Hip impingement

Children’s Hospital Boston’s hip sub-specialists provide comprehensive treatment—including evaluation, diagnosis, consultation and follow-up care.

How we’ll treat your child’s hip impingement depends on:

• his age, overall health and medical history
• the type, extent and severity of the impingement—including how much damage has already occurred to the cartilage

Non-surgical treatments
Treatments may include conservative approaches such as:

• rest
• activity restrictions
• anti-inflammatory and pain medications
• exercises and physical therapy

Surgery

If the above treatments prove inadequate to stopping your child’s pain, doctors may perform:

• arthroscopic or open surgery (the surgical approach and techniques depend on the cause of the condition and the degree of cartilage damage that’s already occurred)
  • Most impingements that need surgery are treated arthroscopically.
  • Open surgery can be needed if the impingement involves an abnormal angle of the hip joint.
  • Surgical techniques address the elements of hip impingement—including damaged cartilage, labral tear and friction between the ball and socket.

After surgery

After surgery, your child will need to limit his weight-bearing, perhaps with crutches or a walker, for a few weeks. Physical therapy will help him restore his muscle strength. He’ll probably be able to resume full activities, including sports, after three or four months.

Long-term outlook

The long-term result of surgery depends on the amount of cartilage damage present at the time of surgery. Perfect outcomes are possible with early joint preserving treatments prior to cartilage damage. Diagnosing and treating your child’s hip impingement early in its development greatly increases the likelihood of a successful outcome.

Coping and support

At Children’s, we understand that a hospital visit can be difficult. So, we offer many amenities to make your child’s—and your own—hospital experience as pleasant as possible. Visit the Center for Families for all you need to know about:
 

• getting to Children’s
• accommodations
• navigating the hospital experience
• resources that are available for your family

In particular, we understand that you may have a lot of questions when your child is diagnosed with hip impingement. Will my child need surgery? How long will his recovery take? Will it affect him long term? What should we do at home? Children’s can help you connect with extensive resources to help you and your family through this stressful time, including:

• patient education: From doctor’s appointments to treatment to follow-up, our nurses and physical therapists will be on hand to walk you through your child’s diagnosis, surgery and recovery. And once your child is home, we’ll help you coordinate and continue the care and support he received at Children’s.
   
• parent-to-parent: Want to talk with someone whose child has been treated for hip impingement? Our Orthopedic Center can often put you in touch with other families who’ve been through the same experience that you and your child are facing.
   
• faith-based support: If you’re in need of spiritual support, we’ll connect you with the Children’s chaplaincy. Our program includes nearly a dozen clergy—representing Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, Catholic and other faith traditions—who will listen to you, pray with you and help you observe your own faith practices during your hospital experience.
   
• social work: Our social workers and mental health clinicians have helped many other families in your situation. We can offer counseling and assistance with issues such as coping with your child’s diagnosis, stresses relating to coping with illness and dealing with financial issues.