What is osteoarthritis of the hip
Osteoarthritis of the hip is often referred to as ‘wear and tear’ of the hip. It is more common is those over the age of 50 but can also affect younger people. Arthritis can affect anywhere in the body but is usually develops in load-bearing joints such as the hip and the knee.
Osteoarthritis involves the breakdown and degeneration of the cartilage that lines the hip joint. This cartilage is smooth and lubricated and allows the bones to glide over each other easily and painlessly. When this cartilage breaks down the joint will feel stiff and rigid and movement can be painful. This causes the ‘bone on bone’ sensation that many sufferers of osteoarthritis describe. This pain is often worse in the mornings or when getting up after sitting for a while. There can also be a different ‘feel’ to the joint, with some people noticing a grinding, creaking or a locking sensation. This occurs as the bone beneath the cartilage starts to fragment and lose bodies can break away.
What causes osteoarthritis?
Age is the primary ‘cause’ of osteoarthritis. There is also a genetic component to arthritis, as problematic arthritic joints tend to ‘run in the family’. Previous injury or trauma and also predispose to arthritis. Obesity and excessive weight places increased load on the joints which can also lead to arthritis.
Is there any treatment available?
Unfortunately, there is not yet a ‘cure’ for arthritis. There are however, a number of steps you can take in order to reduce pain and improve your mobility and quality of life.
An important step to reducing your pain is to modify aggravating activities. This may involve changing your exercise from high impact, such as running or tennis to a lower impact activity such as walking or swimming. It is still very important to remain active however and to not give up exercise all together. Exercise is known to be beneficial for arthritis by increasing strength and flexibility. Exercises that focus on core strength and balance such as yoga, Pilates and tai-chi are great ways to strengthen the muscles around the hip and core and improve balance without overloading the joints.
Exercise can also help to reduce excessive weight and this reduces the strain on the hip joint.
The use of assistive devices such as a walking stick or walking frame is another great way to reduce the load with in the joint whilst also providing an increase in stability.
A physiotherapist can give you exercises in order to improve motion at the hip joint, increase flexibility and promote greater strength and balance.
Pain medication may also be required. It is important that you speak to your doctor about what medicine may be suitable for you.
If there is no improvement with these conservative measures then surgery may be required. Surgery for hip osteoarthritis involves a hip replacement. This involves replacing the ball and socket joint of the hip with an artificial joint to restore motion and reduce pain.
Can a podiatrist help me?
As pain and stiffness at the hip joint worsens there is often more pronounced gait changes (changes to the way you walk) Podiatrist are experts at analysing your gait and at Entire Podiatry we offer gait analysis services at all out clinics. We have modern technology used to film your walking gait and we can slow it down frame by frame to fully appreciate the way that your hip arthritis is changing your walking gait.
Depending on the findings, your podiatrist may have some recommendations for you. This can include:
- Changes to your footwear to increase the support and stability
- Exercises for the hip or the lower limb
- Balance exercises
- Orthotics therapy to provide additional support to the foot and lower limb
If you are noticing osteoarthritis pain in your hip there may be arthritis in other areas of your body such as your knee or foot. Your podiatrist can also assess this and provide further treatment and advice as required.
