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What are the Most Common Symptoms of a Pinched Hip Nerve?

Dan Cavallari
Dan Cavallari

A pinched nerve can cause pain in different parts of the body, depending on what areas of the body that nerve services. A nerve becomes pinched when it is compressed or otherwise damaged, sending pain throughout the length of that nerve. A pinched hip nerve can cause pain in the hip, lower back, and even down the length of the legs, depending on which nerve is being pinched. A pinched hip nerve may be a sciatic nerve or a femoral nerve, and each nerve will cause pain in a different area of the hip, back, or legs.

Sciatica is one of the most common forms of nerve pain. It can be considered a pinched hip nerve if the sciatic nerve becomes compressed somewhere in the hip, or if the pain from the nerve is felt in the hip. A pinched hip nerve does not exist as stated; there is no hip nerve exactly, though several nerves do run through the hip. The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in the body, and it runs from the lower back, through the hips and buttocks, and down into the legs all the way down to the feet. If this nerve becomes pinched or compressed anywhere along its length, one might feel a sharp pain, numbness, tingling, or in more severe cases, a loss of motor control anywhere in the legs, hips, or lower back.

Sciatic pain is often felt at the back of the legs.
Sciatic pain is often felt at the back of the legs.

A pinched hip nerve due to femoral nerve compression will often cause pain in the groin, hips and thighs. This may manifest itself as a shooting pain, weakness, or tenderness anywhere in the groin, hips, thighs, knees, or insides of the shins. This can be differentiated from sciatic pain by the location of the pain: sciatic pain is often felt at the back of the leg or in the buttocks, while femoral nerve pain is often felt on the inside of the legs and the groin.

Exercise may help relieve nerve pain.
Exercise may help relieve nerve pain.

Treatment for the different nerve pains will vary depending on the cause. Sciatic nerve pain can be caused by compression due to a herniated disc, or it may be caused by muscles, ligaments, or tendons that compress on the nerve. In most cases, exercise and stretching is enough to alleviate the nerve pain if it is sciatic. Femoral nerve pain can also be treated with exercise and stretching, as well as lifestyle changes that will help prevent constant pressure on the nerves. In more severe cases, intensive physical therapy may be necessary, in addition to anti-inflammatory medication and painkilling medication. Very serious nerve pain issues may need to be dealt with surgically.

Discussion Comments

indigomoth

Sciatica is a really awful disease, particularly since it doesn't seem to be very well understood. Several people I know from a forum suffer from it and they have days where they just can't get out of bed because the pain is so bad.

It's not actually a disease in itself, but just a symptom of something else, which often goes undiagnosed.

I do know that with one of them the problem is with the nerves in their hip from an injury they had as a teenager which has never really healed properly. It just seems like a tragedy, to have a pinched nerve in the hip area that never heals right so you've always got to live with pain.

I hope that medicine keeps advancing to the point where people don't have to suffer like that anymore.

lluviaporos

@MrsPramm - I actually think it's pretty rare for a nerve to get caught during the replacement of the hip, but nerves often get damaged just because of the injury itself.

It's so difficult to get the hip back into place just in terms of the force needed for such a big injury that they will often do it in surgery anyway.

MrsPramm

Something that has always terrified me is the prospect of getting a nerve caught when you've dislocated a bone.

It's hard to dislocate your hip but people do it occasionally and it is very difficult to get it back into place. The tricky thing is that you want to get it done fast, in case the tissues swell up and stop the bones from moving at all, but you don't want to do it the wrong way.

If it's done the wrong way, it's possible to get a nerve physically caught between the bones. It's supposed to be excruciating pain if it happens and it's one of the reasons why doctors don't recommend people pop bones back into place by themselves. You don't want a pinched nerve in your hip, especially if you aren't in a hospital at the time.

A dislocated joint hurts badly enough without that happening on top of it.

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    • Sciatic pain is often felt at the back of the legs.
      By: Irena Misevic
      Sciatic pain is often felt at the back of the legs.
    • Exercise may help relieve nerve pain.
      By: AntonioDiaz
      Exercise may help relieve nerve pain.
    • A pinched hip nerve can cause pain in the hip, lower back or down the legs.
      By: jedi-master
      A pinched hip nerve can cause pain in the hip, lower back or down the legs.
    • The compression from a herniated disc can cause pain in the sciatic nerve.
      By: rob3000
      The compression from a herniated disc can cause pain in the sciatic nerve.
    • A common cause of nerve pain in the lower body is sciatica.
      By: rob3000
      A common cause of nerve pain in the lower body is sciatica.