Do you suffer from hip pain while lying on your side or when climbing stairs? Do you feel knee or hip pain from sitting with your legs crossed, walking for prolonged periods of time, cycling or even from standing? If this sounds familiar, you might be suffering from a common but treatable
condition known as bursitis.
Bursitis is a condition that can affect multiple joints around the body, most commonly the knee, hip, shoulder, elbows and heels. It is an inflammation of the bursa, a small cushion or sac that protects our muscles from friction and wear as they pass over the bone. When a bursa becomes inflamed it begins to swell, filling with excess fluid and becoming painful. In the case of trochanteric bursitis or hip bursa, the bursa may be so sore to touch that pain is exacerbated by tight clothing such as jeans.
The cause of bursa inflammation can be from injury or trauma, repeated pressure on the area for prolonged periods of time or poor biomechanics. Bursa inflammation can also occur due to overuse or even infection as a result of bacteria making their way into an injured joint. Diagnosing bursitis is usually done using an ultrasound before establishing a treatment program to suit the patient. Once bursitis is diagnosed, treatment involves identifying the cause and removing the painful inflammation.
At Beyond our practitioners are experts in identifying the possible causes of bursitis to isolate and identify triggers that might aggravate it. We then treat the area around the bursa to remove irritation and help relieve pain.
Some forms of treatment we use at Beyond include dry needling and massage from our osteopaths and myotherapists. Depending on the cause of the bursitis, gait correction might be required, which is provided by our podiatrists at Beyond. If the cause is a muscle imbalance, we may recommend clinical pilates.
In very persistent cases, bursitis might require cortisone to relieve the inflammation. This is administered as an injection and can be organised through an appointment with your GP. So if you’re suffering from persistent hip, knee, elbow, shoulder or heel pain and think you might have bursitis, please call one of our practitioners at Beyond today. Bursitis can take some time to resolve but with early identification and a supportive pain treatment plan, you’ll be back to doing the things you love sooner
