Do Not Allow Hip Pain to Cripple Your Life

You thought only knee pain limits your movement? No. Hip pain is another popularly diagnosed problem which interferes with an individual's routine activities like bending, jogging and climbing stairs, among others.

Earlier, older adults, mainly women, experienced the problem, but now with increasing sedentary lifestyle, almost no physical activity and weakening of bones, youngsters too have begun to report issues related to hip pain.

While people keep bearing pain, thinking it to reduce overtime, it is important to consult an orthopedician if the pain stays. The doctor is best to judge the condition and suggest the best course of treatment.

What are the symptoms of hip pain?

There are enough signs that can tell you about the condition. You have to take the signs seriously to understand if it has anything to do with hip pain or is it a normal pain. After taking note for some days, you must consult a doctor to save the condition from deteriorating. Symptoms you need to careful about are:

• Chronic pain

• Pain interferes with your sleep

• Medication or cane support isn’t helping relieve pain or aid mobility

• Facing difficulty getting in and out of chairs and/or walking down stairs

• The hip is swollen or stiff and

• There is a feeling of grating of the joints

What causes hip pain?

Usually, hip pain is caused by strained or inflamed soft tissues such as tendons, which aids movement, and may not last for more than a few days. On the other hand, long-term hip pain is caused by specific conditions such as:

1) Arthritis:

In over 100 types of arthritis, the main cause of hip pain among others are Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid Arthritis. Arthritis, caused by the deterioration and gradual breakdown of the cushion lining of the hip, leads to swelling and inflammation of the hip joint. In addition to feeling pain, arthritis patients usually feel stiffness and have reduced range of motion at the hip.

2) Hip Fractures:

This condition is most common among people above 65. The reason behind it are loss of vision and deteriorating body balance, because of which older adults are more prone to falls and thereby hip fractures because of weak bones.

3) Osteonecrosis or Avascular Necrosis:

It is a common condition in India, which is caused by inadequate blood flow to hip bone, resulting in the death of surrounding cells and tissue, eventually causing the collapse of the hip. Too much alcohol consumption or un-prescribed steroidal medications also cause Osteonecrosis.

4) Cancer:

Hip pain is also often caused by bone cancer or cancer that spreads to the bone.

What about Hip Replacement?

If a patient finds chronic, moderate to severe pain limiting his/her daily activities such as rising up from and sitting down on a chair, getting in and out of a car and tying and untying shoe laces, then a doctor consultation is advisable to diagnose the cause of pain. If the hip pain is being caused by severe osteoarthritis or hip avascular necrosis (AVN), hip replacement may help significantly.

Hip Replacement Procedure

Medically, hip replacement surgery is termed as arthroplasty. This surgical procedure involves removing the diseased parts of the hip joint and replacing them with new, artificial parts. The artificial parts are known as prosthesis. The objective is to make mobility easier for the patient and eliminate pain.

Hip implants now come in various sizes, designs and materials, allowing doctors to provide the closest fit, best suited for the patient.

Largely, the outcomes of hip replacement surgery are excellent as advanced techniques are now being used. Patients can resume to their normal lifestyle within a few weeks. However, it is advisable to take it a little easier for sometime post-surgery.