Early Diagnosis and Treatment of Hip Conditions is Focus of New Center
Key points
- Recent improved understanding of hip abnormalities, combined with advances in diagnostic imaging techniques and minimally invasive surgical treatments are giving many patients new hope for relieving chronic, misdiagnosed hip pain.
- Hip conditions can be attributed to anatomical abnormalities that begin at a young age or result from overuse through repetitive motion, as seen in baseball.
- At present, little data exists on the long-term outcomes of certain hip procedures such as hip arthroscopy.
- “Because proper diagnosis of hip pain is challenging, the Center will help to gather and share our expertise in this area to educate primary care physicians and physical therapists about the symptoms and early signs of hip problems,” said Dr.
Recent improved understanding of hip abnormalities, combined with advances in diagnostic imaging techniques and minimally invasive surgical treatments are giving many patients new hope for relieving chronic, misdiagnosed hip pain.
Increasingly, hip specialists are now able to slow or reverse the progression of degenerative hip disease, get patients back to their chosen activities and, in some cases, reduce the need for more extensive surgeries, according to doctors at the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS). With this changing paradigm increasingly apparent, HSS announced it has formed the new Center for Hip Pain and Preservation, aimed at providing individuals experiencing hip pain with proper diagnosis and treatment.
“In the past few years, the understanding of hip structural abnormalities has increased, allowing specialists to better identify underlying hip conditions that previously went unrecognized and to more accurately diagnose hip problems,” said Douglas E. Padgett, M.D., chief of the Hip Service and co-director of the newly formed Center for Hip Pain and Preservation at Hospital for Special Surgery.
“Health insurance companies also now readily recognize the value of hip preservation procedures and, depending on one's coverage, reimburse their cost.”
An increasing number of patients are now being seen at the Center for Hip Pain and Preservation. They range from active people at varying stages in life to major league baseball players, hockey players and other elite athletes. The common complaint is limited mobility due to undiagnosed or misdiagnosed hip pain, according to Bryan T. Kelly, M.D., sports medicine orthopedic surgeon and co-director of the Center for Hip Pain and Preservation at Hospital for Special Surgery.
“Advances in imaging technology and new hip preservation surgery have also helped to better recognize and treat conditions such as hip impingement, labral tears and hip dysplasia,” said Dr. Kelly.
In 2002, HSS surgeons started using hip arthroscopy, a minimally invasive treatment option, which may be a better choice for some patients than open, invasive surgery for hip impingement. Through three tiny incisions, doctors are able to trim bone using a burr or spinning drill. Previously, surgeons only had the option of opening up the entire hip with a large incision, dislocating the hip and then shaving the bone down.
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Hip conditions can be attributed to anatomical abnormalities that begin at a young age or result from overuse through repetitive motion, as seen in baseball. Femoro-acetabular impingement (FAI), also known as hip impingement, occurs when there is a change in the bony form of the hip joint, causing a decreased range of motion and pain. It is not uncommon for doctors to misdiagnose hip impingements and dysplasias as growing pains.
Written and revised by
David Cohen, M.D.
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