Do you suffer from hip pain? We know what a pain in the butt that can be!
“Gluteal tendinopathy” and “trochanteric bursistis”, two conditions that cause hip pain have a prevalence of 10-25% and can greatly impact sleep and daily activities. Fortunately, there are treatment options available to help and a new study in the British Medical Journal that was published this year confirms that they can be quite successful.
The randomized study compared the results of a Physiotherapist-lead education and exercise programme, to one corticosteroid injection, and to a “wait and see” approach in a pool of 204 people with lateral hip pain (pain on the outside of the hip).
The clinical trial found that education plus exercise by a trained Physiotherapist led to greater pain relief and global improvement than corticosteroid injection use or no treatment by 8 weeks. After 52 weeks, rates of improvement remained higher for the education and exercise group than for the injection group.
The take-home message?
This research study further supports the use of specific, effective exercises, along with advice from a Physiotherapist (what to avoid, tips and tricks for more comfortable positioning, etc) in the treatment of hip pain.
Now that Summer weather is here and getting moving outside is more enticing, it might be time to address that old “pain in the butt” hip of yours!