Hip & Pelvis CareGonstead Method

Chiropractic Care for Hip Pain

Hip pain can start in the joint itself, in the muscles around it or in the lower back above it, so we assess all three before any adjustment.

Understanding the Condition

What Is Hip Pain?

Hip pain is pain or stiffness felt in the hip joint, the groin, the side of the hip or the buttock. The hip is the body's load-bearing crossroads, linking the lumbar spine through the pelvis to the legs, so the pain can originate from the femoroacetabular joint itself (true hip pain), from L2–L4 nerve root referral in the lower back, from the sacroiliac joint, from the hip flexor and gluteal muscles, or from the bursa over the greater trochanter. It typically shows up as groin or side-of-hip aching, stiffness when rising from a chair, pain on stairs or when lying on one side, and sometimes a limp. At Bewell's clinic opening soon in Novena, a Gonstead chiropractor assesses the lower back, pelvis and hip together, observing your posture and gait and checking each segment by hand for tenderness and restricted movement, to understand where the pain may be coming from and whether a specific, hands-only adjustment is suitable. If hip pain follows a fall, comes with a fever, or stops you putting weight on the leg, please see a registered doctor first for diagnosis.

About this page

Before you book

Prepared by the Bewell Chiropractic team.

Care at Bewell Chiropractic Novena is led by DC Michiko Liew, founder and principal chiropractor and Ambassador of the Gonstead Chiropractic Society Australia, with DC Lim C. Y. Both hold Doctor of Chiropractic qualifications and are not registered medical practitioners in Singapore.

This page is educational and not a diagnosis. Seek urgent medical care for severe weakness, loss of bladder or bowel control, fever, or trauma.

Root Causes

What Causes Hip Pain?

Hip pain can come from the joint itself, from nerves in the lower back, or from overloaded soft tissue, and each calls for a different approach. Finding the likely source is the first step.

Hip Osteoarthritis

Cartilage breakdown in the femoroacetabular joint causes groin-deep aching, stiffness after rest, and progressive loss of internal rotation. Most common in adults over 50.

Femoroacetabular Impingement (FAI)

Bony CAM or Pincer morphology creates friction between the femoral head and acetabulum during hip flexion — a common cause of anterior groin pain in active younger adults.

Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction

The SI joint connects the sacrum to the ilium. Restricted movement or irritation here can produce a dull ache at the back of the hip and in the buttock that is often mistaken for hip joint or disc pain.

Lumbar Nerve Root Referral

L2 and L3 nerve root compression refers pain into the anterior thigh and groin — indistinguishable from hip joint pain without a proper spinal assessment.

Trochanteric Bursitis

Inflammation of the bursa overlying the greater trochanter causes lateral hip pain that is tender to touch and worsens lying on the affected side — a common presentation in runners and postpartum women.

Hip Flexor & Gluteal Imbalance

Prolonged sitting shortens the hip flexors and inhibits the gluteal muscles, creating anterior pelvic tilt that compresses the posterior hip and drives both hip and lumbar pain.

Progression

How Hip Pain Develops

Hip pain often builds quietly over years before it limits daily life. At every stage, the way the pelvis and lower back move affects the load that reaches the hip.

Stage 1Mild

Stiffness & Occasional Aching

Hip stiffness on rising from a chair, aching after long walks, or soreness after sport. Full movement is still available. An assessment at this stage gives you a clearer picture sooner.

Stage 2Moderate

Activity-Related Pain

Groin or lateral hip pain during walking, stairs, or getting in and out of a car. Antalgic gait begins to develop. The altered movement pattern begins loading the knee and lumbar spine secondarily.

Stage 3Severe

Persistent Pain & Gait Alteration

Pain at rest and significant limp. Sleep is disrupted by hip aching at night. The opposite side accumulates overload injury. Daily function — shopping, walking distances — becomes significantly restricted.

Stage 4Critical

Joint Failure

Bone-on-bone contact, marked deformity and a major loss of function. Decisions about joint replacement belong with an orthopaedic surgeon. After surgery, and once your surgeon agrees, chiropractic care can look at the lower back and pelvis, which often carried extra load while the hip was painful.

Pain felt in the hip does not always start in the hip.

A full pelvic and spinal assessment helps tell true hip joint problems apart from pain referred from the lower back or the SI joint. It also shows whether chiropractic care suits you, or whether you should see a doctor first.

Recognition

Do You Experience These Symptoms?

If hip pain limits how far you can walk, disturbs your sleep or gives you a limp, it is worth having the hip, pelvis and lower back assessed together.

Groin or deep hip aching

Pain felt deep in the groin or front of the hip — the hallmark location of true hip joint pathology

Stiffness after rest

Hip stiffness and pain on first rising from a chair or bed that eases after a few minutes of movement

Limited hip rotation

Difficulty crossing the legs, putting on socks, or rotating the hip inward — early arthritic signs

Lateral hip tenderness

Tenderness to pressure over the greater trochanter, worsened lying on that side — bursitis pattern

Altered gait or limping

Unconscious shift of weight away from the painful hip, leading to a visible limp or shortened stride

Visit Us

Where to find us in Singapore

Bewell offers precise, hands-only Gonstead chiropractic care at Novena Regency on Thomson Road, opening soon.

Bewell Chiropractic Novena

275 Thomson Road #01-19
Novena Regency
Singapore 307645

+65 8859 7326 Get directions

Book ahead

Opening soon in Novena

Bewell's Gonstead clinic opens soon at Novena Regency, 275 Thomson Road. WhatsApp or call +65 8859 7326 to enquire or book ahead.

WhatsApp us Find us

Bewell Chiropractic Novena · 275 Thomson Road #01-19, Novena Regency · near Novena MRT (NS20)

Frequently Asked

Common questions

Hip joint pain is often felt in the groin or the side of the hip, while irritation in the lower back more often travels into the buttock or down the leg. A hands-on examination of the lower back, pelvis and hip helps separate the two, and a doctor can arrange imaging if it is needed.

Pain may travel when nerves from the lower back or pelvis are irritated. It can also happen when muscles around the hip refer pain down the thigh.

Morning hip stiffness may come from joint restriction, inflammation, sleeping position or pelvic imbalance. If it keeps happening, it is worth having the area assessed.

A Gonstead chiropractor first looks at your posture and the way you walk, then examines the lower back, pelvis and hip by hand, one segment at a time. If a restricted segment is found and an adjustment is suitable, it is made by hand, without machines. If your symptoms point to something outside chiropractic care, we will suggest you see a doctor.

See a registered doctor first if hip pain follows a fall or an accident, if you cannot put weight on the leg, if the hip is hot and swollen or you have a fever, or if the pain wakes you at night and does not ease with rest.

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