By Dr. John L. Ferrell III, M.D.(*)
If you have hip pain, you probably know the “Socks and Stairs” test. It’s when putting on your socks or climbing the stairs starts to hurt.
When you see a doctor for this, they often give you a “Wait and See” plan. They may tell you to take some pills, get a standard shot (cortisone has risks) , and wait until your hip is “bad enough” for surgery.
At ROSM, we think that is a mistake. Waiting for it to get worse is not a plan.
The “Waiting Room” Problem
Some doctors treat hip pain like a broken car. They wait until the engine dies before they fix it. But your hip isn’t a car, it’s a living and necessary part of your body in order to be mobile and free.
If you wait until your hip is “bone on bone,” you have fewer choices. We want to see you before that happens. If we catch it early, we can help your body fix itself without a big surgery.
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Why Some “Quick Fixes” Can Hurt
You might have heard of cortisone shots. They are like a temporary “mute button” for pain. They make you feel better for a few weeks, but they don’t fix the problem.
In fact, new studies show that these shots can actually make your hip wear out faster. It’s like putting tape over a “Low Oil” light in your car. The light is gone, but the engine is still getting damaged. At ROSM, we’re determined to help our patients long-term and we want to fix the engine, not just hide the light.
How We Help Your Body Heal
We use your body’s own “healing cells” to fix the joint. Here are the two ways we do it:
- The “Fertilizer” (PRP): We take the best parts of your own blood and put them into your hip. Think of this like fertilizer for a garden. It tells your body to send “repair crews” to the spot that hurts.
- The “Pillow” (Fat): Sometimes we use a tiny bit of your own body fat. This acts like a soft pillow or a cushion inside your joint. It helps the hip move smoothly again.
We Don’t Guess—We Look (with modern cutting edge ultrasonic guidance of course!)
The hip is deep inside your body. You can’t just guess where the needle goes. Many clinics do “blind” shots where they just feel for a bone. Hence why we wrote an article about how not all regenerative medicine treatments and prices are equal.
We don’t do that. We use a special “camera” called an ultrasound. This lets us see exactly where the needle is. We make sure the healing cells land exactly where you need them.
Is It Too Late for Me?
We get this question a lot.
- Early Stages: This is the best time. We can often stop the pain and keep you active for years with one of our regenerative medicine treatments.
- Late Stages: Even if your hip is very worn down, we can often “quiet down” the pain. This can help you put off surgery for a long time or possibly eliminate the need for it. Even if we are unable to help and surgery is the only option, our patients often express their gratitude for exploring their alternatives.
Your Next Step
You don’t have to just “live with it.” You have more choices than just pills, injections or surgery. Let’s look at your hip together and see if we can get you back to the things you love.
