Hip Pain and Age : Do They Always Go Together?
January 24, 2011 by Eric
Filed under Joint Pain Causes
Despite what you may think, avoiding hip pain is possible even as we age. We can learn behavior that will help us maintain mobility in our later years.
Most people believe that a multitude of ills necessarily face them as they age, including hip pain and the possibility of replacement surgery. But according to orthopedic surgeons this does not have to be our fate. Steps can be taken to reduce hip pain by focusing on the causes of hip pain, and the likelihood of needing surgery.
It’s not inevitable that most people’s joints wear out as they age. From a mechanical standpoint, the hip is one of our best-designed parts. It is basically a round ball in a round socket, a very simple design capable of dealing with a lot of stress and motion. Most people who experience hip pain do so not so much as a product of aging, but from injury or disease.Hip Pain: It’s A Matter of Time:
When examining the causes of hip pain, it is true the longer one lives, the more likely he or she will likely to experience hip arthritis. The risk of developing arthritis is a function of several factors; these include a genetic component, the incidence of injury and several other factors that are not yet clearly understood.
As we age, our cartilage, which acts as a cushion between bones allowing them to move freely, loses its ability to hold water. The water in cartilage is what allows it to act as a shock absorber. And just like the shock absorbers in our cars, it can wear down. When this happens, the cartilage becomes thinner and it loses mechanical resiliency, which leads to inflammation and fluid in the joint. The result is that the perfectly designed ball and socket no longer match or move as smoothly as they had done previously. Nevertheless, many people, even into their 80s, experience no hip pain at all.
Limiting The Risk Factors:
While hip arthritis pain may be related to factors beyond our control, such as genetics and/or longstanding structural problems, there are several methods you can use to reduce the risk of hip pain:
One important factor is the maintenance of a healthy weight. The medical charts reviewed in a recent study of hundreds of adults between the ages of 20 and 60 revealed that obesity is a significantly increases the likelihood of requiring a hip or knee replacement.
- It is possible to protect bone health. Osteoporosis, a condition in which calcium leaches out of the bones causing them to become weak and brittle, may lead to hip pain as a result of fractures and falls.
- Falls can be avoided through education. Older people are more likely to suffer falls for a number of reasons, ranging from loss of balance to the side effects of certain medications.•
Early help from medical professionals does help. It’s a good idea to talk to one’s doctor about the risk factors of repetitive stress injury related to activities such as sports. He/she can be helpful in mapping a plan to manage hip arthritis. A real understanding of how factors such as age, weight etc. may influence our potential for hip pain can definitely play a role in its prevention. For some information on chronic pain specific to women have a look at this article: Chronic Pain and Women.
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- Eric
My personal goals are to be happy, healthy and to be surrounded by loved ones.
-Kiana Tom
Photo Credit: Joaoa
