How Does a Hip Labrum Tear?
The hip joint is a ball and socket joint. The labrum is the cartilage ring around the socket. The labrum adds to the stability of the hip joint by making the socket deeper and providing a suction seal to the joint.
The labrum can be torn from either repeated wear and tear or from a sudden injury or trauma. If you’ve suffered a labral tear, it’s important you see an orthopedic hip specialist.
Causes of Labrum Tear
Often, a patient will not be aware of the cause of injury. Causes of a labral tear can range from a twisting injury, a traumatic dislocation, or repetitive overuse
Some patients have abnormal bone shape that can pinch the labrum causing the labral tear. This pathology is known as hip impingement.
Sometimes the labrum is injured from repetitive or extreme motions that happen during sports. Certain athletes are more prone to hip labral tears. Sports such as golf that involve a twisting motion of the hip can lead to labral tears. Ballet dancing and martial arts can put the hip in extreme motions that can also tear the labrum.
Hip Labral Tear Symptoms
A hip labral tear can cause symptoms of pain, popping, or catching. The pain is usually in the groin but can also radiate down the upper leg or side of the leg.
Diagnosis Labral Tear
To determine if someone has a labral tear, a physical exam is performed in the doctor’s office. In addition to a physical exam, an MRI scan is often helpful in confirming the diagnosis.
Treatment
Some patients will elect for conservative treatment such as injections or physical therapy.These treatments can often help decrease the symptoms of a labral tear.
When conservative method are not successful in getting patients out of pain, surgery is often their choice. Arthroscopic surgery is successful in repairing the labrum and correcting any bony impingement.
The labrum is usually repaired with anchors which are stitches that hold torn labrum back to the bone of the socket. Sometimes the labrum cannot be repaired and is debrided or trimmed away until the remaining tissue is stable.
If there is an abnormality in the bone seen on an x-ray, a CT scan is often done to create a 3-dimentional model of the hip joint. With this information, the surgeon can smooth out the abnormal bone to reduce the risk of future tears.
At Elite Sports Medicine + Orthopedics, we have several orthopedic specialists that treat hip injuries.
Learn more about hip doctors in Nashville, TN and Franklin, TN here, and book an appointment with an orthopedic specialist near you.
Author: AMWN Dev
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