But the cartilage and bone in our hip joints is just as susceptible to the wear and tear of life as our other joints.
At Cynergy, our team of physical therapists at our five locations throughout the city help our patients manage their hip pain.
What’s Behind the Pain?
Hip pain can be attributed to many causes. Here are a few.
- Sports hernia — These are not actual “hernias” in the true sense. They can involve a tear or muscle strain in the lower abdomen. These are common in rec league players who typically don’t stretch enough prior to getting into the game or activity.
- Bursitis — The bursa are sacs that provide the cushioning between tendons and muscles and bone. When we overuse a joint, the bursae inside the joint become inflamed. Sometimes bursitis is simply a result of aging, rather than overuse.
- Tendinitis — Our hip flexors are the group of muscles that allow us to bring our knees up toward our torso. If you engage in sports or recreation where you perform the same movements over and over, your hip flexors can become tender when you touch the area. That’s a sign of tendinitis. Soccer players are prone to tendinitis in their hip flexors.
- Osteoarthritis — Sports and activities with lots of impact can lead to hip pain in later years. If you were a dancer when you were younger or if you’ve played indoor volleyball your whole life, odds are the cartilage in your hips has some damage. These may be small tears that can catch during certain movements. The cartilage can also thin due to the continuing impacts. This can create areas with bone-on-bone contact. This degradation over time is known as osteoarthritis. Unlike more well-known rheumatoid arthritis, where the body’s immune system attacks the joints, osteoarthritis is colloquially known as “wear and tear” arthritis. Once you reach the age of 40, just about everyone has some degree of osteoarthritis if you’ve been active.
At Cynergy, our physical therapists help our patients manage their hip pain. Physical therapy can strengthen corresponding muscles to take some of the stress off the hip joint. Our therapy can increase the mobility in overly tight muscles and tendons that are behind hip bursitis. We also educate patients in proper form when doing various exercises and sports movements, and this can alleviate pain over time.
Make an appointment at any of our five Cynergy PT locations to make an appointment: Midtown West, (212) 974-7252; Chelsea, (212) 255-8080; Midtown East, (212) 980-2963; ADPT by Cynergy, (212) 292-7145; or Cobble Hill, (718) 795-2744.