Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know to find your way to hip pain help
How do I use this site?
You can use this site as
- a resource centre for managing hip, groin and pelvic pain with
- interactive anatomy charts of possible causes of your pain
- information about many specific conditions around the hip
- blogs full of information about different diagnoses and their management, as well as lots of useful hip specific ideas.
- a directory helping those with hip problems find a hip pain professional with a specific interest in hip conditions.
Watch this video on “Learning How to Use This Site“ to find out more. There are other useful ‘how to’ videos also listed on this page.
How can I find information about my pain or my condition?
Look for the magnifying glass function in the top menu and enter the key search terms, for example, “hip osteoarthritis”. Anything containing these search words will then be listed.
Alternatively, you can hover over our “Find My Pain” tab on the top menu and from the drop down select:
- “Look up a Specific Condition” where you will find an A-Z list of common condition with links to detailed advice sheets.
- “The Pain Locator Map” which allows you to click on the area of the body where you feel your pain. This then takes you to detailed information about the anatomy and possible pain sources in your selected area.
For a general summary of everything that may be related to hip pain, refer to our “Hip Pain Explained” page.
How do I find some help from a professional close to me?
Click on “Find A Professional” from the menu or use one of the pink search bars integrated throughout the site.
Enter in your location and a list of Hip Pain Professionals (HPPs) will be displayed as well as a map of their locations. Click on each to read more about the business features and also the profile of the HPP(s) for that location.
Check out our video on “How to Search for a Hip Pain Professional” on the “How to Use This Site” page.
What information can I find in your directory listings?
We understand that you would like to know about the skills and facilities available to you before you visit a professional for help.
This is why you will find extensive information included with each Hip Pain Professional (HPP) listing.
Information available in our Business Features area (near the url and contact details) showcases some of what is offered at that location so you can check if what you want is available at that address.
Also under the business/location information there will be information about the specific people at that location who have been nominated to be a Hip Pain Professional.
- What profession is the HPP? For example, are they a surgeon or a physiotherapist? Does the HPP provide a service you are after?
- What qualifications does this person have: an undergraduate degree, a masters degree or a doctorate (PhD)?
- How many years of clinical experience do they have?
- Has this professional attended any courses (online or in person) run by Hip Pain Help founder Dr Alison Grimaldi?
- What hip pain specific interests do they have?
- What business features do they offer in their practice?
- What are their treatment skills?
- Do they provide supervised exercise rehab in a gym setting? Is this equipment based?
- Do they provide classes with hip specific rehab?
- Do they use real time ultrasound imaging for muscle training?
This site relies on the honesty of the professionals who register, to provide a true description of themselves and their business. They must be currently registered with the relevant health registration body of their country and be under no pending or ongoing professional / personal legal investigations / convictions.
Should you have any concerns please contact us here. Hip Pain Help has the right to remove any registered practitioner from the Hip Pain Help site should they be found to be failing to comply with the stipulated requirements.
How do I make an appointment with my chosen professional?
In the directory listing on Find a Hip Pain Professional you will find many ways you can contact your Hip Pain Professional. If you press the “CONTACT” button on the listing, you will send an email enquiry directly to that professional ‘s business. Otherwise you can call them, go to their website, email the address listed, or go in person to the location address listed. All of this information is easy to find on the right hand side of the business directory listing.
Why does this site exist?
Hip Pain Help strives to provide the best outcomes for those around the world suffering from hip and pelvic pain, by connecting them with
1) high-quality information and
2) Hip Pain Professionals who practice person-centred, evidence-informed care.
The site has been brought together by three Australian physiotherapists, Dr Alison Grimaldi, Sharon Hennessey and Kirsty McNab, with involvement in cutting-edge research and 69 years of combined clinical experience.
Watch the “Welcome Video“ on the home page of this site to learn more.
Also check out the About Us page and read all about our story.
Who wrote the Hip Pain Help website?
This site has been bought together by three Australian physiotherapists, Dr Alison Grimaldi, Sharon Hennessey and Kirsty McNab, all with involvement in cutting-edge research and 69 years of combined clinical experience. Want to read more about us – Click here.
Why should I trust the information on this website? It seems very different to many other sites about the hip?
We strive to be one of the most credible and current sources of hip and groin pain information, at the forefront of research in this area.
We are constantly being made aware of the “fake news” that can be found everywhere, and the world of health is no different. The authors of this site have constantly heard the bad news stories of clients following poor quality advice and treatment, often with their condition misdiagnosed and mismanaged, frequently leading to unnecessary years of suffering, financial burden, emotional distress and substantial impact on general health and quality of life.
Our primary objective on this site is to provide information based on the most up to date and best quality evidence. There is a huge amount of detailed information that is often extremely difficult to find elsewhere online. Secondly, we aim to share this information with patients and professionals alike to improve the quality of treatment that is provided for hip, pelvis and groin pain in the general world community. Lastly, through our Hip Pain Professional community we aim to provide high-quality, person-centred, evidence-informed care in as many locations as possible around the world.
It may seem that, at times, the advice on this site goes against what you would commonly read about elsewhere on the net. But this is because Hip Pain Help is at the forefront of evidence lead treatment regimes and new technology.
Hip Pain Help founder, Dr Alison Grimaldi (PhD), is herself a highly respected researcher and clinician. Further information on Dr Grimaldi’s internationally recognised scientific journals can be found on her website at www.dralisongrimaldi.com.
Dr Grimaldi is very passionate about all things about the hip. As well as seeing patients clinically, and teaching and lecturing around the globe, she never forgets about an individuals needs to participate in their life and achieve their own personal goals. To read more about Dr Grimaldi and her work click here.
What/who is a Hip Pain Professional?
We define a Hip Pain Professional as a scientifically trained, university qualified healthcare professionals. This means they will have completed a degree in their profession at a university and are legally registered to practice in their state/country.
The occupations of our professionals may include:
– Physiotherapist/Physical Therapist,
– Medical Doctor including
– Primary Care/General Practitioner
– Orthopaedic Surgeon
– Sports Physician
– Rheumatologist and more
– Osteopath
– Chiropractor
– Exercise Scientist or Exercise Physiologist
– Podiatrist
– Dietician/Nutritionist
– Occupational Therapist
Our professionals have chosen to be associated with Hip Pain Help as they have skills in the hip/pelvis region and want to connect to those in their local community. As part of the Hip Pain Professionals community, our professionals are able to become part of a professional international group, and will have opportunities to access resources and training from us and gain wisdom from the wider group of experience health professionals.
Our site provides educational resources, reflecting up to date scientific evidence and we encourage our professionals to read and learn in an ongoing manner. Our Hip Pain Professionals have access to private social media groups for networking and discussions.
In each listing in our directory on Find a Professional you will find details of the services provided at each location but also about the nominated hip pain practitioner and their training, experience and special skills.
We do not provide a star rating system as this is not legally permitted for certain health professions in some countries. But we are always happy to receive feedback about our service and our Hip Pain Professionals via our contact us form
How can I get my health professional into this website’s directory, so they can help others?
Please tell your valued practitioner about Hip Pain Help and the high quality information that is available for free on our site. We would love your help to spread the word. New professionals can register here.
What is causing my pain?
Pain is an experience that the brain creates for the purposes of stimulating you to change your behaviour or seek help for a perceived problem with your body. Irritating or potentially damaging stimuli in your body (like high levels of pressure, tension or extremes of temperature) trigger off sense receptors which are danger sensors (nociceptors).
Pain intensity is also moderated by local irritants and with “Hip pain” that can be contributed to by a variety of anatomical structures (known as local drivers) including the hip, pelvis, buttock, low back, groin, sacroiliac and pubic symphysis joints. As well as the joints, the bones, the muscles, the ligaments and other body tissues can also contribute to pain.
Pain is not indicative of actual damage but rather a reflection of how dangerous the brain perceives the situation be, and how important it is for you to do something about it, based on subconscious considerations. The brain truly is amazing.
Moderating these local drivers as well as the brain related sensitivities can give an excellent recovery for tricky persistent pain.
For comprehensive information about local drivers of pain around the hip and pelvis check out Hip Pain Explained.
For information targeted to your specific pain area, check out our Pain Locator Map
Why do medical professional ask so many questions? Why can't they just treat the problem seen on my scan?
When you consult a professional about your problem, they will ask you a lot of tricky questions.
You may even have a scan demonstrating an issue, but it could be a “red herring”, that is, not all things that show up on a scan are necessarily creating pain. All too often mistakes are made when diagnosis is based only on the results of a scan, Xray or MRI. Other people have lots of pain but their scans appear to look perfectly normal! This can also be frustrating. Consistently research is demonstrating that changes on imaging may be found in a population with pain; but equally those with no pain may have similar changes. Therefore these changes may be there but are not necessarily the reason for your pain.
Detailed questioning is an essential part of your recovery. The answers to these questions, as well as the results of any imaging, other possible medical tests (eg blood tests) and a thorough physical evaluation will help your Hip Pain Professional put together a hypothesis of your diagnosis and a well reasoned plan for the management of your condition.
How can I prepare for my assessment with my Hip Pain Professional?
Have a little think about these common questions you may be asked by your professional before your appointment:
- The history of how, when and why your problem started?
- What makes your pain better and worse, including positions, movements/activities, stress, menstrual cycle, fluctuations in your general health (e.g. if you have a cold), medications?
- What activities are you regularly involved in or avoiding to prevent possible worsening of your pain?
- Is there a time of the day or night that is better or worse?
- Are there other life stresses including poor sleep, relationship problems or other medical issues also affecting your life?
- What are your goals and aspirations for returning to a more normal life? This is very different for each individual, for example, you could be a professional marathon runner, or an older person struggling to walk.
It may also be worth considering the clothing you wear to your appointment as you may need to consider wearing or taking shorts with you, or undressing to underwear so that your professional is able to properly examine your hip and pelvic region. You can discuss with your health professional what you are comfortable with and if you would like to have the company of a partner or family member.
Search for a Hip Pain Professional now
What can I do to help my hip pain?
We understand that experiencing hip pain can be very debilitating and have substantial impact. We realise that finding solutions can be difficult.
We discuss common treatment options (which you can read more about if you click here) including exercise, hands on treatment, real time ultrasound, injections and surgery.
Subscribing to our social media feed (listed with links at the very bottom of each page) or newsletter (scroll down on our home page to sign up) will give you access to our regular blog posts where we discuss a variety of simple things you can do to manage your hip pain.
When you do a search on “Find a Hip Pain Professional” each directory listing includes which of the common treatment options they can provide.
This can give you some clarity on what techniques or programs may be available at each Hip Pain Professional (HPP) listing to help your hip pain. Your next step is to contact that listing so you can begin your journey to access individualised treatment via phone, email, website. Click on their contact button and start on your road to recovery.
Our directory is constantly building – if there is no-one listed in your area as yet, we encourage you to register on our contact us page. We will update you when a hip pain professional joins up close to you.
Another option would be to access a consultation via Skype with a Hip Pain Professional who are listed as offering this service in our Find a Hip Pain Professional directory.
What are the most common contributors to pain around the hip, pelvis and groin?
Hip Pain Help has a wealth of information regarding hip and pelvic pain, accessible in a variety of ways.
- Hip Pain Explained.
- Regional body pain maps.
- Specific Condition.
- Site Search Function.
- Find a Find a Hip Pain Professional and get them to explain it all to you.
The condition/area/person I need isn’t on here. How do I get you to help me find this information?
We constantly strive to improve and update this site. Can’t find what you need /want on the site? – message us from the “contact us” page and let us know. Thank you for helping us help you and others.
Why do I need to make my own decisions about my care/professional/injury?
Please be aware that this site is a guide only. Before proceeding with any form of treatment, always consult with a professional first. More information on our Terms and Conditions is available here.
What is the best way for me to learn more about my specific condition and how do I know the best way forward from here?
Our common condition A-Z list provides guidelines on some of the best treatment approaches for many of the most commonly diagnosed hip problems. These guidelines are developed with consideration of the most up to date clinical research about the condition, but are for informational purposes and should not be taken as individualised medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional for individualised assessment and advice. Feel free to print out this information to share with your current treating practitioner, so that you can better understand your options during your discussion with them.
Hover your curser over the “Find My Pain” tab at the top of the page and click on the “Find My Specific Condition” that appears on the dropdown.
Can I follow you on social media?
It’s easy – just click on the following links. Become part of our community and receive regular up to date information and ideas about various pain / problems and options for management. Information provided in social media is general in nature and not intended as medial advice.