Snapping Hip Syndrome

What is Snapping Hip Syndrome?

Snapping hip syndrome is a snapping or clicking sensation, sometimes with an audible sound, that happens when a tendon or muscle moves over a bony part of the hip. It is common in dancers, runners, and anyone who does repeated hip movements.

There are three patterns. External snapping is the most common, where the iliotibial band on the outer thigh slides over the greater trochanter. Internal snapping involves the iliopsoas tendon catching over structures at the front of the hip. Intra-articular snapping comes from inside the joint itself, usually from a cartilage or labral problem.

On its own the snap is often painless and needs no treatment. We get involved when it is accompanied by pain, swelling, or a sense of the hip giving way, because that points to tendon irritation or a problem inside the joint.

Symptoms

• A snapping or clicking sound or sensation with hip movement
• Pain over the outer hip or deep in the groin
• A feeling of the leg catching or giving way
• Swelling around an irritated tendon
• Discomfort climbing stairs or rising from a chair
• Reduced ease with running or dancing movements

How We Treat It

Most cases settle with a focused physiotherapy programme, so that is where we start. Our physiotherapy team works on stretching and strengthening the muscles around the hip, correcting the movement pattern that drives the snapping in the first place. For external and internal snapping this is often all that is needed.

When a tendon or bursa stays painful despite rehabilitation, a targeted steroid injection around the irritated structure reduces the inflammation and creates a clearer window for exercise to work. Where the snapping comes from inside the joint, an intra-articular injection under image guidance both helps confirm that the pain is truly intra-articular and provides relief. We reserve any surgical referral for the small number of cases that do not respond.