Sore hip & weak groins

[Panyano]

Hi,

I have been suffering with groin pains for a few years now which i assume are a result of football. About three years ago i noticed a loud clicking of my right hip joint when i lay on my back and open my groin up. As well as the dull ache and clicking of my hip joint, if i crouch down or get up from a chair in certain positions i get a shooting pain through either of my groins. I'm only 29 and i haven't really played football at all in the last 5 seasons because i thought the rest would cure these problems. This hasn't been the case.

During these 5 seasons after long periods of rest i have done some football training and played the odd game, after which my groins and hip have been sore for nearly a week. I have visited several physio's during this time, none of which have been able to identify a cure. They have mentioned a tight IT Band, groin strains, and the possibility of loose cartilage on the inside of the ball joint on the inside of my hip.

Can you shine any light on what might be causing these problems? Would really like to play a bit more footy before i get too old but don't want to be in pain for a week each time!!

Cheers.

[icarus]

Hi sounds like a nightmare,

A few questions to help paint a clearer picture for us...

Had you changed any of your training routine when you initially noticed the injury? Is it more pronounced in your dominant kicking leg? Do both hips click when you open them up? Does anything make them ache more/less?

[Panyano]

Hi icarus, thanks for replying. I was begining to get a complex!!

To be honest i didn't change any of my routine. We thought it was a groin strain so i just had treatment from the team physio each week and carried on playing. Probably did this for two or three seasons.

Only the right hip clicks which is my dominant kicking foot. The groin has predominantly been worse on the right side as well but i occasionally get the sharp pain in my left side groin as well.

The dull ache in my hip seems to come and go even when i've rested but feels worse after i put it through a game or intense training session. The sharp groin pain justs comes and goes regardless of whether i have been training/playing. Like i said before, sharp pain in the groin is usually if i have been sitting or crouching down and twist or open my groins up when i stand.

The last treatment i had was a couple of years ago now from an ex Premier League football physio. He was the one who mentioned damage to the cartilage around the hip joint, called a "Hip Labral Tear" i think. He advised that surgery was quite arduous but it looks like more advance methods have been developed since (Hip Arthroscopy?). I have been trying to stretch more recently before i go to bed which the physion advised. He told me i could continue to play with the injury without doing damage but would have to put up with the discomfort.

Be interested to know what other people experiences or thoughts are??

[icarus]

Hi Panyano,

From what you've said Id be inlcined to agree that some damage to the labrum is a feasible culprit for the pain, but this would be hard to diagnose without a scan. I'm going to try and give you another possiblilty incase it is a soft tissue problem that coulds be explained through biomechanics rather than physical damage to the joint. Ive seen this in various guises with football players and there were a few subtle differences between patients but it was always the same general pattern. There could also be a misalignment of your femur. Kicking drills will turn your foot outward as you drive it through it's kicking phase. This will strengthen your piriformis and glutes and your psoas/iliopsoas. Repetition will reinforce this and will shorten these muscles reinforce this misalignment. This misalignment could well increase the density of the iliopsoas tendon at the level of the femoral head and thicken the anterior hip joint capsule and cause associated synovitis. This would lead to increased friction and a greater "clicking/snapping" when rotating the hip outwards.

The stretching that you've been doing, is it all based on lengthening your adductors/gracilis? I agree these may need to be stretched (hard to say without seeing them) but you may benefit more from some self myo-fascial release/sports massage on the muscles that are rotating the head of the femur outwards. i.e. the piriformis and glutes. Also, it would be beneficial to have some work done on your psoas/iliopsoas as this has probably shortened through the kicking (and runs from your back to your hip). This is a common culprit for a lot of hip pain. If it is a misalignment then this will help get the femur into a better position and should eliminate the pain. You can try this yourself with a tennis ball/golf ball or foam roller (the former only for psoas release) or enlist a therapists help.

It's difficult to say without examination or a scan, but hopefully a different approach might yield some positive results. If not get to your GP and make him think it's his idea to refer you for a scan (they never like being told what you think you need lol)

Hope this helps, Jay

[SCOACH]

Hey Panyano

I have a very similar problem to yours and so far have had very mixed diagnosis. I am a rugby player/ Gaelic footballer so I would have done alot of kicking in my sports. Problem started in November. Went to step one night at rugby training and felt the right hip give way and had no power turning off that side. Consulted a physio and was told the same, possible labral tear, but nothing more was said about that and I was treated with massage and pilates.

I felt at the time that the hip needed to 'click' back into place or at least that's what it felt like at the time. I had been fine after a period of enforced rest until yesterday where I had a training session and a gym session after and today the dull ache in the hips seems to have returned.

Thanks for the points above Jay, will be using the foam roller to see if it alleviates things.

Conor