The Hip Flexor inherently has a lot to do with the Hip Joint. Hip Joint pain is often intertwined or confused with Hip Flexor pain; hopefully this article can clarify on the former.
The hip joint is the joint where the leg is attached to the upper torso, in other words the top of the leg connects with the pelvic bones. This is an extremely intricate area much like the Hip Flexor region because of the overlap, and many people suffer pain for many different reasons. Inflammation, tears, trauma, wear and tear, and many other factors can cause several serious conditions.
Hip Joint Pain Causes
Inflammation
Inflammation is basically the swelling of a body part when it is engorged by blood. It is a biological response in response to certain pain or other stimuli that signal that the body is being damaged or has been damaged.
Tendon Inflammation
Tendons are the strong tensile tissues that connect muscles to bones for the most part. In all cases they are attaching something in your body to another. When these become inflamed they can cause significant pain by not being able to operate correctly and by interacting with other internal parts they are not designed to. The result of this kind of inflammation is more often or not some sort of tendonitis.
Inflammation of Bursas
Bursas are little cushion like structures filled with fluid at all your major joints. Think of them like a pillow in between your head and the ground if you were lying on the floor. While your head and floor would hurt if they were directly moving against each other, with a pillow (bursa) in between any pain is ideally diminished during movement. When these bursas become inflamed however, they can become sensitive to movement and have functioning problems which leads to pain during movement.
Surrounding Injuries
Since the Hip Joint is central to a lot of body movements and functions, it depends on surrounding muscles and inner workings to function properly. When there are surrounding issues like lower back pain, Sciatica, Hip Flexor Tendonitis, there is often a correlation to Hip joint pain.
Wear and Tear
This is really the only truly age dependent cause of Hip joint pain that occurs somewhere just after middle age for many people. Any bad habits of posture, walking, etc. eventually start to catch up with you once you get older. The years of stress on the Hip can accumulate and emerge in different ways, but the result is usually a lot of pain, and in many cases this is why people need Hip replacement surgery as they age.
Common Conditions and Injuries
Arthritis
There are many types of Hip arthritis, but the most common is Osteoarthritis. This type of arthritis is caused by wear and tear because it usually affects elder people. In a joint there are many contributing body parts that help to ensure proper functionality; one of these is protective cartilage. In this condition the cartilage is slowly grinded down until only bone is left in the joint, and at this point a tremendous amount of Hip joint pain is suffered.
Tendonitis
Tendonitis is caused by inflammation of the tendons connected to body parts, usually muscles. It usually occurs as a result of overuse of a certain body part, in this case the Hip Joint. Overuse in this case is a relative term that is measured in terms of bodily capacity (the fitness level) that can occur at any age.
Osteonecrosis
This condition results from a lack of blood flow to an area, in this case the Hip joint. There can be many reasons for restrictive blood flow which need to be diagnosed in person by a qualified physician. The reason for Hip joint pain with this condition is that the lack of blood does not allow for proper upkeep for cells, particular near the bones. Over time this leads to weaker bones that can become brittle and even collapse.
Developmental Diseases
From being a fetus to a child to an adult there are many ways in which people develop. Sometimes there are issues with development though because of diseases. The general term for this is Developmental Dysplasia, which is when a part of a person does not develop properly, like the Hip. There are numerous negative effects of this that usually reveal themselves first in some form of impaired walking and movement. Overtime these impairments will result in different types of Hip joint pain.
Treatments
As seen from the above section there are a wide variety of different Hip injuries that can occur. All of these need to be treated individually based on the specific case. It will be necessary at some point to see a physician in order to have any issues found or treated, the earlier you find the problems the better.
Pain Prevention
There are some things that you can do to prevent Hip joint pain from occurring in the first place. First of all, perform Hip Flexor strengthening to strengthen all the parts around the Hip joint. Strong muscles and tendons are necessary to prevent injury.
Take precautions if you are older. As people get older they become less mobile and durable, it is crucial to plan for this. Make sure that everyday things are organized properly, don't leave clutter around that someone can trip on, and get rid of anything slippery. If you live in a cold climate make sure to shovel and get rid of any ice around the house.
For women specifically, who have a higher risk of hip and back fractures in general, it is important to try to prevent injuries by getting all necessary nutrients like calcium, vitamin D, and bisphosphonates to keep bones strong.
A final word on this subject - If you have any Hip joint pain or feel at risk, go visit your doctor to get more information, it is always better to be on the safe side.
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