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Find the Source
A hands-on evaluation that separates joint, tendon and back as the cause, so the plan matches the problem.
Conditions We Treat
Hip Pain Treatment in Onondaga County
Getting Started
Find the Source of Your Hip Pain
Hip pain is easy to misread. Pain on the outside of the hip, deep in the groin, in the buttock and down the thigh can each come from a different structure, and a plan built for the wrong one goes nowhere. At AR Physical Therapy we find which structure is driving your hip pain and treat it.
Whether it is arthritis, bursitis, impingement, a tendon or a back problem showing up in the hip, the plan combines hands-on treatment, targeted strengthening and deep tissue laser therapy to calm the pain so the work can begin.
The hip is one of the deep joints that only a Class IV laser can reach, and one of the conditions we most often use it for.
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How We Treat Hip Pain
Understanding Hip Pain
Where does it
actually hurt?
actually hurt?
Groin pain that worsens with sitting, twisting or getting out of a car usually points to the joint itself: osteoarthritis in older adults, impingement or a labral irritation in younger and active ones. Pain on the outside of the hip that hurts to lie on usually comes from the gluteal tendons and bursa, often called hip bursitis. Buttock pain that travels down the leg is often the back or sciatic nerve rather than the hip.
Those three patterns need three different plans, which is why the evaluation comes before the exercises.
Groin
Joint arthritis, impingement, labral irritation
Outer Hip
Gluteal tendinopathy and bursitis, worse lying on that side
Buttock & Leg
Often the low back or sciatic nerve rather than the hip
What We See
Common hip
problems.
problems.
See a physical therapist when hip pain has lasted more than a few weeks, is changing how you walk, or is waking you at night.
Hip osteoarthritis
Greater trochanteric pain (hip bursitis)
Gluteal tendinopathy
Hip impingement (FAI)
Labral irritation
Snapping hip
Hip flexor strains
After hip replacement
How We Treat It
Calm the joint,
build the hip.
build the hip.
Weak glutes and a stiff hip capsule sit behind most hip pain. We fix both and measure the change.
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Restore Motion
Manual therapy and mobility work for a stiff hip capsule and surrounding muscles.
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Strengthen the Glutes
Progressive hip and glute strengthening measured on Kinvent force plates, because a strong hip takes load off a sore joint or tendon.
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Calm the Pain
Class IV laser therapy over the joint or tendon to reduce pain and improve circulation so loading can start sooner.
Why Choose Us
Walk, Sit and Sleep Without Hip Pain
Deep Tissue Laser Therapy
Laser for one of the
deepest joints.
deepest joints.
The hip joint sits three to five centimeters below the surface, which puts it beyond the reach of low-level lasers and squarely in range of the LightForce Class IV laser. A large contact head is used over the hip joint region and the outer hip, delivering near-infrared light that increases circulation and reduces the inflammatory activity behind pain and stiffness.
Hip osteoarthritis and outer hip pain are among the conditions in our clinic's laser protocols, treated two to three times a week over four to six weeks alongside physical therapy. The research on high-intensity laser for musculoskeletal pain supports meaningful short-term pain relief, strongest when laser is combined with exercise, with the caveat that study quality varies.
Laser lowers the pain. Hip and glute strengthening keeps it down.
Recovery
What progress
looks like.
looks like.
Outer hip pain and tendon problems usually improve over six to twelve weeks of loading. Arthritic hips are managed over a longer arc with steady gains in walking and stairs. Impingement and labral irritation respond to strength and movement changes over a similar timeline.
Sleep Smart
A pillow between the knees takes the pressure off a sore outer hip at night.
Do the Glute Work
The strengthening program is the long-term treatment. Everything else makes it possible.
Keep Walking
Short, regular walks keep an arthritic hip moving. Avoid long stretches of sitting with the legs crossed.
Why AR Physical Therapy
Hip care that
names the cause.
names the cause.
You want to know whether it is the joint, the tendon or your back, and what to do about it. We tell you at the first visit.
- Evaluation and treatment led by a board-certified orthopedic clinical specialist
- Force plate strength testing so the weak side is measured, not guessed
- Class IV laser therapy that reaches the hip joint
- Agile Aging programs to keep the gains after formal therapy
LightForceClass IV laser
DorsaVi3D motion capture
KeiserPneumatic resistance
KinventForce plate analysis
Questions
Common questions.
Is my hip pain actually coming from my back?
Sometimes. Buttock pain that travels down the leg often is. The evaluation separates the two, and the plan follows the real source.
Can laser help hip bursitis?
Outer hip pain is one of the conditions we treat with laser, alongside the gluteal strengthening that resolves it. Laser reduces the pain so you can do the loading.
Do I need an X-ray?
Not usually to start. We refer you for imaging if your history or exam calls for it, or if you may be a candidate for a surgical opinion.
Can laser be used after a hip replacement?
Laser is used after joint replacement to support healing and manage pain, on a schedule coordinated with your surgeon.
Get Started
Find out what is really
driving your hip pain.
driving your hip pain.
Book an evaluation and leave knowing whether it is the joint, the tendon or your back.