Hip pain treatment Tempe: know what to try next

What to notice before you change anything

Write when the soreness began; it doesn't matter if that was years ago, and note whether a fall came first. Then check which daily task brings it on, such as stairs, shoes, or getting into a car. Don't leave out a limp, lost sleep, or a shorter walking limit. Those facts tell your doctor how the hip affects your day.

Soreness that builds over months may differ from sudden, severe pain. Arthritis can cause groin pain and stiffness. Outer tenderness may come from a strong cord that joins muscle to bone. The exam doesn't rely on a guess; your doctor checks both areas.

Which home steps to try this week

Make one small change and see how the hip feels later. Try a shorter walk, flat ground, an easier bike gear, or a higher chair. If you're sore at night, avoid lying on the tender side. Supporting the top leg with a pillow may make sleep easier.

Don't test five new things on the same day. With several changes, it's hard to tell what eased the hip or made it worse. Keep your movement gentle enough that it doesn't cause a new limp. If each day is worse, stop the test and arrange an exam.

When to go for an exam

A fall that leaves you unable to stand on the leg needs prompt care. A hot, swollen joint with fever or illness also needs care now. New severe weakness, a deformed leg, chest pain, or severe shortness of breath can't wait. Don't test these problems with another walk.

For slower soreness, book a visit when sleep, walking, or dressing keeps getting harder. Bring notes about the sore spot, the movement that hurts, your limp, and when the trouble began. Ask whether an X-ray would help choose the next treatment. QC Kinetix offers consultations with medical providers, meaning the clinic staff responsible for your exam and care, about non-surgical regenerative treatments such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP); it starts with a blood draw, then the sample is spun and the prepared plasma is placed at the sore spot with a needle.

Sources

1. The 2026 Cochrane update of exercise for hip osteoarthritis (18 trials, 1368 participants) found that against attention control or placebo, exercise may have little to no effect on pain (MD -6.31 points on 0-100, 95% CI -12.98 to 0.35, low certainty) and may improve physical function only slightly; against no treatment or usual care it probably reduces pain slightly (MD -7.19, 95% CI -10.70 to -3.68, moderate certainty) but the review states these improvements are unlikely to be clinically meaningful. This is a weaker result than the equivalent knee evidence and it must not be overstated.

   Hall M, et al. — Exercise for osteoarthritis of the hip.. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2026. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD007912.pub3.

2. A JAMA review of hip and knee osteoarthritis reports OA affects more than 240 million people worldwide and more than 32 million in the US, names pain elicited with internal hip rotation as a diagnostically useful hip examination finding, identifies exercise, weight loss where appropriate and education as the cornerstones of management complemented by topical or oral NSAIDs, notes intra-articular steroid gives short-term relief, and states that opiates should be avoided.

   Katz JN, Arant KR, Loeser RF — Diagnosis and Treatment of Hip and Knee Osteoarthritis: A Review.. JAMA, 2021. DOI: 10.1001/jama.2020.22171.

3. Analysis of the Johnston County Osteoarthritis Project (n=3068) estimated the lifetime risk of symptomatic hip osteoarthritis - radiographic Kellgren-Lawrence >=2 plus pain, aching or stiffness on most days in the same hip - at 25.3% (95% CI 21.3-29.3) by age 85. Risk was similar across sex, race, education and hip-injury history.

   Murphy LB, et al. — One in four people may develop symptomatic hip osteoarthritis in his or her lifetime.. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage, 2010. DOI: 10.1016/j.joca.2010.08.005.

4. In a three-arm randomized trial of 204 people with MRI-confirmed gluteal tendinopathy, an eight-week physiotherapist-led education and exercise programme produced success on global rating of change in 51/66 participants at 8 weeks versus 38/65 for a single corticosteroid injection and 20/68 for wait-and-see. Education plus exercise beat the injection at 8 weeks (risk difference 19.9%) and still beat it at 52 weeks (20.4%).

   Mellor R, et al. — Education plus exercise versus corticosteroid injection use versus a wait and see approach on global outcome and pain from gluteal tendinopathy: prospective, single blinded, randomised clinical trial.. BMJ, 2018. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.k1662.