The Signs of Hip Problems

There are a number of signs that point to hip problems. Once you know what to look for, you can take the necessary steps to alleviate or resolve the problem. Hip problems can cause health symptoms as well as discomfort. Sometimes a doctor can provide non-surgical treatment to relieve the discomfort, but surgery may be a consideration.

Joints

• When you first experience hip problems, you may feel pain in the joint area. The pain can be significant and can limit your mobility. If you try to bend and place your forehead on your knee, you will not be able to do it on the side of the body that has the hip problem. You won't have a problem performing this task on the other knee.

Balance

• If you have hip problems, you may start wobbling back and forth with each step as you walk, similar to the motion of a penguin. You will wobble because you are trying to compensate for the pain by shifting your weight to other parts of the body and off the injured hip.

Stiffness/Deformity

• If you are sitting in a chair, it may be hard to lift your leg up due to the stiffness, pain and swelling. The area around the joint can swell up and become heated. You may have to apply something to the area to stop or alleviate the swelling. The hip joint can also become deformed, especially if the area is not treated. The symptoms can escalate if nothing is done to help the problem. You can develop pain in the knee, since your hip and knee share some of the same nerves.

Elevate Leg

• When you are lying in bed, you can develop significant pain that does not allow you to move your leg. Pain in the back can also develop. The pain can show up in the groin, outer thigh and even the buttocks. When you first wake up in the morning, there will be more pain and your flexibility will be substantially limited. After you start doing a few minor activities, the pain will subside and your flexibility will increase.

Foot Pain

• As you start walking, you may experience pain in one or both of the feet because you are constantly making adjustments. You can start to walk more heavily on different parts of the feet. The pain in your hip makes you compensate by putting the weight on certain parts of your feet for a period of time. Then you will put weight on another part of your feet once the previous area becomes too painful.