Acupuncture and Hip Pain – Hip pain is a common type of pain ailment affecting millions of individuals across the US, especially women. Fortunately, acupuncture works very well at easing and in many cases eliminating hip pain and the residual pain it causes. Let’s first understand hip pain, its causes, symptoms and common treatments.
The following are the most common types of hip pain causes that we see in our Boca Raton clinic:
Hip fracture – this is a condition that is common especially in aging women. As a person becomes of age, the bone density reduces thus becoming prone to fracture. Some of the symptoms associated with hip fractures include pain when you walk, stretch or stand on your legs. A hip fracture can also make your toes appear to turn outward, a sign that many medical practitioners check when carrying out a diagnosis on your hip.
Arthritis – this is usually a major cause of chronic hip pain especially to individuals with osteoarthritis. As a person gets older, the socket joint and the ball of the hip starts wearing out, a condition that results in severe pain. You normally feel the pain caused by arthritis on the front of your thigh or the groin due to the swelling and the stiffness of the joint.
Tendonitis and Bursitis – Tendons in the hip area connect muscle to the hip joint. They can routinely become inflamed from overuse. A common cause of hip pain in runners, is iliotibial band syndrome or IT Band, a thick span of tissue running from the outer pelvis to the lateral side of the knee.
Hernia – also known as sports hernia, this is a medical condition that can result in chronic pain in the frontal hip in women. An expecting woman is usually prone to suffering a hip condition known as inguinal hernia due to the overstretching of the abdominal walls.
Gynecological Issues – hip pain can also be caused by a condition called endometriosis (the uterine lining grows abnormally) that affects women.
Symptoms of hip injury or pain
The hip is one of the major joints of the body that is comprised of muscle, ligament, cartilage, bone, and lubricating fluid. Hip pain can be difficult to describe and most patients just state that their hip hurts. The description of the pain along with the location, frequency and intensity can vary based on what is causing the hip to feel painful. The pain may be felt as groin pain, or over the trochanter, or possibly in the buttocks area. The pain can also refer to the knee. Most patients experience:
- Stabbing, aching or throbbing pain (sometimes extending to the groin, low back, and lower legs)
- Limping
- Stiff muscles
- Spasm
- Stiffness and difficulty in moving the hip joint.
- Pain can be worse in the morning or when sitting or walking for extended periods.
Western Medical Treatments for hip pain
When you visit a medical center with a hip pain problem, the doctor usually starts by performing a physical examination. The doctor can use the following methods to evaluate the cause and seriousness of your condition.
– Bone scan
– Arthrogram
– X-ray
– Magnetic resonance imaging MRI
After getting the details of your condition, the doctor can recommend various types of treatment which include:
- Physical therapy – Stretching, low impact exercising, core training, and even yoga poses can alleviate the symptoms of hip pain.
- Medication – Steroidal anti-inflammatory medications, non-steroidal NSAID’s, and pain killers, such as opioids, are often prescribed to alleviate hip pain.
- Surgery – recommended in advanced cases where all other options have been explored and exhausted.
Acupuncture and Hip Pain
If you have tried solving your hip pain without success there are other options, including acupuncture, one of the oldest pain-relieving techniques that has been proven to work in many cases of hip pain. Carefully placed sterile acupuncture needles have been shown to reduce inflammation and pain while helping the body to recover and heal naturally.
Acupuncture has been proven to facilitate circulation, improve the flow of blood and lymph and stimulate the nervous system, and most importantly stop pain.
If you have tried everything else to alleviate your hip pain and you ultimately want to avoid surgery please consider giving acupuncture a try. We have seen it work consistently over the years with our patients and we are confident that it can work for you too. Give Dr. Landon and Dr. Enright a call and take advantage of their free consultations. You will be glad you did!