The Hip – A Multiaxial Joint That Provides Stability

The hip is one of the largest joints in your body and provides stability through strong ligaments that wrap around it.

Surgery may be necessary for infants with hip issues to prevent dislocation and dislocation from occurring. When detected early and treated properly, children diagnosed with hip dysplasia usually develop normal walking abilities and do not go on to develop arthritis as adults.

The Ball and Socket

The hip is an intricate ball-and-socket joint, serving as one of the body’s largest weight-bearing joints. The head of thigh bone (femur) fits tightly into its curved, cup-shaped socket at the base of pelvis (acetabulum), supported by ligaments and muscles to maintain proper function and movement. When in good health, this multiaxial joint allows movement across many planes while standing up against some of body’s strongest forces.

The head of the femur is covered with smooth, tough cartilage that cushions and protects as the bones move. The acetabulum is deep and lined with thin fibrous tissue called labrum to anchor its head to its socket. Finally, hip’s articulating surfaces are protected with strong ligaments and powerful muscles; and their joints are enclosed by capsules filled with synovial fluid that minimizes friction during movement.

A healthy hip joint remains stable even during extreme range of motion, such as twisting or squatting. Its stability comes from being a ball-and-socket joint which relies on its socket’s curved surface for support as well as powerful muscles surrounding and powering its structure.

This shape also means that the hip joint is less mobile than other types of joints in the body, such as knee and ankle joints, making it essential to its weight-bearing capacity when supporting all of the upper body’s weight.

An undamaged hip joint can withstand significant stress, but even healthy ones can become damaged from falls, sports injuries, overuse or normal wear and tear. Labral tears are among the most frequent hip injuries, occurring when the tougher cartilage that secures the head of the femur into its socket is torn. The tear often results in pain, locking or locking in of joints and dislocation. Osteoarthritis and hip dysplasia are two more frequent issues. Osteoarthritis is a progressive condition in which joints gradually wear away; hip dysplasia is an inborn condition in which the head of femur doesn’t fit snugly into an acetabulum, usually at birth; treatment typically includes physical therapy or non-invasive techniques.

The Cartilage

The hip is one of the body’s largest weight-bearing joints. Composed of the top of femur bone (femur) and socket (acetabulum), this joint uses articular cartilage as a cushion when moving or impact activities such as sports.

Cartilage damage may result from trauma, excessive stress, prolonged inactivity or age-related wear and tear. When this occurs it can lead to pain, swelling and restricted range of motion; non-surgical treatments for this condition include pain relievers, restricting activities that cause hip impingement or labral tear symptoms as well as physical therapy to strengthen and stabilize joints.

Recent research suggests a correlation between fat mass and hip cartilage changes and increased body fat, suggesting increased body fat may negatively impact joint functionality. Conversely, muscle mass appears to protect against cartilage loss and support healthy hip joints by providing support and spreading force evenly through their bone surfaces.

MRI imaging is an invaluable diagnostic tool to evaluate the condition of hip cartilage. While x-rays cannot provide an accurate picture, an MRI provides clear views of all layers within the joint’s cartilage layering system and can even assess for labral tears or abnormalities of the femoral neck.

Early identification and treatment of cartilage damage are vital in order to avoid degeneration and premature arthritis. This can be achieved by limiting activities requiring repeated pivoting and twisting of the hip, as well as wearing protective cups or soft shells when participating in sports that cause this damage.

At our orthopedic and sports medicine practice, we provide innovative surgical procedures to repair hip cartilage to avoid joint degeneration and pain. These techniques aim to bridge the gap between symptom relief and total hip replacement; such as using hyaluronic acid injections to stimulate repair of cartilage repair as well as platelet rich plasma (PRP) injections to promote natural joint healing by your own body.

The Ligaments

The hip is a multiaxial joint, providing stability through movement while allowing a range of motion. This function is supported by numerous muscles and ligaments; three major ones – iliofemoral, pubofemoral, and ischiofemoral ligaments – play an especially vital role in its stability; they play critical roles when standing or bipedal locomotion occurs.

The Iliofemoral ligament (IFL) is a strong Y-shaped band connecting the wings of the pelvis at the front of the hip with two points on each femur in two locations. This ligament serves to limit over-extension of the hip during standing.

This ligament runs from the femoral neck to the acetabulum, connecting the femur with pelvis. It consists of a thick band of tissue with an intertrochanteric line running down its center; innervated by small nerves from quadratus femoris muscle.

Both ligaments can become stretched by engaging in certain exercises or movements that place too much strain on the hip joint, such as ballet turnouts or martial arts front splits that require hip external rotation that puts too much stress on it – something which could wreak havoc with these ligaments.

When the hip ligaments become stretched, pain signals from them to the brain cause muscle tightening to help protect against further injury and create extra joint fluid and spasms that eventually result in pain and swelling, also known as hip pain.

Any time a ligament is injured, its injury can cause surrounding muscles and joints to move too much, making the hip unstable and leading to injuries in both the pelvic bones and spine. Addressing hip ligament injuries quickly is therefore important, as other ligaments, muscles or the lumbar spine could become injured trying to compensate for one that was injured and ultimately alter how you stand, walk, and function in life.

The Tendons

The hip is the largest ball-and-socket joint in your body. The “ball” of this joint is comprised of the femoral head (also referred to as the femoral ball). Meanwhile, its “socket” is formed by three bones known as ilium, ischium, and pubis, providing stability via ligaments as well as muscles that connect to hip bones to control its movements.

The iliotibial band is a long tendon attached to many muscles of your hip and leg, which connects them together. If it becomes tight or overused, this can cause hip pain. When this muscle becomes inflamed it is known as hip tendonitis.

An acetabular labrum, or cartilage ring, lines the outer surface of your socket and helps deepen it, making your hip much more stable than without one. Furthermore, this cartilage cushion serves as an anti-impact measure whenever you move your hip.

Other structures supporting the hip include a joint capsule and the muscles in your buttocks, known collectively as gluteal muscles. Gluteal muscles connect from your pelvis back to the greater trochanter of your femur; these large muscle groups allow you to stand, walk and run. Gluteus minimus, medius and maximus are the three main gluteal muscles.

There are multiple nerves in your hip that transmit signals between your brain and muscles surrounding the hip, and vice versa. If you experience hip pain, your doctor may order an MRI to check whether a tear in gluteus muscles or other structures is to blame for your symptoms. He/she will also ask about past medical history as well as conduct a physical exam to assess hip discomfort. If conservative treatments don’t help relieve it completely, your physician may suggest surgery in order to repair any severe tears or fractures in the area of concern.