How To Repair A Labral Tear In The Hip

Hip Labral Tear

A hip labral tear is an injury to the labrum, the soft tissue that covers the acetabulum (socket) of the hip. A hip labral tear can be caused by injury, structural problems, or degenerative issues. Symptoms include pain in the hip or stiffness. A hip labral tear can be treated nonsurgically, or with surgery in astringent cases.

Overview

What is a hip labral tear?

The hip is shaped like a ball-and-socket. The socket is called the acetabulum, and the ball is the femoral head, located at the summit of the femur (leg bone). A hip labral tear is an injury to the labrum, the soft tissue that covers the acetabulum.

The labrum helps the femoral head move smoothly within the socket. It lets your hip motility without problems or hurting. It also serves as a seal, keeping the ball and socket together merely non touching.

Symptoms and Causes

What causes a hip labral tear?

Hip labral tears can exist caused past many things, including the following:

Structural ailments: Conditions that cause aberrant hip motion tin can too lead to hip labral tears. In femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), the femoral caput doesn't fit into the socket properly. This imperfect fit tin cause long-lasting groin pain and movement limitations. This is the nigh mutual cause of labral tears. FAI tin touch people at any historic period. Without treatment, information technology tin can result in osteoarthritis in some patients.
Injury: Trauma to the hip tin can lead to a hip labral tear. This tin happen to people who play sure sports that take repetitive and high-impact movements, such every bit water ice hockey, football, soccer and golf.
Degenerative health atmospheric condition: Osteoarthritis is a chronic (long-term) wearing downward of the cartilage betwixt the joints. As cartilage slowly erodes over fourth dimension, it becomes more prone to tearing. Older age and excessive weight can increase a person's risk for developing osteoarthritis. People with osteoarthritis commonly have pain and stiffness in more i articulation (the hip and knee, for example).

What are the symptoms of a hip labral tear?

The symptoms of a hip labral tear include:

Hip hurting or stiffness
Pain in the groin or buttocks area
A clicking or locking sound in the hip area when you move
Feeling unsteady on your anxiety

If you lot have a hip labral tear, hip pain or discomfort may get worse when you bend, move or rotate the hip, or exercise or play sports. It's also possible to have a hip labral tear with no symptoms at all.

Diagnosis and Tests

How is a hip labral tear diagnosed?

To diagnose a hip labral tear, the dr. will practise a concrete examination. During the examination, the doctor may ask you to movement your leg or walk effectually. How well you lot can move, and whatsoever hurting you lot feel while moving, tin help the dr. with the diagnosis.

Imaging tests tin also assist doctors diagnose a hip labral tear. The doc may order the following imaging tests:

Ten-rays: X-rays tin can alert doctors to bug with the hip bones, such every bit femoroacetabular impingement, or osteoarthritis, that may contribute to a labral tear and a painful hip.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI): This exam shows more details in soft tissues. An MRI can show where a labral tear is, and how severe it is.

Direction and Handling

How is a hip labral tear treated?

A hip labral tear won't heal on its ain, but rest and other measures tin can help manage symptoms of a minor tear. Nonsurgical treatments include:

Anti-inflammatory medications: Over-the-counter pain relievers similar ibuprofen (Motrin®, Advil®) can reduce inflammation.
Medication injection: Doctors can inject medications, such as steroids, into the hip joint to ease symptoms.
Physical therapy: Specific physical therapy exercises to stretch and strengthen the hip muscles may help save pain. Physical therapy usually requires a prescription from your md.

If symptoms persist or if the tear is astringent, your physician may recommend surgery. Surgery to repair a hip labral tear is usually done arthroscopically. This is a minimally invasive surgery in which the doctor makes small incisions (cuts) in the hip and uses miniature instruments to brand the following repairs:

Refixation or repair (stitching the torn tissue back together)
Reconstruction (reconfiguring damaged tissue using salubrious tissue from elsewhere on your body or from a donor)
Debridement (removing a small piece of labral tissue)

If FAI is as well present, it will be addressed (removed) at the same time to help prevent the labrum from tearing again.

The arthroscopic surgery is oftentimes done on an outpatient basis, meaning the patient goes abode the same day.

Outlook / Prognosis

What is the outlook for someone who has a hip labral tear?

How well a person heals from a hip labral tear depends on the specific injury and how it is treated:

Conservative (nonsurgical) therapies: Treatments such as anti-inflammatory medications and physical therapy do not fix the tear itself. They can subtract hurting and offer a workable option for some modest tears. Some people will need boosted treatment afterward.
Surgery: In many cases, hip arthroscopy can salvage pain from a labral tear and return hip function. Many people recover fully from surgery within 4 to 6 months, and tin often return to previous athletic pursuits and physical activity.
Osteoarthritis: Chronic conditions such every bit osteoarthritis must be managed past a doctor to forbid more severe symptoms.

Living With

When should I call the doc about a hip labral tear?

While hip and joint hurting usually isn't life-threatening, it can significantly affect how you live your life. Any hip or groin pain that doesn't get away subsequently a few days should be evaluated by a medical specialist. If you take sudden or severe pain in the hip or groin, telephone call your doctor right abroad.