Hip Pain is No Fun!
We want to educate you on what may be causing your pain!
At Fit Club we help a bunch of New Yorkers who unfortunately suffer from anterior hip pain. This can be an annoying injury because it limits your ability to squat to pick up items from the floor and also limits the ability hip hinge! These motions are not only performed in athletic activities but they are also performed everyday when we sit down on a chair or toilet, or bend over to pick up shoes from the floor. Hip pain is no fun and we want to educate you on what may be causing your pain!
What is Femoroacetabular Impingement (FAI)?
Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is a condition in which extra bone grows along one or both of the bones that form the hip joint — giving the bones an irregular shape. Because they do not fit together perfectly, the bones rub against each other during movement. Over time this friction can damage the joint, causing pain and limiting activity.
The hip is a ball and socket joint. The structure of the hip allows for a great amount of mobility. When an individual has FAI, that motion is limited due to the extra bone growth and can become quite painful. The extra bone causes abnormal contact between the bones in the hip leading to pain and breakdown.
What are the different types of FAI?
There are three types of FAI: pincer, cam, and combined impingement.
- Pincer. This type of impingement occurs because extra bone extends out over the normal rim of the acetabulum. The labrum can be crushed under the prominent rim of the acetabulum.
- Cam. In cam impingement the femoral head is not round and cannot rotate smoothly inside the acetabulum. A bump forms on the edge of the femoral head that grinds the cartilage inside the acetabulum.
- Combined. Combined impingement just means that both the pincer and cam types are present.
FAI occurs because the hip bones do not form normally during childhood. It is the deformity of a cam bone spur, pincer bone spur, or both, that leads to joint damage and pain. When the hip bones are shaped abnormally, there is little that can be done to prevent FAI.
Because athletic people may work the hip joint more vigorously, they may begin to experience pain earlier than those who are less active. Once thing we need to make clear to our readers though is that exercise does not cause FAI.
Some of these cases are so severe that surgery is required to address the anatomy of the hip joint. Conservative therapy such as physical therapy should be the first line of defense however for the individual suffering from FAI. We have had successful outcomes helping New Yorkers with FAI get back to a pain free life that includes exercise and physical activity.
Here are some exercises that our team uses to help reduce the affects of FAI and restore function to the hip joint.
What do you do if you have hip pain?
If you are suffering from anterior hip pain and have questions, please reach out to our team of hip pain specialists in Brooklyn and Manhattan. We are here to help you live a life free from pain and doing what you love. Don’t suffer with hip pain another day! Make today the day that you do something about it, call our team to speak with our care coordinators and see how we can help you!
