![]() ![]() | An Advanced Look Into Causation, Prevention & Possible Solutions for Soft Tissue Injuries of the Hip & Lower BackA Large Number of our Clients Have:
...they simply did the research and found the right treatments. Before deciding on a hip treatment path, an understanding of the hip joint, the type of hip injury, and the three major stages of soft tissue healing is critical. With the right knowledge and the right treatment options, you can accelerate your recovery without the fear of re-injury or setbacks (which unfortunately, happens to many people - we will explain why further down the page). The Hip Joint is a Big Deal!The Importance of the Hip Joint to the Human Body is much the same as the Importance of the "Grand Central Terminal" to the City of New York. You may have heard the term "Everything flows through the hips" - and it is said for good reason! Major nerves and arteries extending into the lower body pass through the hips, and pinch points for these major nerves are often found in the lower back or the hip. Pinched nerves can happen for many reasons, but soft tissue inflammation due to muscle imbalance, gait issues, and/or overcompensation is one of the major causes. The amount of force that the hip bears is truly amazing when you delve into some data. If you can, take a look at the abstract from this study: "Hip joint loading during walking and running, measured in two patients" (PubMed,opens in new window). The forces measured were as a percentage of body weight from 2 subjects (one with a bilateral joint replacement and the other with one instrumented hip implant) and are as follows*:
*Bergmann G, E. A. Hip injuries are quite common, often the result of a quick blow to the hip joint or through years of common movements such as climbing stairs or from sports such as golfing or skiing. Regardless of how the injury happens, a hip injury is painful and the joint can feel very unstable. Hip injuries can persist for years and can impede your ability to perform many common tasks that you probably took for granted before the injury. Recovery can take a long time but proper healing is essential to regain strength and get you back to the activities you enjoy. The 3 Stages of HealingRegardless of what soft tissue condition you may be suffering from, if the pain is signficant and/or impacts your day to day life - get to a physician for a proper diagnosis. Once you know what you are dealing with, you and your doctor can now confidently undergo a proper treatment plan. In some cases - such as a complete tear - there is no option other than to undergo surgery. If the diagnosis has confirmed a soft tissue injury such as a strain or partial tear, your doctor will most likely prescribe a conservative treatment protocol including rest and the use of a Cold Compress or Ice Pack for reduction of pain and swelling. When dealing with a soft tissue injury (an injury to muscles, tendons, ligaments and/or cartilage), there are three major stages of the healing process. These stages are as follows: Stage 1: Reduce Initial Inflammation (if there is any)Inflammation is the body's natural response to an immediate hip injury and is a normal part of the healing process - helping to reduce tissue infection in the early stages of injury. Swelling, pain, heat sensation, redness, and loss of function are the main symptoms experienced. ![]() The combination of rest, topical pain relief cream and the use of a Cold Compress or Ice Pack is the gold standard in medicine for minimizing tissue damage and reducing inflammation after injury or activity. It serves as a critical bridge into the next phase of the healing process. There are certain cases where inflammation is very minor or even non-existent. This behavior is often found in tendinosis and osteoarthritis injuries. If there is no swelling, then there is little need for cold applications - and as such, treatment should proceed directly to stage 2. Stage 2: Enhance Blood Flow to the Injured Soft TissueTendons,ligaments, cartilage, and muscle fibres are dense tissues. As a result, they naturally receive limited blood flow and this is precisely why injuries to these tissues take so long to heal. The challenge is, how do you effectively increase blood flow to these tissues?
![]() When you have a muscle, tendon, ligament or bursa injury, there is reduced blood flow to the injury site - inflammation and reduced movement (lack of activity or on-going immobility) will reduce the flow of blood - and if you think about it, this makes sense. Moving your hip when there is swelling is quite painful; as such it is very common for anyone with a hip strain, a pulled hip or a hip tear to have significant reduced mobility. Over time, a significant reduction in activity leads to atrophy - a shortening (and weakening) of muscles, tendons and ligaments in the area. As the hip slowly heals, you run a high risk of (re)straining this same area as they have become shorter and weaker due to lack of use. If there has been some healing, you could re-injure it all over again, and even injure it worse.. basically turning an initial acute (recent) hip injury into a chronic (long term) hip injury. It is through the blood the body carries the oxygen, nutrients and water that injured tissues rely on for recovery.. It is well known that increased blood flow helps your body accelerate the healing process. This is why the Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® is such an important tool. The whole purpose of the wrap is to accelerate blood flow to soft tissue. The end result: blood vessels will naturally expand and allow for more blood flow to reach the very tissues you are trying to heal. In addition, this process will help clear the area of toxins and excess fluid build up, thereby reducing inflammation. Stage 3: Recognize That Healing is a ProcessWith dedication, the right tools, and the right information - you will achieve your goal of a sustainable recovery. A combination approach of cold, T•Shellz Wrap® treatments, and functional movements will make it happen much more quickly in the vast majority of cases. In our experience, soft tissue repair rates via conservative home treatment methods using a dedicated, comprehensive approach have surprised many of our clients, but will differ from person to person. In nearly all cases, however, it is very important to stop whatever you were doing that created the injury in the first place (ie. running, yoga). If you have questions, call our office at 1-866-237-9608 (toll free continental US). What Exactly is the Hip?Most of you are reading this because you suspect you have a hip injury, or perhaps you have already received a confirmed diagnosis. Either way, you are most likely interested in learning; what are the steps I need to take to properly heal it? We receive questions like this on a daily basis. The approach we take is based on years of experience and based on sound, scientific principles. We discuss these approaches in-depth further down the page and throughout the rest of the website. Before getting into that however, it is important to understand the characteristics of the hip joint and the role it plays in regard to body mechanics. The hip joint, medically termed as the "acetabulum", is a ball and socket joint cushioned by cartilage and held together by muscle groups and ligaments responsible for moving the leg in multiple directions. Walking, bending, crouching and climbing stairs are typical activities that require hip joint movements. These muscle groups help stabilize the joint as the leg moves. The acetabulum is lined with a unique structure called the labrum which is a piece of fibrocartilage that forms a cup-like ring within the joint. It helps the femur sit properly in the socket, making the hip more stable. The hip joint is surrounded by other connective tissue including powerful muscles, ligaments and tendons that also stabilize the femur in the socket during it's wide range of powerful movements. The ligaments of the hip attach one bone to another and are essential for stabilizing the complex movements of the hip. Hip ligaments deal with very large forces and as such, are very tough and strong. Ligaments surrounding the acetabulum (the ischiofemoral, iliofemoral, and pubofemoral ligaments) make up the joint capsule of the hip and help control the movement of the hip. Bursae (plural for bursa) are flat, fluid filled sacs that function as cushions between your bones and the muscles (deep bursae) or bones and tendons (superficial bursae) to reduce friction and allow your soft tissue to slide over bone effortlessly during muscle contraction. They are lined with synovial tissue that secretes fluid rich in protein and collagen; this fluid acts as the lubricant between areas in your body where friction is greatest. Common bursae in the hip include the deep trochanteric bursa, trochanteric bursa, iliopsoas bursa, ischiogluteal bursa, gluteus medius bursa, and the ischial turbosity bursa. The IT band (also called the iliotibial tract, ITB or iliotibial band) is a long, thick tendon that runs from the pelvis, along the outside of the hip and femur, down to the knee. Several hip muscles connect to the iliotibial band and it's essential in stabilizing your knee while walking and running. The iliopsoas is a deep hip flexor tendon that passes along the front of the hip joint. The iliopsoas tendon attaches the iliopsoas muscle (iliacus, psoas major, and psoas minor muscles) to the femur at the lesser trochanter and is the primary hip flexor muscle. There are four groups of muscles in the hip that are responsible for moving the leg in several directions - the iliopsoas muscles, the hamstring muscles, the adductor muscles and the gluteus muscles. Read more about hip muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bursae here. Once one or more of the hip muscles or tendons are injured it becomes very difficult to recover 100%. Re-injury of the Hip Must be Avoided at All CostsConstant re-injury needs to be avoided at all costs! Please excuse the obvious statement, but I really need to drive this point home. Re-Injury is very common... why? Everyone wants to get back to their regular lifestyle once the pain has reduced. Here is where you have to be careful - often, much of the pain is due to inflammation - so, once you iced the area and the swelling dropped, a lot of the pain probably disappeared too. So then you start back at your regular lifestyle and then all of a sudden the old injury starts flaring up again - this is re-injury! Just Because The Pain Has Dropped, It Does Not Mean The Underlying Injury Has HealedRe-Injury is bad because sure, it delays the healing process, but what's worse is that every re-injury and additional healing cycle increases the amount of scar tissue that builds up in the area of your original hip injury (the ischiofemoral ligament, for instance). This applies to muscle, tendons, ligaments and other connective tissue as well. Scar tissue is a weak form of collagen - hard, inflexible, and tough to get rid of once it begins to take hold. The more scar tissue that develops, the more you lose the range of motion in your hip. With excess scar tissue build up, the injured tissues and the hip in general will remain weak and very prone to re-straining and re-tearing. While you can go a number of days and even a few weeks without any major setbacks during the injury.. inevitably, a certain movement or motion will happen that causes your injured soft tissue to strain and even tear once again. This is attributed to the scar tissue build up and will result in the buildup of yet more scar tissue and a further reduced range of motion (ROM). The more scar tissue that develops, the greater the risk of winding up permanently injured with chronic pain or arthritis. Scar tissue means that your hip will not perform as well as it once did and it makes it much more prone to injury later on. The longer the injury remains, the risk of atrophy increases and the risk of more scar tissue increases. This is why it is critical to treat your hip injury now rather than later. Continuous re-injury and build-up of scar tissue makes it more likely that you will wind up with chronic pain, reduced Range of Motion or even arthritis (permanent damage).A Hip Injury Does Not Have to Persist For Months Or Longer. Here is Why It Does For ManyRecovery from a hip injury can take a long time, especially when some of the less effective, traditional methods are utilized. This is simply because many treatments either focus on masking of pain or are too inconsistent to provide sustainable improvement. Hip Injuries - They Certainly Are Life Changing Aren't They...If you've been living with the agony of a hip injury for some time now, it's almost a sure thing that you're feeling discouraged, tired, and worn-out. Seemingly simple chores are now impossible - like climbing stairs, getting off the sofa without help, getting into a car or even standing for significant periods of time. The constant pain has no doubt interrupted your sleep, just adding to the long-term misery that this condition can bring on. It's just not possible to stop life's activities for weeks/months to rest hip injury unless maybe you are lying in a hospital bed where nurses can attend to your every need. What ends up happening is we continually re-injure the hip through our daily activities - further setting back our recovery. Each time the hip is placed under stress, the chance of tissue breakdown is increased and the growth of more scar tissue is more probable. This is how a hip injury can start a long term downward spiral that could end with a chronic bad hip, atrophy or even hip replacement surgery. Long Term Hip Injuries Not Only Affect the Hip - They Will Lead to Other Conditions and Injuries.![]() Every time we use our injured hip, damaged and swollen tendons and muscle tissue move; when they are inflamed, every movement hurts. With injured tissue, pain happens - sometimes a LOT of pain, so we try not to move it. So, when doing something we need to use our hip for (getting dressed, walking, climbing into a car, gardening), we start to use the knees and back more. If with localized left hip pain or right hip pain, we use the other side of the hip instead even though it is inconvenient. A couple days later (after purposefully avoiding movement of our hip), the pain has gone down (as well as the swelling) and this is where the trouble begins! The pain disappeared with the swelling but we still aren't fully healed! Not knowing this, we start using our hip normally again and then the injury swells up again like it did before - all because the injury wasn't fully healed in the first place. Eventually, we use the other joints more and more - or even use our knees instead of our hip for a lengthy period of time. This is why knees quickly start to hurt - they are being overused now - they really cannot handle the increase in loads that the injured hip once handled. Soon, aches and pain can become commonplace in the lower body and back - all as a result of the original hip injury and the body's instinctive nature to "protect" the hip - all because the injury wasn't fully healed in the first place! We continually re-injure the hip through our daily activities and now this injury has become a chronic hip injury. ![]() Muscle imbalances result, placing tension on bone and softer tissues - leading to a misalignment within the upper body. The extra stress on the opposite side of the body will also result in weakness and fatigue of the tissues - increasing the chances they can eventually be injured or gradually degenerate. This is a textbook example of how you get an overcompensation injury. In some cases, physical therapists warn that overcompensation can be very dangerous as it will affect gait or alignment on a permanent basis. An injury to one hip muscle can easily lead to straining in other areas, making an overall recovery hard to initiate. For example, a serious muscle strain in the right side hip can often lead to over-straining of the left side hip. Most commonly, the injury occurs on the dominant side, so the risk of straining the other (weaker) side increases. The longer the injury (and corresponding pain) persists, the greater the chance that you will sustain more strain from overcompensation, eventually leading to issues in those areas as well. To minimize potential secondary injuries, know that it is important to deal with your injury quickly and completely. Truly, hip injuries can become a vicious cycle - which is why it is absolutely critical to focus on methods that improve and strengthen the injured tissues in a timely manner. The faster you truly heal, the less chance you have of sinking into a downward spiral of re-injury, scar tissue growth and overcompensation injuries. Okay, So I Have a Hip Injury...What Should I Do Now?Stage 1: If the hip injury is very recent - use a good quality cold pack and Arnica Pain Relief Cream. If the injury has been going on for awhile, then skip to Stage 2 below.Recommendation 1: If you are experiencing pain and swelling in the very early stages of the injury (first 48 to 72 hours), the first step in a conservative treatment protocol would be to focus on reducing the discomfort by applying a quality cold pack to the injured hip along with a high quality pain relief cream such as our Arnica Infusion Cream. Not only will you use your cold pack for the first 48 to 72 hours after the injury, but you should also use it during other stages of the healing process. Some examples include...
Having a Cold Compress or Ice Pack available at home to use if and when the need arises is helpful. Many of you already do so. However, it is not uncommon to over-focus on cold while ignoring the most critical aspect to healing - nourishing the injured tissues with a healthy supply of blood flow needed to repair and rebuild the injured tissues. This leads to the most important stage ... Stage 2: Focus on Increasing Blood Flow To The Injured Tissue - As This is How Your Body Can Heal Soft Tissue For the Long-TermEven though the concept is simple, improving blood flow to injured soft tissue can be difficult. When the injury is hip related, the challenges are even greater. Traditional methods require your muscle to move to promote blood flow (exercise), but that same motion that promotes blood flow can at times lead to making your pain and condition worse.
Most people we deal with tell us these scenarios have happened to them many times in the past. Perhaps it has already happened to you. Promoting blood flow within a muscle or soft tissue injury to help the body heal itself is a concept that has been utilized for centuries. This is where the focus has to be if you are seeking long-term improvement. Oxygen and nutrients, carried within the blood, are critical for the body to heal itself. Without proper blood flow, recovering from an injury or condition will be delayed...sometimes for a very long period of time. The real challenge is how do you promote blood flow to the hip injury site without causing further injury? This goal is further complicated by the fact the hip (and muscles controlling the hip joint) are involved in the majority of the physical movements we perform each day. Back, upper leg and hip pain can be interconnected and are often experienced in conjunction with one another. Many of the muscles that surround the hips are connected to muscles in the lower back, which in turn connect to the hamstring and elsewhere in the body. An injury to one of these regions usually leads to straining in other areas, making an overall recovery hard to initiate. People tend to "chase the pain", meaning they only focus on treating an area that is actively painful, while not taking into account the fact they other areas of the body will be overcompensating...eventually leading to issues in those areas as well. In order to provide long lasting relief from your hip pain, you need to identify all the factors that are contributing to it. These factors can include muscle imbalances, short leg syndrome, herniated discs, trauma and tightness to surrounding muscle and soft tissue, etc. The list is certainly significant and it can be frustrating for people who may have no idea where to begin. Now, on to recommendation 2 in the journey to heal your injured hip ... The Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® - A Healthy Hip For The Long Term![]() The best option we came across in our research to accomplish the all important blood flow increase to soft tissue in the hip is the Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap®. Use of this device results in a dramatic increase in blood flow to the tissues located in and around the area of application - all in a non-invasive manner. Have you seen what happens when you add water to a flower wilted from drought? In essence, your injured hip is much like a "wilted" flower; your body wants to heal its injury, but needs lots of nutrients to do it. Blood brings life to your tissue by delivering healing nutrients and oxygen that are vital for their growth and survival. In addition, the blood carries away toxins and waste cleaning the area and healing it faster. Without a good supply of blood, your hip simply won't heal properly. Heat energy generated by the T•Shellz Wraps® operate by increasing blood flow in our injured soft tissue. This means ligaments, muscles, and tendons. The objective of the T•Shellz Wrap® is to increase blood flow in these targeted areas, resulting in relaxation of the vessel walls. The vessels then gently expand, allowing for more nutrient rich blood flow along with extra oxygen to reach the damaged tissues. Plus, the enhanced blood flow helps in flushing waste and fluid build-up from the injury site - further enhancing the ability of the body to heal. ![]() Once energy from the T•Shellz Wrap® absorbs into the hip and surrounding area, the metabolic response then kick starts the repair process.T•Shellz Wrap. More blood now begins to flow effectively to injured soft tissues within the body - the injured tissue needs the extra blood flow to heal as it is through the blood the body carries the oxygen and nutrients needed for proper and long-term healing. Using a T•Shellz Wrap® will not expose you to the risk of causing further harm to soft tissue like you can when using rigorous exercise. The Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® accomplishes the goal of enhanced blood flow without the need for intensive exercise and as such reduces your risk of re-injury. The T•Shellz Wrap® - Accelerated Blood Flow for Your Hip Soft TissueThe intention of a Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® is to ease pain by dilating blood vessels, decrease stiffness by elongating soft tissue, improve blood circulation, and boost metabolism and enzyme activity. In stimulating localized blood flow to damaged soft tissue, you provide needed oxygen and nutrients to grow strong healthy collagen. In addition, you will experience a clearing of toxins and excess fluid build up from the injury site. Over the intermediate term, this helps to reduce incidents of swelling as trapped fluids will be whisked away - reducing pressure on blood vessels. Using the T•Shellz Wrap® is truly a unique experience. Within moments of applying a treatment to your hip, you can feel the healing sensation due to the increase in blood flow deep within the area. During a treatment, and for quite some time after you finish, the treated area will feel relaxed and less painful. It's a very soothing sensation and extremely effective. Who Should Use the Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap®We recommend the use of a Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap®:
Increased Blood Circulation = Increased Healing CapabilityT•Shellz Wraps® contain a unique Carbon Fiber Energy Pad which is flexible and will shape to conform to your body. This Energy Pad emits a uniform wave of perfectly safe energy over its entire surface. This energy is absorbed by soft tissue in the treatment area, opening blood vessels, resulting in an increase in blood flow. Increased blood circulation is what your body needs to maximize its cabability of healing soft tissue and this is why we recommend the T•Shellz Wrap®. The Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® is an FDA Registered Medical Device and is suitable for use in therapeutic clinics and FROM HOME. It is completely safe for people and patients to use for themselves. The technology found in a T•Shellz Wrap® has been used for decades in the worlds of professional and amateur sports - a contributing factor as to why athletes seem to recover from injuries so quickly. Have you ever wondered by an athlete can return to activity after 4 or 5 weeks following a hip injury - while your average person takes much longer to return back to normal? The secret isn't really that much of a secret - it involves consistent treatments (meaning multiple times a day) using a treatment like the T•Shellz Wrap® to stimulate blood flow to the injured tissues. Most athletes have the luxury of using in-house facilities many times per day. How many us can afford the time and money to visit a clinic multiple times a day? Very few indeed. This is how you can gain some of the advantages that athletes enjoy in their injury recovery - by using a device like the Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® two or three times a day on a consistent basis. Consistent Treatments = Consistent And Long Term ImprovementWhat Else Makes the Back/Hip T•Shellz Wrap® So Special?We believe the T•Shellz Wrap® to be one of the most effective home treatments to increase localized blood flow to soft tissue in and around the treatment area. We can promise that you will receive a product that is designed to be safe and does what it is supposed to do... reduce pain (as stated in "Therapeutic Heat and Cold", 4th edition. - Ed. Justus F. Lehmann, M.D., Williams, and Wilkin) temporarily increase length & flexibility of soft tissue (as stated in "Therapeutic Heat and Cold", 4th edition. - Ed. Justus F. Lehmann, M.D., Williams, and Wilkin) and aid your body in recovering from tendon, muscle and other soft tissue injuries via enhanced blood flow. ![]() The unit plugs into a standard wall outlet to get its power. The nice thing about the power supply is that the same unit can be used in North America and overseas as well. It has the capability to operate between 110v and 230v. The T•Shellz Wrap® has a special signal controller that can be set for 3 different power levels of application (3=High, 2=Medium, 1=Low). The cord is long enough that you can sit or lie comfortably and watch TV, read or surf the net while you're using it. Treatments are max 30 minutes in duration and the device can be worn over clothing. This allows you to use the device at work, at home, or really anywhere you have access to an electrical outlet. A T•Shellz Wrap® application is intended to produce the following results:Enhance blood circulation and |
![]() Hip Injury Facts: Over 90% of hip fractures are caused by falling, most frequently on the side of the hip. Less than 50% of hip fracture patients return to their former level of activity. Proper treatment is important to maintain strength and range of motion. Hip alignment affects the pressure put on the knees. A hip disorder can aggravate knee pain and vice versa. 1 in 7 Americans, over the age of 60, reports significant hip pain. In most cases, arthritis pain will not benefit from a hip arthroscopy. 70% of non-fracture hip replacements in 2003-2004 were to treat osteoarthritis. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |