Hip Labral Tear.. Some Suggested Therapy?

Hello! I suspect that I have a hip labral tear. I am a 34 year-old female in moderately good health, but in bad physical shape (ie I don't get much exercise). No other health problems to speak of. I recently moved to a house with steep stairs. About a week after the move, I began experiencing a "pop" or "click" in my left hip. I experience mild pain when the leg is at a 45 degree angle. I can walk on it, but there is always a slight discomfort. I would like to avoid a doctor's visit by doing some at home physical therapy. Could anyone give me any advice or point me to some imformation that might be helpful?
Answer:
Billie has a good point about inflammation...many people with possible labral tears will just lay low for awhile and then as the inflammatory process subsides, it might never be an issue again. Most people with tears in the labrum have them at the most anterior (front) portion of the labrum. If faulty mechanics are causing the head of the femur to ride along the portion that is torn, this can cause signficant pain. Therefore, most physical therapy aims to restore normal "arthrokinematics" of the joint as much as possible (the direction of rolling and gliding of the joint during the movement). Usually, this involves streching the posterior (back) portion of the capsule while avoiding streching the anterior portion. This might be done with a gentle progression of knee to chest stretch or internally rotating the hip (inward rotation) and bringing the knee across the body towards the opposite shoulder...both of these movements should promote stretching the posterior capsule. Do so with caution however, because forcing the joint too aggressively can aggrevate the condition. Therefore, I HIGHLY recommend to follow up with a physical therapist so you can learn which exercises are the best for you and how to approrpiately apply them. They can also address this with manual techniques and modalities for pain.

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This could be inflammation of the hip joint. Climbing up and down stairs can cause over use of the muscle resulting in pain. I suggest cutting back on walking up and down the stairs as often. Take hot baths with 2c. of Epsom salts to help with the inflammation. I highly recommend you see a chiropractor as soon as possible. They're the best doctors for this type of problem. I've enclosed a link where you can find a chiropractor in your area.

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