Hip pain is localized where the femur joins the pelvis. It is this bone connection that gives a person normal movement of the foot in any plane. The hip joint is considered to be the largest moving joint in the human body and helps it to move fully.
Just like many other joints in the body, the femur and pelvis can be damaged. In the event of any work disruption, the patient feels how the hip joint hurts. Bones, muscles, joint circumference, cartilage, ducts, tendons, nerves and adjacent joints can be affected by pain syndrome. In that case, a person experiences unpleasant symptoms that interfere with normal life. When such pain is felt, one is immediately interested in the question of how the syndrome develops and what needs to be done to eliminate it.
Etiology
Pain in the hip joint has a variety of causes. The junction of the femur and pelvis can be inflamed as a result of injury, diseases of the joints and tendons, from manifestations of systemic diseases, infectious processes.
The reasons for the formation of pain syndrome can be non-traumatic factors such as:
- osteoarthritis;
- osteoarthritis;
- failure in blood supply to bones and joint formation.
With the development of such diseases in the hip joint, degenerative changes in the articular surface occur. In humans, cartilage and periarticular bags are damaged, the synovial membrane of the joint is destroyed, the amount of joint fluid is reduced, leading to severe pain and joint disorders.
To get rid of the unpleasant syndrome, the patient needs to identify why the hip joint is painful. To make a correct diagnosis, the patient needs to undergo a full examination. Clinicians have determined that pain in the hip joint when walking has a relatively simple cause. The following indicators are associated with the most common categories of provocative factors:
- infectious inflammation;
- degenerative changes;
- dislocated;
- broken bones;
- aseptic necrosis of the femoral head;
- bursitis;
- inflammation of non -infectious nature with autoimmune diseases of connective tissue;
- dry cough.
It is quite difficult to determine the cause of the onset of pain, as it can be triggered not only by injury and disease, 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 bone junctions. Injuries that can trigger the same syndrome include not only dislocations or fractures, but also other causes:
- pelvic bruises;
- ruptured acetabulum;
- stretches;
- violation of the structure of the ligaments and joint capsules.
Also, the causes of the emergence of pain syndrome can be toxic synovitis, primary and secondary oncological pathology, osteomalacia and osteomyelitis.
Unlike adults, children have slightly different deteriorating factors. If the hip joint is sore, most likely the cause lies in the epiphysis, Legg-Calve-Perthes, Still’s disease, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, etc.
For women during pregnancy, there are also features of pain in the hip joint. During this period, a woman’s body changes significantly and the function of many organs changes, so pregnant women can often feel pain in various parts of the body. Pain syndrome in the movable joints of the pelvic area can develop for the following reasons:
- hormonal changes;
- uterine growth, which increases the load on the hip joint;
- increased load on the legs;
- exacerbation of early injuries;
- calcium deficiency;
- occurrence of inflammatory foci in other zones, radiating to the groin.
All of the above etiological causes can be identified after a thorough examination and examination by a doctor. During pregnancy, pain in the hip joint is a significant discomfort to a woman, but after childbirth, all syndromes disappear.
Welding
The unpleasant sensations that a person experiences are associated with intra-articular and extra-articular factors. The first category of causes includes the formation of effusions in the joints, increased pressure, fractures of the trabecular bones 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.
Clinicians have also identified the types of pain by type:
- mechanical - manifests itself with a load on the joints, increases in the evening and subsides after sleep;
- pain begins - is formed with reactive synovitis, progresses with physical activity, and then subsides slightly or, in general, disappears;
- against the background of tendinitis or tendobursitis - exacerbation in places where damaged tendons and muscles are involved;
- based on periarticular muscle spasm;
- pain in the hip joint at night - decreases with movement. Blood stasis syndrome in the subchondral part of the bone worsens;
- syndrome from damage to the synovial surface by osteophytes.
symptoms
The cause and treatment of the syndrome are interrelated, therefore, to determine the method of therapy, the doctor needs to 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 gives rise to the onset of pain. If there is no cartilage in the joint, then the exposed femoral bone rubs the pelvic bone, which manifests itself in severe pain syndrome.
Often, patients have sensations that move from one part of the body to another. Often, patients feel pain in the hips while walking, which can move to the knees, but also to the gluteal and lumbar areas. At first, the syndrome may be unstable and not very noticeable, however, as the damage persists, the intensity of symptoms increases. During this time, the pain becomes constant, it can manifest itself 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 bottom of the leg. It is also often the case that inflammation of the lumbar spine can manifest in the hip joint area;
- patient mobility is reduced - the possibility of hip flexion is reduced;
- lameness may appear on the right or left, or one leg will be slightly shorter than the other;
- joints become tight and inactive;
- movements can become very painful after long sitting;
- fatigue from not being able to walk far.
If the symptom manifests itself from a serious illness, then 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 have pain on the right or left side in the hip joint area, then he must seek expert advice. With similar problems, patients can be referred to a rheumatologist, traumatologist, physiotherapist or neurologist.
Before treating the symptoms, you need to assess the condition and identify the presumed cause of the syndrome. In addition to the features of severe inflammation that can be seen, the condition of the hip joint can be assessed by the following methods:
- in the supine position, see the lower part of the leg - in case of dislocation or fracture, they take a forced position, and are not parallel to the axis of the body;
- to identify joint mobility, you can make some active movements forward and backward - if the pelvic area is damaged, the patient feels severe pain;
- in the supine position, passive movements in the moving joints can be detected - clicking, crackling and muscle tension can occur;
- during the examination of the patient, the doctor should fully describe all the manifestations of the syndrome.
Symptoms of pain in the hip area can be formed from various pathological processes, so it is important for the doctor to carry out a differential diagnosis of the disease. To determine the cause of pain in the hip joint when sitting and walking, patients undergo laboratory and instrumental examinations:
- X-ray of spine, hip area;
- tomography of the spine, pelvis and hips;
- examination for vascular patency - dopplerography, angiography and other methods;
- electromyography;
- general blood tests, biochemistry, bacteriology, immunology.
Treatment
If night pain in the hip joint does not develop quickly in a person and disappears after rest, then perhaps the cause is a minor injury or joint strain. In this case, the doctor recommends using small therapeutic measures:
- reduce the burden;
- giving rest to the joints;
- use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs;
- lie on the healthy side.
With severe, severe, persistent and prolonged pain, you can not do it without the help of a doctor, especially if there are significant joint deformities, redness of the thighs, discoloration of the skin on the thighs and poor sensitivity. Under these conditions, the medications themselves can harm the patient and cause symptoms to develop.
Pain in the hip joint, radiating to the legs, can subside after the doctor prescribes a different method of therapy. To eliminate the syndrome, doctors prescribe conservative treatment to patients:
- medicines;
- sports with a minimum load;
- weight control;
- physiotherapy;
- additional devices - walking sticks, walkers, crutches;
- avoid heavy loads;
- balancing emotional states;
- take vitamins.
The treatment process necessarily consists of drug therapy. For this purpose, the doctor prescribes the following drugs to the patient:
- diuretics;
- anti-inflammatory;
- muscle relaxants;
- improve microcirculation;
- chondroprotector;
- vitamins and minerals.
If the pain in the hip joint during pregnancy starts suddenly in a woman, then she definitely needs to see a doctor. He may be prescribed the use of a multivitamin complex, calcium intake, moderate physical activity and wearing a bandage. To reduce symptoms and prevent the development of complications, doctors advise pregnant women to follow simple rules:
- reduce the number of stair climbs and long walks;
- do not sit for more than an hour;
- it is forbidden to sit and lie on hard surfaces;
- with night pain, it is recommended to turn the body part, first the upper part, and then the pelvis;
- eat foods rich in calcium and vitamin complexes;
- weight control;
- wear bandages;
- reducing the load on the pelvis and hips.
However, in addition to these methods, there are other technologies in medicine to eliminate symptoms. So what else can be done to reduce the pain syndrome, the doctor told at the reception. For mild pain in the left or right side of the hip joint, this method 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 use such drugs in some cases and only as an adjunctive method of therapy. Patients can use compresses, make tinctures, decoctions and lotions. Each of these agents has an analgesic effect and helps improve the patient’s condition. Patients are advised to use the following plants and ingredients:
- purple leaves;
- honey;
- lemon;
- sword;
- pork fat;
- ficus leaves;
- garlic;
- celery.
All of these ingredients are quite common and are often used in traditional medicine, but they can be used after consulting a doctor. If you make the wrong proportions, you can harm the body and trigger complications. In the treatment of such syndromes, it is also very important to adhere to restrictions on physical activity so as not to trigger an increase in unpleasant symptoms.