Note: This is not a
typical Science Friday, but Part 2 in the unexpected series identifying
what is wrong with RunnerTeal. (Let’s hope for no Part 3 anytime
soon.)
Last week I told you about my not-so-hip hip and my upcoming
doctor’s appointment. Everyone’s well wishes and thoughts paid off, as I
do not have a surgery-requiring labral tear, but tendonitis in my hip flexor
instead. (Yippee!!) Tendonitis means no running for a few more weeks, being
forced to confront my hatred for biking, and no fall marathon. (The
Philadelphia Marathon has now stolen my money for the last two years. I’ll get
you back some day, Philly…) But, it isn’t surgery, and that is a huge relief that indisputably makes a few run-less weeks and hours of boring biking seem like a blessing.
Given the crash course I’ve had the last few weeks, I
thought it might be nice to share some of the things I’ve learned about hips, both their tears and tendons.*
The hip is a ball and socket joint, like the shoulder, where
the head of the femur (the ball) sits in the pocket (called the acetabulum, the
socket) of the pelvic bone. This allows for motion in almost all directions and
allows us to walk, jump, and of course, run. It absorbs a lot of forces; when
we run, the forces are many times our body weight. The hip is the superstar of joints.
The acetabular labrum is the cartilage that surrounds the
socket, helping to keep the femur securely in place. Running repeatedly over years and years (as marathoners are wont to do) can cause the labrum to wear thin and tear. (This can also occur more instantaneously in contact sports or accidents.) The pain occurs on the inside of the hip and it
may present as stiffness and tightness or it may feel like it’s clicking or
catching. The latter is the symptom that had me (and Dr. #1) convinced I had a
tear. If the tear is bad enough, arthroscopic surgery may be required, where
the torn portion is cut out. After seeing my x-ray and hearing my description—when
the pain was worst, what time of day it hurt, etc.—my doctor was less than convinced
that I had a labral tear, and did an ultrasound to check. If I had a tear big
enough to need surgery, he’d see it on the ultrasound. Fortunately, he found a
healthy looking labrum! He diagnosed me with tendonitis of the hip flexor
instead.
The hip flexors are a collection of muscles that mainly
function to pull the leg and knee upward, towards the body. Two of these
muscles, the iliacus and the psoas major (together referred to as the
iliopsoas), are the most susceptible to hip flexor injuries, and tendonitis can
occur in the tendons associated with these muscles. (Tendons attach muscles to
bones.) When under repeated stress, tendons can degenerate and become inflamed.
(The suffix “-itis” means inflammation.) The stress could come from doing too
much too soon or from overuse, pushing too hard for too long—again as marathoners are wont to do. If the tendons
are inflamed or aggravated, most likely the surrounding muscles are as well. During
my appointment, the tightness and stress on these muscles was obvious. The
psoas major connects the lumbar part of the spine (the lower back) to the front
of the pelvis. When my doctor pressed on my lower back, I could feel pain in
the front of my hip—a strange sensation that convinced me he knew what he was
talking about. (An interesting side note: only about 50% of people have a psoas
minor. It seems not to matter whether you do or do not have this weak muscle.)
Treatment for tendonitis includes anti-inflammatories,
physical therapy, massage, and, of course, the most hated treatment: a break
from running. The tendon is able to heal itself; the purpose of the initial
inflammatory process is to promote healing. As with all injuries, the trick is
patience: let your body work its magic (and have a really good PT to
help coax it along.)
Here’s a quick run down of other hip issues that affect
runners:
Bursitis:
Bursae are lubricating sacs that cushion areas where muscles
and tendons slide against bone; bursitis is an inflammation of these sacs. Trochanteric
bursitis will cause a dull ache or rubbing on the outside of the hip. Again,
the treatment includes rest and ice/anti-inflammatories.
Stress fracture:
In the hip region, the most common place for a stress
fracture is the neck of the femur. A stress fracture causes a throbbing pain
that gets worse with more running and will probably leave you limping. If you
can’t hop on the affected leg, a stress fracture is probably the issue, and you should immediately stop
hopping and stop running. Here the treatment is 6-8 weeks of no
running.
Iliotibial (IT) band syndrome:
This can present as a jabbing pain on the outside of
the knee, but it starts up in the hips. IT band syndrome is from irritation of
the ligament that runs along the outside of the thigh from the hip to the shin. You
can get it from doing too much too soon (always trouble!) or even from running
the same direction on the track (too many left turns!) IT band syndrome can be
helped with rest, ice/anti-inflammatories, and massage before starting a
program that strengthens the surrounding muscles.
Piriformis syndrome:
This is literally a pain in the butt, as pain shoots from
the butt down the back of the leg. It can be treated with massage and physical
therapy.
Staring at images of skeletons, muscles, and joints and
learning all the things that can go wrong makes me appreciate how amazing it is that, most of the time, things work smoothly to allow us to move around. And,
someday soon, to run again.
*Note: I am not a doctor, just a scientist who likes to teach herself things. You should see an actual doctor if you’re having hip trouble.
Dream big,
Teal
