Hip Pain
Hip pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal complaints - and one of the most mismanaged. The hip is a complex joint that supports your full body weight, facilitates every step you take, and is surrounded by muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bursae that can each become a source of pain in different ways. When something goes wrong, the source is rarely obvious from the symptoms alone.
At SPIN (Sports Pain Management NYC), our sports pain specialists evaluate hip pain the way athletes and active patients need - with a focus on identifying the precise structure causing your discomfort, ruling out the serious causes, and building a treatment plan that gets you back to full function. Most cases are resolved without surgery.
Bursitis of the Hip — Common Cause of Hip Pain
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If you're searching for a hip pain doctor in NYC, same-day appointments are available.
Common Causes of Hip Joint Pain
There is a wide range of potential causes of hip flexor pain, many of which are related to your lifestyle, age, heredity, and past history.
Some of the more common causes that your team of sports and pain management experts sees on a regular basis include:
- Tendonitis
- Cartilage tear
- Arthritis
- Strains and sprains
- Cancer, specifically bone cancer
- Pinched nerve
- Dislocation
- Hernia
- Osteoporosis
- Fracture
You usually feel hip flexor pain in the front of your hips. It's typically caused by a strained muscle. The hip flexors are pretty busy soft tissues; they allow you to bend at the waist and bring your knees up toward your chest.
Most at Risk for Hip Flexor Pain
Most at risk for needing hip flexor pain treatment are athletes, especially:
Hip Joint Pain Emergency Symptoms
Many cases of hip flexor pain and hip joint pain respond well to at-home treatment for hip pain that your pain specialist recommends.
At-Home Treatment Options
- Resting and taking a break from the activity that causes you pain
- Alternating ice and heat
- Over-the-counter pain relievers
- Elevating that side of your body
- Easing the inflammation with compression bandages
Emergency Symptoms to Watch For
If you don't find quick relief at home, seek emergency medical care and consult a physician like Dr. Melepura to relieve your hip pain and avoid further complications.
- Sudden swelling in the hip area
- Severe, stabbing pain
- Difficulty walking or bearing weight on one side
- Chills, fever, redness or any other signs of infection
- An odd-looking position of your hip joint
- An inability to move
Hip Pain Diagnosis
Tell Your Physician
Before your sports and pain management team of doctors can build a hip pain treatment plan for you, they have to diagnose the cause and discover the source of your discomfort. Whether the hip joint pain is caused by an injury, age-related degeneration, overuse, or an accident, your physician can best determine your exact cause with a detailed medical history. Tell your physician:
- When the hip joint pain started
- What you were doing when you first noticed the pain
- When it hurts the most
- What helps it feel better
- What steps you've taken to reduce the pain
Diagnostic Tests
In addition to your description of the pain, your doctor may run tests before deciding on treatment for hip pain that targets you specifically. Tests to properly diagnose hip pain may include:
- X-rays
- Ultrasound
- MRI or CT scans
- Blood tests
- Physical exam with a focus on your gait, seated posture, and stance
More Advanced Treatment for Hip Pain
Prevention is one of the best hip pain treatment plans you can follow. As you age, you especially need to take precautions to avoid falling. Even if you just bruise the soft tissue within your hip and need hip flexor pain treatment, you may need to rely on a cane or walker at any age while you're healing to prevent a fall.
When time and at-home remedies don't produce sufficient relief from hip joint pain within a couple of weeks, your pain management team may recommend more drastic hip pain treatments that may include:
Abrasion arthroplasty
Steroid injections
Nerve blocks
Hip replacement
You'll be encouraged to undergo some lifestyle changes too, especially after undergoing extensive treatment for hip pain. Steps you can take to improve your healing success and prevent further complications include:
Hip Pain Treatment Options in NYC
Hip pain does not have a one-size-fits-all solution. The right treatment depends entirely on the underlying cause - which is why diagnosis always comes before any recommendation. At SPIN, our NYC sports pain team uses imaging, physical examination, and movement assessment to identify exactly what is generating your pain before recommending a course of action.
For most patients, treatment begins conservatively. Rest, targeted physical therapy, and anti-inflammatory medication can resolve acute hip injuries and mild bursitis without further intervention. When conservative care is not producing results, our specialists offer a range of in-office procedural treatments.
Cortisone injections
Corticosteroid injections delivered directly into the hip joint or surrounding bursa reduce inflammation rapidly and provide significant pain relief for hip arthritis, bursitis, and labral irritation. Most patients experience meaningful improvement within a few days, and relief can last several months.
PRP (Platelet-Rich Plasma) therapy
For soft tissue injuries including labral tears, tendinopathy, and chronic hip flexor strain, PRP injections use your own blood's healing factors to accelerate tissue repair. PRP is a strong option when cortisone provides only short-term benefit.
Hyaluronic acid injections
For hip osteoarthritis specifically, viscosupplementation with hyaluronic acid lubricates the joint and reduces friction-related pain. This is an alternative for patients who do not respond adequately to cortisone.
Physical therapy and rehabilitation
A structured physical therapy program addresses muscle imbalances and movement compensations that contribute to chronic hip pain. Our physical therapists in NYC work alongside the pain management team to coordinate your care.
If you are in the New York City area and looking for non-surgical hip pain treatment, SPIN's specialists are available for same-week consultations. Call us or book online to get started.
Ready to find hip pain relief?
Dr. Melepura's Midtown Manhattan clinic offers same-day appointments for hip pain evaluation and treatment.
Hip Pain Specialist in NYC: When to Stop Managing It Alone
Most people try to manage hip pain at home before seeing a doctor - and in many cases, that is the right first step. Rest, ice, and over-the-counter pain relievers are appropriate for minor strains and short-term overuse pain. But there are clear signals that continuing to self-manage is making things worse, not better.
In NYC, access to a sports pain specialist often means faster diagnosis and faster access to injection therapies than a standard primary care referral pathway. SPIN's team specializes in exactly this - hip pain that hasn't responded to home management, but that doesn't require a surgeon.
When you see a sports pain specialist at SPIN for hip pain, your first visit includes a detailed history, physical examination, and a review of any imaging you have already had. If new imaging is needed, we facilitate that as part of your care plan. Most patients leave their first visit with a clear diagnosis and a treatment plan - not just a referral to come back later.
Real Stories from our Patients
Dr. Febin Melepura, MD
Double Board-Certified Pain Specialist
Meet Dr. Febin Melepura — Your Hip Pain Specialist in NYC
Dr. Febin Melepura, MD is a double board-certified interventional pain management specialist and the founder of the Sports Pain Institute of New York. He completed his residency and fellowship training at New York Presbyterian Hospital / Columbia University Medical Center, one of the nation's leading academic medical centers.
He holds dual board certifications from the American Board of Anesthesiology and the American Board of Pain Medicine, and has treated more than 7,500 patients and performed over 5,250 procedures throughout his career. He has been named a Top Pain Management Doctor in New York and one of America's Top Doctors™ by Castle Connolly.
Dr. Melepura's approach to hip pain is rooted in a simple principle: find the source, treat it precisely, and return you to the life you want to live — without surgery if at all possible.
Ready to Book an Appointment?
Same-day appointments available. Call (212) 621-7746 or book online.
What Our Hip Pain Patients Say
"Able to make an appointment to see Dr. Melepura on short notice… attentive to my concerns… Jazmin was also very kind and helpful."
"Excellent hospitality, listener and explainer… highly recommend the doctor and the place."
"Dr. Melepura is the best! He worked with me to find the optimal solution to my shoulder pain while I was preparing for a fight!"
"Lovely, bright and modern… doctor and staff were kind… felt my concerns were heard."
"Helpful and friendly staff who gladly follows up with you if and when needed. Dr Melepura was very helpful and professional as well as provided me with excellent information and feedback."
"Dr Febin is fantastic! Highly recommend him and his practice the Spin clinic. The doctor is a good listener, kind, attentive and gave me great advice. "
"Dr.Melepura was very efficient and interpersonal, felt like he was understanding the problems I was having and explained the processes to take to rehabilitate. I would recommend."
"I felt listened to and truly understood by Dr. Melepura. Started PT the very next day. They were very friendly and I didn't feel rushed at all. Already recommended them to my friends who have or continue to play through pain."
Frequently Asked Questions About Hip Pain
The most common causes are hip osteoarthritis, hip bursitis (inflammation of the fluid sac cushioning the joint), tendinopathy, and muscle strain — particularly of the hip flexors and glutes. In younger, active patients, labral tears are increasingly common and often go undiagnosed for years.