Hip pain or injury can bring your Summer sporting schedule to a sudden and premature halt. But, while you can’t always avoid collisions and falls, there are things you can do to minimise your chances of developing pain or sustaining an injury while playing sport. In this article we’ll look at some of the common hip injuries we treat in the clinic, how they are treated and whether there is anything you can do to prevent them…
Pulled muscles
A pulled muscle is a muscle that has been overstretched or torn. This type of injury can occur frequently during sports and may affect the hip and groin, along with other areas such as the hamstrings. If you strain your lower back, you may also experience hip and buttock pain. Not warming up properly before exercising is one of the most common reasons for muscle strain, along with overusing particular muscle groups, poor technique or exercising when you are tired. Avoiding these common mistakes can help to prevent pulled muscles.
We recommend taking painkillers and using the RICE approach to treat muscle strains (rest, ice the affected area, compression and elevation to reduce swelling).
Hip bursitis
The bursae are fluid-filled sacs that help cushion the bones, muscles and tendons as they move within the joint. There are more than 150 bursae throughout the body, including in the outside of the hip joint. Making repetitive movements or overusing the joint can cause the bursae to become inflamed – a condition known as bursitis – and this causes pain and swelling. Bursitis of the hip – known as trochanteric bursitis – is common in people who play high impact sports that involves frequent changes of direction or stopping, such as footballers and rugby players. It is normally treated with a combination of rest, ice, painkillers and steroid injections, as well as physiotherapy.
It’s important to treat hip bursitis to avoid the condition becoming chronic.
While it’s not always possible to prevent the condition, it is associated with overusing the muscles so it is important to listen to your body and avoid pushing yourself too hard when your muscles feel tired. Talk to a physiotherapist about exercises to build strength and flexibility in your hips and always wear good, well-fitting footwear.
Hip labral tears
Your labrum is a ring of thick tissue that surrounds the hip socket, helping to keep the ball at the top of your thigh bone inside the socket and support the smooth movement of the joint. The labrum can tear either as the result of a traumatic injury – normally a heavy fall or collision – or due to making repetitive movements which can lead to degeneration over time. Hip labral tears may accompany a hip dislocation and, in this instance, are often caused by a sharp twisting movement or heavy fall. Depending on the extent of the tear, this type of injury may be treated with rest, anti-inflammatory medication, physiotherapy or injections of corticosteroids into the affected area. In more serious cases, you may need keyhole surgery to remove or repair the torn section of labrum.
While it may not be possible to prevent traumatic labral tears, you can reduce your risk of developing a chronic overuse injury by building up your fitness gradually and avoiding suddenly increasing the duration and intensity of your training schedule.
Hip dislocation and subluxation
A total dislocation of the hip joint is normally associated with serious vehicle collisions at high speed, however you may sustain a hip subluxation – which is where the ball of the hip joint is pushed some of the way out of the socket – during high impact sports like rugby or football. Both dislocations and subluxations are serious injuries with a long recovery time.
You will need urgent medical treatment and you may require surgery if the nearby ligaments, nerves or blood vessels are also damaged. Because this type of injury is associated with traumatic accidents, it is not normally possible to prevent it however you should always seek treatment immediately and avoid returning to sport until your doctor advises it is safe to do so.
Hip fracture
The most common type of sports-related hip fracture is a stress fracture to the neck of the femur (thigh bone). Long-distance runners can be particularly susceptible to this type of injury as they put the bones of the hip joint under repeated stress which can cause microfractures. You will need to avoid putting weight on the affected leg for four to six weeks to give it a chance to heal. In some cases, you may need surgery to insert a plate or pins to the damaged bone. Around 30% of injuries seen in runners are stress fractures. If you experience pain while running it is important to stop and not to keep running. Allow your body time to rest between training sessions and always wear the correct running shoes.
There are many different types of hip injuries that can occur when you are playing sport, particularly high impact sports or those that have an increased risk of heavy falls or collisions.
A private patient, Michele Green, who underwent a hip replacement with Prof. J Queally at Beacon Hospital wrote on 10 January 2023:
“What can I say… I don’t have the words to express how grateful I am to him. An amazing person and a talented surgeon who actually gave me my life back.”
For advice about diagnosing, treating or preventing hip injuries, contact us.
