Expert: Scott F. Gillman, DC, DACBSP - 4/6/2007

Question
Ok, so the situation is this.  When I was pregnant with my son, 14 yrs ago, my hips would lock in place if I sat Indian style or with my legs crossed underneath me.  Sence then the lock if I sit for a long period of time.  I have to "cock" my hip so it snaps and it feels much better.  Also I have had lower back pain for the last 10 yrs or better.  I just started seeing a chiropractor (5 visits) within 2 1/2 weeks.  He tried using electrical stimulation the first 4 visits and today he used a new technique that involves "ultrasound" for the deep tissue.  Ok, so today I am feeling approx 40 percent better in my back, but my right hip is killing me more than it has before.  Is this from the new treatment or could it be from the alignment that he is doing???

Answer
Cindy,

First, it may be helpful to see x-rays of your hips to rule out any arthritic conditions. Some conditions will leave you with calcifications outside the joint (called osteochondritis dissicans) which can lead to painful locking of the joint.  Simple x-ray is the way to go to see these.  Electric stimulation is a complete waste of your time.  All the research points to it having no effect on musculoskeletal pain conditions, especially low back pain.  Ultrasound has been considered useful with soft tissue problems, despite mixed results in research studies, but if your locking hip pain is caused by a snapping tendon on the inside of your hip, and the ultrasound is being used on the outside of your hip, then it likely will not have any effect.  The question for your chiropractor is this: what is the possible cause of the hip pain, and if there is a soft tissue target, then what technique will best hit the target?  With simple lower back pain, research shows that joint manipulation methods will alleviate it by about 50% within about six treatment sessions (otherwise you and the doctor must investigate why it is not changing).   This prediction does not hold true for hip pain.  

'Hope this was helpful.

Dr. G
www.drgillman.com