How To Treat Lower Back Hip Pain

Treat Your Lower Back And Hip Pain With Help From Back In Motion

Need treatment for lower back and hip pain? Our physical therapists at Back in Motion Physical Therapy are ready and willing to help you treat these forms of pain. We offer free screenings that can pinpoint the source of your pain. Our team also excels at building customized therapy plans that can reduce your pain. We can even treat your pain from home with our at-home care and virtual therapy services.

Contact us today for more information about how we can address your lumbar and hip pain or to schedule an initial appointment.

How To Improve And Treat Hip Pain

Have you been experiencing hip pain that has limited your mobility or decreased your quality of life? Hip pain can degrade the quality of your life to the point where you might need treatment from an orthopedic surgeon in Debary. Hip pain can be caused from a range of issues, relating to either your hip joint, lower back, or the soft tissues in your hip area. When you identify where the pain is coming from, it will become easier to treat. These are a few ways to improve and treat your hip pain.

Hip Osteoarthritis And Other Types Of Arthritis

Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis in the hip. But other types of arthritis can cause hip pain at night too.

These types may include:

If you have hip arthritis, you may notice:

• pain in your groin
• pain also in your buttocks, thigh, or knee
• pain made worse during rainy weather, in the morning, or after resting or sitting for a while
• hip pain that keeps you from sleeping
• pain when bending over, getting up from a chair, or taking a short walk
• grinding sound with movement , or your hip locking or sticking

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The Varieties Of Lower Back And Hip Pain

When X-rays and MRIs come back negative, a physician without adequate training in the musculoskeletal system may not know what to prescribe other than physical therapy exercises.

The problem with this strategy is that PT can aggravate certain conditions. I’ll go into this in more detail with each of the conditions listed below.

The most frequent regions of pain I hear reports about include

Stretches To Ease Lower Back Pain

My back is killing me. These five words are said by co-workers, family, friends, almost every person we regularly come in contact with will say them sooner or later. In fact, a study performed at the University of North Carolina found that more than an overwhelming 80 percent of people will experience an episode of back pain at some point in their life. As people age, often the spine will experience degenerative changes. As these changes occur, there is less space between the vertebrae, which can increase back pain. When the spine is flexed, pressure is off-loaded. Because of this, a flexion based program is often used to help relieve symptoms of lower back pain. Here are four stretches for lower back pain that almost everyone can do.

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What Treatments Are Available

Nonsurgical treatments: Physical therapy, chiropractic manipulation, and stretching exercises help many patients. Some patients may require oral anti-inflammatory medications or topical patches, creams, salves or mechanical bracing.

Joint injections: Steroids can reduce the swelling and inflammation of the nerves. Joint injections are a minimally invasive procedure that involves an injection of a corticosteroid and an analgesic-numbing agent into the painful joint . While the results tend to be temporary, if the injections are helpful they can be repeated up to three times a year.

Nerve ablations: Injections into joints or nerves are sometimes called âblocks.â Successful SI joint injections may indicate that you could benefit from radiofrequency ablation ââ¬â a procedure that uses an electrical current to destroy the nerve fibers carrying pain signals in the joint.

Surgery: If nonsurgical treatments and joint injections do not provide pain relief, your physician may recommend minimally invasive SI joint fusion surgery. Through a small incision, the surgeon places titanium implants and bone graft material to stabilize the joint and promote bone growth. The surgery takes about an hour. The patient may go home the same day or following day. For several weeks after surgery, the patient cannot bear full weight on the operated side and must use crutches for support.

Ways To Relieve Hip Pain That Is Worse At Night

Pain isnt normal. And, pain that interferes substantially with your sleep isnt sustainable. We rank the 17 best treatments you can try below. From at-home remedies to surgery, these methods have helped patients get the sleep they need.

However, as the Mayo Clinic post on hip pain warns, always talk to your doctor immediately if your pain is accompanied by:

• Any signs of infection, such as chills, fever, redness, or a sudden swelling
• An inability to move or bear weight on the affected leg
• Intense or severe pain
• A joint that appears deformed

These symptoms could indicate a more serious condition that requires immediate medical attention.

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Alternative Remedies And Treatments

Nutritional supplementation is helpful to some patients though the science on this is not entirely supportive of their effectiveness.

There are some studies to suggest that acupuncture can decrease the pain associated with osteoarthritis of the hip.

Although there is little hard science on this point, most hip surgeons and rheumatologists believe that patients with osteoarthritis of the hip should consider avoiding impact sports such as running in order to avoid increasing the rate at which the disease progresses.

It is important that patients with osteoarthritis of the hip avoid decreasing their activity level and it is important that they remain fit. However this often does require some modification of exercise programs running and walking programs are usually poorly tolerated by patients with osteoarthritis of the hip. Stationary bike, swimming and water aerobics usually are well-tolerated and they are recommended.

Ways To Relieve Back Pain Naturally

There are a wide variety of natural remedies to soothe your back, which can help reduce the intake of medications or provide an added benefit to your existing medical treatment.

Take a look at these natural pain-relieving strategies and find out what works best for you:

Read on to learn more about effective pain-relieving strategies for chronic back pain from natural methods.

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% Of People Will Experience Back Pain At Some Time But There Are Ways To Find Relief

As people enter middle age, they are more likely to experience bouts of low back pain. In fact, according to the Harvard Special Health Report Men’s Health: Fifty and Forward, back pain affects about four in five Americans at some point in their lives and equally strikes men and women.

Age is often the culprit. Over time, the bones and joints in your lower back begin to change. Your discs tend to wear out and sometimes become fragmented. These structural alterations sometimes cause pain.

Another cause of low back pain, although it occurs less often, is a herniated disc. Sometimes, a disc pushes outside the space between the bones and compresses a nerve at the point where it branches off the spinal cord. When the sciatic nerve that leads into the buttocks and leg is affected, the pain is called sciatica.

Yet, most cases of low back pain stem from strain or sprain due to simple overuse, unaccustomed activity, excessive lifting, or an accident. In most cases the best move is to wait and see if the pain resolves on its own. If the pain does not improve after three to four days, then it’s time to see a doctor.

However, depending on the source of your back pain and its severity, you might try a few home remedies for low back pain to help ease the pain until your back returns to normal. Here are several options to consider:

Complementary therapies. Several types of complementary therapy may be helpful for relief from low back pain. These include:

Practice Good Sleep Hygiene

Good sleep hygiene means getting into a routine that encourages restful and deep sleep. Hip pain at night can certainly affect your ability to sleep. However, it will be harder for it to do so if youre already practicing good sleeping habits. These include:

• Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day
• Reducing alcohol use before bed
• Avoiding prolonged use of sleeping pills
• Avoiding computer or television screens for at least two hours before going to sleep
• Keeping your bedroom cool
• Minimizing the clutter and distraction in your bedroom, by making it for sleep only

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Can Stress Cause Back Pain

Yes, emotional stress may cause back pain. Nonetheless, there are a variety of theories about the causes of stress-related back pain. Everything comes back to how a person reacts naturally to stress. Some may manifest stress in their minds, while others manifest it physically.

According to The Physio Company, muscles in the body can tighten whenever stress manifests physically. The most common area of tension happens in the shoulders and down the spine, which is what may trigger the persons pain or discomfort.

With that said, its important to not overwork yourself to the point of emotional distress. Remember to take a break from work every now and then to focus on your overall well-being. Maybe, a few days of vacation from work is just what the doctor ordered.

What Should I Know About Back Pain

Back pain is a very common problem and will affect many of us at some point during our lives.

The good news is that in most cases it isnt a serious problem, and it might just be caused by a simple strain to a muscle or ligament.

As far as possible, its best to continue with your normal everyday activities as soon as you can and to keep moving.

Being active and exercising wont make your back pain worse, even if you have a bit of pain and discomfort at first. Staying active will help you get better. Taking painkillers can help you do this.

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Treatments For Back Pain From A Specialist

A GP, specialist or physiotherapist may recommend extra treatments if they do not think your pain will improve with self-help measures alone.

These may include:

• group exercise classes where you’re taught exercises to strengthen your muscles and improve your posture
• manual therapy treatments, such as manipulating the spine and massage, which are usually done by a physiotherapist, chiropractor or osteopath
• psychological support, such as cognitive behavioural therapy , which can be a useful part of treatment if you’re struggling to cope with pain

Some people choose to see a therapist for manual therapy without seeing a GP first. If you want to do this, you’ll usually need to pay for private treatment.

Surgery is generally only considered in the small number of cases where back pain is caused by a specific medical condition.

Arthritis Causing Hip Pain

The most common cause of chronic hip pain is arthritis, and the most common type of arthritis is osteoarthritis.2

This is more prevalent in women than it is in men. Everyday Health has reported that, almost 27 million people in the United States have osteoarthritis, and that about 60 percent of them are women. Before age 55, more men tend to have osteoarthritis, but after age 55 the number of women with the condition far surpasses the number of men.

Why is it a bigger problem for women? Women are built differently than men. The average womans hips are wider than her knees, as opposed to men. Also, the typical womans knee joints are not aligned as straight as mens.

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Gluteal Muscle Tear Or Avulsion

The gluteus medius is a muscle that sits on the outside of the hip area. This muscle is used for standing upright and walking. When injured, these muscles will cause a limp. If these muscles are torn, it can cause severe pain when walking, sitting, or sleeping. Treatment usually involves rest, physical therapy, and sometimes surgery to repair the torn muscle, if no other treatments bring relief from pain.

What Can I Expect For My Recovery Time

Because your muscles and joints need to adjust with your changes incrementally, healing and rebuilding is a slow process. It takes time for the weaker areas of your body to respond and support you.

Any treatment plan worth doing will require time, especially in circumstances where injuries have occurred. Many have proven to help provide real relief within the first week of practice.

The best approach is with structured and targeted movements. Not gym workouts but simple and quick movements and stretches. Theyll protect your back, leg and hip mobility.

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Stretches That Relieve Lower Back Pain

If you are experiencing an achy back, your hips may be to blame.

Tight hips can cause discomfort or stiffness in the lower back, groin, hip or thigh, which is worse with stairs, squats or other activities that require active hip flexion, says Sal Frangiamore, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon for the Summa Health Orthopedic Institute and team physician for the US Ski and Snowboard Association .

Dr. Lev Kalika, owner of New York Dynamic Neuromuscular Rehabilitation & Physical Therapy in New York City, adds: The low back is intimately connected to our hips. The lumbar spine sits on top of the pelvis, and the hips and pelvis cannot be separated functionally. Because of this, Dr. Kalika explains that hip mobility prevents over recruitment of back muscles.

Core Exercises To Relieve Back And Hip Arthritis Pain

When you do core-building exercises, you strengthen the muscles in your abdomen and back. Strong core muscles take pressure off your spine and hip joints, which can help reduce arthritis pain and prevent additional joint damage. Strong core muscles can also increase stability and balance for your entire body.

Strength-building exercises are a core part of any exercise program for arthritis. ReadExercising with Arthritis

These 7 exercises will help you stretch and strengthen your core muscles. When exercising, remember: muscle soreness is normal, but if you experience any sharp or severe pain, stop whatever exercise or activity youre doing.

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Quick Natural Remedies For Hip And Lower Back Pain That Work Wonders

• Take some camphor, adding it to some coconut oil, boiling it up for 5 minutes. Bottle it and massage twice a week before going to sleep to rid yourself of pain in these areas.
• Add a few drops of eucalyptus oil to a bucket of warm water before adding to your bath water to get rid of body pain.
• Put a hot water bottle on your back supported by a cushion while you are watching TV or resting. The heat relieves the pain.
• Massage mustard oil in your back and hip before you shower, which should be a hot-water shower.
• Add a pinch of turmeric and a few drops of honey to a glass of warm milk and drink regularly to rid your body of body pain plus theres the bonus of it being good for colds and coughs too.
• Add a bit of ginger to your brewing tea it helps to relieve hip and lower back pain.

Hydrotherapy And Physical Therapy

Hydrotherapy is a form of physical rehabilitation that can encourage movement and uses temperature and pressure to encourage blood flow throughout the body. This can reduce pain in the hips.

Standard physical therapy treatments can also help reduce hip pain in patients with arthritis, strains, tears, tendinitis, and other less severe hip problems.

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What Is Sacroiliac Joint Instability

An injury to one or both of your SI joints can disrupt how they stabilize you, resulting in too much joint movement or too little movement . This is known as sacroiliac joint instability or sacroiliac joint dysfunction.

Your SI joints act as shock absorbers by distributing force across your pelvis and lower body to protect and stabilize your spine. In doing so, your SI joints play a critical role in keeping you upright when you walk or run.

But when injured, your SI joint becomes inflamed and loses its ability to evenly distribute stress across your pelvis. In turn, that stress is unevenly distributed on your pelvic joints and surrounding tissues, causing pain and other symptoms.

People with SI joint injuries commonly feel instability in their legs, which may buckle or give way, particularly when the person is bending forward, twisting, walking upstairs or uphill, or standing from a seated position.

Why Does My Lower Back And Hip Hurt

Your lower back and hip are codependent structures. A problem in one of these structures can cause dysfunction and pain in the other. 1

• If you have chronic lower back pain, the movements in your hip may be reduced and the muscles surrounding your hip joint can become tense and painful.2,3
• If theres an abnormality in your hip function, the mechanics of your lower back may be altered, causing pain in both regions.4

The lower back and hip share many groups of muscles. When a specific muscle is affected, it may lead to compensatory movements, fatigue, and pain in the other surrounding muscles.1

Read on to learn how lower back and hip pain can occur together. While some conditions may affect one side of your lower back and hip, others can cause pain on both sides at the same time.

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