In some patients it can be difficult to establish where their symptoms are coming from, particularly where there may be overlapping conditions such as low back pain or pelvic pain. Under these circumstances you may be advised to have a steroid injection to the hip which may help both with temporary symptom relief, but also aides diagnosis.
Your hip injection will either be performed by the radiology department on in theatre by your surgeon. A small amount of local anaesthetic is injected into the skin and then a slender needle put through the numb patch into the hip joint. This allows both sampling of the synovial fluid in the hip joint and injection of local anaesthetic and steroid. You’ll be awake through the procedure.
After your hip injection you’ll go home, but be asked to keep a note of what happens to your hip pain. Classically if the pain is coming from your hip joint you will get a few weeks relief of your symptoms, but then your symptoms will return. You’ll normally be seen in clinic for follow up 8 to 12 weeks later to assess your response.
