The groin pain is localized where the femur joins the pelvis. It is this bone connection that ensures a person normal foot movement on any plane. The hip joint is considered the largest mobile joint in the human body and helps it to move fully.
Like many other joints in the body, the femur and pelvis can be damaged. In case of any work interruption, the patient feels how the hip joints ache. Bones, muscles, joint perimeter, cartilage, vessels, tendons, nerves and adjacent joints can be affected by pain syndrome. In that case, a person suffers from unpleasant symptoms that interfere with normal life. When such pain is felt, a person is immediately interested in the question of how the syndrome developed and what to do to eliminate it.
Etiology
Pain in the hip joint has a variety of causes. The junction of the femur and pelvis can become inflamed due to injuries, diseases of the joints and tendons, from the manifestation of systemic diseases, infectious processes.
The reasons for the formation of pain syndrome can be such non-traumatic factors:
- osteoarthritis;
- osteoarthritis;
- failure in bone blood supply and joint formation.
With the development of such diseases in the hip joints, degenerative changes occur in the articular surfaces. In humans, the cartilage and periarticular sac are damaged, the synovial membrane of the joint is destroyed, the amount of joint fluid is reduced, which leads to severe pain and rupture of the joint.
To get rid of an uncomfortable syndrome, the patient must identify why the hip joint hurts. To establish the correct diagnosis, the patient must undergo a thorough examination. Clinicians have determined that pain in the hip joint while walking has a fairly simple cause. The following indicators are attributed to the category of most common provocative factors:
- infectious inflammation;
- degenerative changes;
- dislocations;
- fracture;
- aseptic necrosis of the femoral head;
- scholarship;
- inflammation of a non-infectious nature with autoimmune connective tissue disease;
- tuberculosis.
It is quite difficult to determine the cause of the onset of pain, as it can be caused not only by injuries and diseases, but also by pathological processes in the abdominal cavity, lumbar region and genitals.
Pain in the hip joint while walking is often caused by damage to the bone junction. Injuries that can provoke a similar syndrome include not only dislocation or fracture, but also other reasons:
- pelvic contusion;
- rupture of the acetabulum;
- stretch;
- violation of the structure of the ligaments and the joint capsule.
Also, the causes of the appearance of pain syndrome can be toxic synovitis, primary and secondary oncological pathologies, osteomalacia and osteomyelitis.
Unlike adults, children have slightly different aggravation factors. If the thigh joint hurts, then most likely the reason lies in the epiphysis, Legg-Calve-Perthes, Still disease, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, etc.
For women during pregnancy, there is also characteristic pain in the hip joint. During this period, a woman's body changes significantly and the functioning of many organs changes, so pregnant women can often feel pain in different areas of the body. Pain syndrome in the movable joint of the pelvic region can develop for the following reasons:
- hormonal changes;
- uterine enlargement, which increases the load on the hip joint;
- increased load on the feet;
- aggravation of early injuries;
- calcium deficiency;
- the appearance of an inflammatory focus in another area, radiating to the groin.
All of the above etiological reasons can be identified after a thorough examination and examination by a physician. During pregnancy, pain in the groin joint is an important concern for a woman, but after childbirth, all the syndromes disappear.
Distribution
Unpleasant sensations that a person experiences are associated with intra-articular and extra-articular factors. The first category of reasons includes the formation of effusion in the joint, increased stress, fractures of the trabeculae and rupture of intra-articular ligaments, stretching of the joint capsule, inflammation in the synovial membranes.
Extra-articular factors include muscle spasm, impaired venous flow, which provokes congestion in the subchondral bone, and inflammation in the area of the periarticular tendon.
Clinics have also identified the types of pain by type:
- mechanical - manifested by a load on the joints, increases in the evening and decreases after sleep;
- initial pain - forms with reactive synovitis, progresses to physical activity and then subsides slightly or, in general, disappears;
- against the background of tendonitis or tendon bursitis - worsens in places involving damaged tendons and muscles;
- based on periarticular muscle spasm;
- pain in the hip joint at night - decreases with movement. Blood stagnation syndrome in the subchondral parts of the bone is aggravated;
- syndrome from synovial surface damage by osteophytes.
Symptoms
The causes and treatment of the syndrome are interrelated, therefore, to determine the method of therapy, the physician must identify the clinical picture.
During thigh joint damage, cartilage and cartilage fragments become thinner, causing inflammation of the inner surface of the pelvis and femur. It is this process that provokes the onset of pain. If there is no cartilage in the joints, then the exposed femur is rubbed against the pelvic bone, which is manifested in severe pain syndrome.
Very often, the patient has sensations that pass from one part of the body to another. Often patients while walking feel pain in the groin, which can move to the knee, but also to the gluteal and lumbar regions. At first, the syndrome may be unstable and not very pronounced, however, as the lesion progresses, the intensity of the symptoms increases. At this point, the pain becomes constant, it can appear both during movement and in a relaxed state.
Depending on the localization of the focus of inflammation, pain in the hip joint has different manifestations and symptoms:
- in case of damage to the hip joint - the syndrome bothers the patient not only in the ankle area, but also in the whole thigh and goes to the lower leg. It also often happens that inflammation in the lumbar spine can appear in the area of the hip joint;
- patient mobility is reduced - the possibility of hip flexion is reduced;
- lameness may appear on the right or left, or one leg will be slightly shorter than the other;
- the node becomes narrow and inactive;
- movement can be particularly painful after prolonged sitting;
- fatigue due to inability to walk long distances.
If symptoms appear from severe disease, then the patient may have more severe symptoms of the disease - high fever, swelling, headache, weakness, redness of the inflamed area.
Diagnosing
If a person continues to injure the right or left side in the thigh joint area, then he should definitely seek the advice of a specialist. With a similar problem, the patient may be referred to a rheumatologist, traumatologist, physiotherapist, or neurologist.
Before treating a symptom, you should evaluate the condition and identify the presumed cause of the syndrome. In addition to the obvious features of severe inflammation, the condition of the thigh joint can be assessed by the following methods:
- in the supine position, look at the lower extremities - in case of displacement or fracture, they assume a forced position, and not parallel to the body axis;
- to identify mobility of the wrist, you can make some active movements back and forth - if the pelvic region is damaged, the patient feels severe pain;
- in the supine position, passive movements in the movable joint can be detected - clicks, cracking and muscle tension may occur;
- during the examination of the patient, the doctor should fully describe all the manifestations of the syndrome.
A symptom of pain in the groin region can be formed by various pathological processes, so it is important for the clinician to make a differential diagnosis of the disease. To determine the cause of pain in the thigh joint when sitting and walking, the patient undergoes laboratory and instrumental examinations:
- X-ray of the spine, hip region;
- tomography of the spine, pelvis and hips;
- vascular patent examinations - dopplerography, angiography and other methods;
- electromyography;
- general, biochemical, bacteriological, immunological analysis of blood.
Treatment
If nocturnal pain in the groin joint does not develop very quickly in a person and disappears after rest, then perhaps the cause was a minor injury or a joint strain. In this case, doctors recommend the use of small measures of therapy:
- reduce loads;
- provide rest in the joints;
- use a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug;
- lie on the healthy side.
With severe, severe, persistent, and prolonged pain, you can not do without the help of a doctor, especially if there is a noticeable deformity of the wrist, redness of the thigh, a change in skin tone in the thigh and poor sensitivity. In these circumstances, self-medication can harm the patient and cause the symptoms to progress.
Pain in the thigh joint, which radiates to the legs, can disappear after the doctor prescribes different methods of therapy. To eliminate the syndrome, doctors prescribe conservative treatment for patients:
- children;
- sports with a minimum load;
- weight control;
- physiotherapy;
- accessories - walking sticks, pedestrians, crutches;
- avoid heavy loads;
- balancing the emotional state;
- taking vitamins.
The treatment process necessarily consists of drug therapy. For this purpose, doctors prescribe the following drugs to patients:
- diuretics;
- anti-inflammatory;
- muscle relaxants;
- improving microcirculation;
- chondroprotectors;
- vitamins and minerals.
If the pain in the thigh joint during pregnancy suddenly started in a woman, then she should definitely consult a doctor. It can be described the use of multivitamin complexes, calcium intake, moderate physical activity and bandaging. To reduce the symptoms and prevent the development of complications, the doctor advises the expectant mother to adhere to the simple rules:
- reduce the number of climbing stairs and long walks;
- do not sit for more than an hour;
- it is forbidden to sit and lie on a hard surface;
- with night pains, it is recommended to turn the body into parts, first the upper part and then the pelvis;
- eat foods high in calcium and vitamins;
- check the weight;
- wear a bandage;
- reduce the load on the pelvis and hips.
However, in addition to these methods, there are other technologies in medicine to eliminate the symptoms. Therefore, what else can be done to reduce the pain syndrome, the doctor at the reception points out. For mild pain in the left or right side of the thigh joint, these methods can be used without consulting your doctor:
- massage;
- physiotherapy;
- manual therapy.
Treatment of pain in the thigh joint with folk remedies is still used in medicine, but doctors use such remedies in some cases and only as an additional method of therapy. Patients can apply compresses, make tinctures, decoctions and lotions. Each of these agents has an analgesic effect and helps to improve the patient's condition. Patients are advised to use the following herbs and ingredients:
- lilac leaves;
- honey;
- lemon;
- saber;
- pork fat;
- ficus leaves;
- garlic;
- celery.
All ingredients are quite familiar and are often used in traditional medicine, but they can be used after consulting a doctor. If you do the wrong proportion, you can damage the body and provoke complications. In treating such a syndrome, it is also very important to adhere to restrictions on physical activity so as not to provoke an increase in an unpleasant symptom.