Hip Arthritis

Hip arthritis is one of the most common reasons for hip replacements. The malalignment of the hip joint causes an increase in wear to the joint. By maintaining proper alignment, we can reduce the amount of wear placed on the hip. With this treatment we can decrease arthritis pain and prevent/minimise the wear and tear caused by day to day activities.

Hip Arthritis is a joint disease that can be broken down into different disease process including commonly diagnosed pathologies: Osteoarthitis and Rheumatoid Arthritis.

This mostly affects your hip joint cartilage. Joint cartilage is a slippery section that covers the ends of bones that move against each other.

Cartilage should allow your hip bones to glide smoothly and painlessly over each other.

The pain associated with Hip Arthritis can be either:

• Inflammatory based – Rheumatoid Arthritis – In Rheumatoid Arthritis your immune system inappropriately attacks the joint, causing pain, swelling, and destruction.
• Mechanical based – Osteoarthritis – In Osteoarthritis the smooth surface of your cartilage is worn away exposing the bone. This causes grinding and pain due to the lack of a smooth surface for your joint to glide on as it moves through its range of motion.

Some risk factors that might increase your likelihood of deterioration include:

• Increased weight
• Age
• Previous injury to the area
• Muscle imbalance or weakness
• Repeated load on the joints from occupations and sports/activities
• Poor movement patterns
• Poor joint structure or genetic diseases affecting cartilage

Hip osteoarthritis is becoming more common with the ageing population.

Some research shows early intervention can slow the onset of hip arthritis and may potentially reduce the amount of people suffering with hip osteoarthritis. There is no cure for hip osteoarthritis however there are many treatment options helping people to live full and often pain free lives.

Symptoms may include:

• Joint pain or tenderness that may be constant or fleeting. Typically there will be sharper pains in the groin, and sometimes an ache in the front of the thigh
• Joint stiffness, particularly in the morning
• Restricted joint movement or difficulty moving the joint through its range, especially inward rotation
• Weak hip muscles, especially when standing from a seat, squatting and climbing stairs

Treatments for Hip pain vary widely depending on which kind of Arthritis you have. Our knowledgeable team of Podiatrist will assess, and develop a treatment plan for you to help you find your feet.