Hip Injuries and Disorders

On this page

Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Living With
• Specifics

See, Play and Learn

• Health Check Tools

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Your hip is the joint where your thigh bone meets your pelvis bone. Hips are called ball-and-socket joints because the ball-like top of your thigh bone moves within a cup-like space in your pelvis. Your hips are very stable. When they are healthy, it takes great force to hurt them. However, playing sports, running, overuse or falling can all sometimes lead to hip injuries. These include

• Strains
• Bursitis
• Dislocations
• Fractures

Certain diseases also lead to hip injuries or problems. Osteoarthritis can cause pain and limited motion. Osteoporosis of the hip causes weak bones that break easily. Both of these are common in older people.

Treatment for hip disorders may include rest, medicines, physical therapy, or surgery, including hip replacement.

Start Here

• Hip Problems (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• Arthrography (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
• Bone X-Ray (Radiography) (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
• Hip Pain (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• Hip Problems (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Hip Ultrasound (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
• MRI of the Musculoskeletal System (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
• Musculoskeletal Ultrasound (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

• Hip Replacement: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Living With

• Hip Conditioning Program (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - PDF
• Managing Pain from a Broken Hip: A Guide for Adults and Their Caregivers (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality) Also in Spanish
• Mobility Aids: MedlinePlus Health Topic - Canes, crutches, walkers, wheelchairs Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Femoroacetabular Impingement (FAI) (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - PDF
• Fracture After Total Hip Replacement (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - PDF
• Hip Fracture (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• Hip Labral Tear (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• Pigmented Villonodular Synovitis (PVNS) (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Health Check Tools

• Hip Injury (DSHI Systems)
• Hip Pain (DSHI Systems)

Statistics and Research

• Hip Fractures among Older Adults (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Femoral Neck Fractures (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Hip Dislocation (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Hip Fractures (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Hip Injuries (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Pelvis (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: One-year health and care costs after hip fracture for home-dwelling...
• Article: Sliding hip screw versus the Targon PFT nail for trochanteric...
• Article: Contemporary acetabular fracture surgery: treading water or swimming upstream?
• Hip Injuries and Disorders -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• Find a Doctor in American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons)
• Find a Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Physician (American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation)
• National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Also in Spanish

Children

• Developmental Dislocation (Dysplasia) of the Hip (DDH) (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - PDF
• Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip (Nemours Foundation)
• Hip Problems in Infants (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Transient Synovitis of the Hip (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Ultrasound: Infant Hip (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• X-Ray Exam: Hip (Nemours Foundation)
• X-Ray Exam: Pelvis (Nemours Foundation)

Teenagers

• Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Developmental dysplasia of the hip (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Getting your home ready - knee or hip surgery (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hip arthroscopy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hip flexor strain -- aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hip fracture - discharge (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hip fracture surgeries (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hip joint injection (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hip pain (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Legg-Calve-Perthes disease (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Slipped capital femoral epiphysis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Trochanteric bursitis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish