The treatment for sacroiliac joint and hip pain after walking depends on the severity of the injury. Some treatments are simple to implement while others may require the help of a physical therapists or physician.
Cause of Pain
The most common causes of hip pain are arthritis, bursitis, muscle strain, and nerve irritation. Arthritis occurs when the smooth layer of protective cartilage is lost from years of wear and tear, inflammation, or injury.
Bursitis occurs when the bursa sacs in the joints become irritated and inflamed from injury, excessive pressure, and overuse. These sacs provide lubrication to the joint to help with movement.
Muscle strain occurs from overuse and irritation of a muscle resulting in a tear in the muscle fiber.
Nerve irritation occurs when the major nerves controlling the function of the leg become irritated due to strain, pressure or impingement of the nerve.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy will be effective in stretching and improving the strength of the muscles and hip joint. Stretching should be before all exercises and can prevent pain from occurring after exercising if you do it correctly. Muscle toning exercises help strengthen muscles and are recommended if you have had a period of three or more weeks of inactivity due to your injury.
Limit Activities
If your have recently injured your hip joint then you should avoid the extremes of hip motion and should minimize jarring and high impact activities. You should also avoid repeated bending of the hip and direct pressure over the hip.
Medical Intervention
Acute pain that is not severe will probably respond to pain medication such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen. The quantity and dose of pain medication needed to control your pain may vary; however, if your pain is not being controlled, then you need to seek medical attention.
Acute and severe hip pain, with evidence of an infection, is an emergency situation. If there is increased swelling and an abnormal amount of fluid in the joint, then a hip aspiration may be warranted.
If the pain has been more chronic in nature, a physician can place a local anesthetic block. This involves injecting medication directly into the joint for temporary relief from pain.
