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Pain Management

Hip Pain Treatment in Montville, NJ

Hip, groin and outer-thigh pain from arthritis, bursitis or tendon problems — distinguished by examination, then treated without surgery.

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Does this sound like you?

  • Deep groin pain, worse with walking or turning
  • Pain on the outer hip that hurts to lie on
  • Stiffness putting on shoes and socks
  • Pain spreading into the buttock or down the thigh
  • A limp, or difficulty with stairs and getting out of a car

You do not need all of these, and having them does not confirm the diagnosis — that is what an examination is for. But if several look familiar, it is worth being seen.

Three problems that get one name

Almost everyone says “hip pain”, and it means at least three different things.

The joint itself. Pain is felt in the groin, sometimes into the front of the thigh or the knee, and is worse with weight-bearing and rotation. Osteoarthritis is the usual cause after middle age; putting on socks and getting out of a car become the daily reminders.

The outside of the hip. Pain over the bony prominence, tender to press, painful to lie on at night. Often called trochanteric bursitis; it is more often a problem with the gluteal tendons that attach there. The distinction is not pedantry — tendons need loading to recover, and repeated steroid injections into a degenerative tendon can do harm.

Referred pain. The lumbar spine and the sacroiliac joint both project pain into the buttock and outer hip. A hip that has been treated for a year without improving is frequently a back.

The assessment

Where it hurts, and what makes it hurt. Then range of motion at the hip — internal rotation goes first in hip arthritis, and it is an early, reliable sign. Palpation of the trochanter and the tendon insertions. Strength testing of the glutes. An examination of the lumbar spine and the sacroiliac joint. And how you walk, because a limp tells you where the load is going.

Imaging is used to answer a question, not to start the conversation.

Treatment

Joint injections for an irritated hip joint — both therapeutic and, because the response is informative, diagnostic. These are done with imaging guidance where the anatomy requires it.

Targeted soft-tissue treatment for greater trochanteric pain syndrome, weighted towards progressive loading of the gluteal tendons rather than repeated injection, for the reason given above.

PRP in selected tendon and early joint problems.

Rehabilitation, centred on gluteal strength. The hip abductors control the pelvis with every step you take; when they are weak, the joint, the tendons and the lower back all take more than they should. This is the part that changes the trajectory rather than the week.

Treatment

How hip pain is treated here

Which of these applies to you is decided by your examination, not by a price list. Each page says what the treatment involves and what it does not do.

Joint Injections

An injection into an irritated joint to reduce pain and inflammation — and, because the response is informative, to confirm that the joint is actually the problem.

What it involves →

PRP Injections

Platelet-rich plasma concentrated from your own blood and injected into a joint or tendon, to support repair rather than only suppress inflammation.

What it involves →

Trigger Point Injections

A fine needle into a muscle locked in spasm, to break the cycle and make rehabilitation possible. Minutes to do, and often the step that unblocks everything else.

What it involves →

Questions patients ask

Why does everyone ask me where exactly the pain is?

Because the location is the most useful piece of information in the entire assessment. Groin pain points at the hip joint itself. Pain on the bony point of the outer hip that hurts to lie on points at the tendons and bursa there. Pain in the buttock that runs down the leg is usually the lower back. These are three different conditions with three different treatments and people call all of them “hip pain”.

Is outer hip pain always bursitis?

It is usually labelled bursitis and it is usually actually the gluteal tendons. Greater trochanteric pain syndrome is the better name. That distinction matters, because a tendon problem responds to loading and strengthening, and treating it as pure inflammation with repeated steroid injections can make the tendon worse over time.

Can anything be done short of a hip replacement?

For many people, yes, and for a long time. Hip replacement is an excellent operation for an end-stage joint, but plenty of hips are not there. Injections, PRP in selected cases, load management and specific strengthening all have a place. When a hip is genuinely end-stage you will be told plainly rather than sold a course of injections.

My hip pain came with back pain. Which is it?

Possibly both, and separating them is part of the examination. The lower back and the sacroiliac joint refer pain into the buttock and outer hip convincingly. The examination tests each in turn, and a diagnostic injection is sometimes the cleanest way to settle the question.

Related conditions

Back Pain

Lower or upper back pain that has not resolved on its own, assessed and treated without surgery by a physician trained in physical medicine and rehabilitation.

Sciatica

Pain that travels from the lower back or buttock down the back of the leg, often with pins and needles. A symptom of nerve irritation, and the cause is what determines treatment.

Arthritis

Joint pain, stiffness and swelling from osteoarthritis — managed actively rather than waited out, without surgery.

Tell us what’s going on

A consultation is a conversation and an examination, not a sales appointment. Dr. D’Alessio will tell you what she thinks is causing it, what can be done about it, and — when that is the honest answer — that you do not need a procedure.

Request an appointmentor call (973) 397-5304