What is Hip Bursitis?

Bursitis is inflammation of the bursa. Bursa’s are located in all major joints in the body to help with decreasing friction through movement, and assist with joint health. Bursitis is commonly seen in individuals that perform repetitive movements such as running, jumping etc. There are 3 different types of Bursitis that occur in the hip, these include:

Trochanteric Bursitis
Iliopsoas Bursitis
Ischial Bursitis

There a two common types of hip bursitis:

Acute
- Occurs because of trauma or a massive overload during activity
Chronic
- Occurs overtime due to overuse of certain movements and repetitive trauma to a structure

Are there any predisposing factors to Bursitis?

Source: Scuba

Women are more likely compared to men due to structure of the hip
Overweight/Obesity
Overuse of a muscle surrounding the bursa
Leg length differences
Incorrect biomechanics
Recent increase in workload

What are the symptoms?

Hip tenderness on the lateral (outside) aspect of the hip
Movements such as walking upstairs will aggravate the pain
Laying down on the affected side will cause pain (especially during sleep)
Secondary lower back pain due to compensatory biomechanics of walking etc.
Sleep disturbances

Is there anything I can do to help my hip?

Identify the cause of aggravation; from there you can decrease the amount of irritation to the hip. Once identified, exercises that help strengthen the muscles around the hip will help protect the bursa and joint structure from repetitive force for a longer period. Exercises can include:

Side lying clams
Squats (barbell/dumbbell)
Lunges
Hip thrusts

What can a Physiotherapist do the help with hip bursitis?

A Physiotherapist will help assess and diagnose through thorough history taking and objective testing to ensure a comprehensive treatment plan. Once assessed, the Physiotherapist will use techniques such as soft tissue release, joint mobilisations, rehabilitation exercise. They will also be able to identify common causes of irritation and if there are ant biomechanical issues may be impacting the hip

Post by: Physiotherapist Ray Palencia