as tendons, and it often clears up within a few days to weeks.

As you get older, normal wear and tear can cause pain in your hip to flare up now and again, often for no reason.  If you have a problem with your hip joint you may feel pain in the groin, down the front of the leg and in the knee. Sometimes knee pain is the only sign of a hip problem – this is called referred pain or radiated pain and is fairly common. You may feel pain on the outside of your hip or in your buttock – though this can also be caused by problems with your lower back.

If you have fallen

If you’ve fallen, hurt your hip and your finding it difficult to put wait on your leg you may need to see a doctor. You should urgently call CAV247 on 0300 1020247, or visit the CAV247 Website to arrange an appointment slot in A&E, as fractures around the hip are very common, particularly in elderly people with osteoporosis. Osteoporosis makes bones less dense and fragile, so they break or fracture more easily.

Self Help

Keeping active is an essential part of your treatment and recovery and is the single best thing you can do for your health.

Being physically active throughout your recovery can:

• prevent a recurrence of the problem
• maintain your current levels of fitness – even if you have to modify what you normally do, any activity is better than none
• keep your other muscles and joints strong and flexible
• Keep a healthy body weight

It’s recommended you stay at or return to work as quickly as possible during your recovery. You don’t need to be pain and symptom-free to return to work.