Hip Pain and Injury

Nationally Recognized Team in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Hip Pain and Injury

Hip pain and injury can impact many parts of your life, making it hard to walk, use stairs, or sleep on the side that hurts. Loyola Medicine’s integrated clinical team is nationally and internationally recognized for diagnosing and treating hip pain and injury.

Loyola’s fellowship-trained hip surgeons provide non-surgical and surgical solutions to address a broad range of hip injuries and conditions, including:

Loyola uses a team approach for every part of your care, bringing together the expertise of orthopaedic surgeons, physician assistants, anesthesiologists, nurses, physiatrists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, social workers and patient resource managers. We’ll work together with compassion to diagnose and treat your pain and help you return to your normal activities.

Why Choose Loyola for Treatment of Hip Pain and Hip Injury?

Loyola is an Illinois Level I Trauma Center and is staffed by a team of fellowship-trained orthopaedic specialists experienced in treating bone and tendon injuries, including complex fractures. Loyola’s orthopaedic surgeons have specialty training and deep experience in caring for hip injuries and are able to treat the full range of hip injury cases, from the routine to the most complex, with great outcomes.

Loyola also offers treatments not available at other centers, including hip replacement revision surgeries. Your Loyola surgeon will recommend minimally invasive options whenever possible, which can mean less pain and a shorter recovery time.

How is Hip Pain and Injury Diagnosed?

The ball-and-socket structure of the hip uses a cushion of cartilage that reduces friction and helps the bones move easily in the socket. But with age and use, the cartilage can wear down or become damaged. Muscles can become overused or strained and the hip bone itself can be fractured or injured.

Loyola’s orthopaedic surgery team will perform a physical exam in order to determine the source of your recurring hip pain. Loyola also uses a variety of minimally invasive and non-invasive medical tests, including:

• Arthroscopy
• MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)
• MRI arthrogram
• X-rays

People occasionally notice a snapping or popping sensation in the joint, sometimes called snapping hip syndrome. For most people this is only an annoyance and needs to be seen by a doctor only if it is accompanied by pain or limiting your motion. In others, especially athletes and dancers, the problem limits motion, and a medical appointment can address the problem.

What are the Treatment Options for Hip Pain and Injury?

You will be cared for by Loyola’s experienced hip surgery team that has specialized training in a number of methods, including many joint preservation techniques. These kinds of surgical treatments include:

• Core decompression
• Endoscopic tendon repair
• Femoral osteotomy
• Hip arthroscopy
• Hip resurfacing
• Periacetabular osteotomy
• Surgical hip dislocation

When joint preservation is not possible, Loyola’s hip surgeons may recommend partial or total hip replacement surgery, in which one or both hip joints and part of your bones are removed and replaced with an artificial joint. Hip replacement surgery options include:

• Complex primary hip replacement
• Minimally invasive techniques
• Partial hip replacement
• Resurfacing hip arthroplasty
• Revision hip replacement
• Total hip replacement

Your Loyola doctor will consider all therapeutic, medical and surgical options for your hip problem. Your doctor’s goal is to reduce your hip pain and get you back to your normal activities through the least invasive treatment possible.

Loyola’s highly trained orthopaedic rehabilitation specialists provide therapy as a primary treatment option and as a follow-up to surgical treatment. Our rehabilitation team includes physiatrists and physical and occupational therapists.

If you undergo a hip replacement, you may participate in a class led by orthopaedic nurses, physical therapists and social workers. The class helps you understand the complexities of your surgery, set expectations for recovery and determine your discharge planning needs (such as outpatient physical therapy). We will also identify whether you will need any special equipment at home after surgery.