Peer Reviewed Patient Education

What are the symptoms of hip arthritis?

Most commonly, hip arthritis pain is described as increasing pain in the groin and anterior (front) thigh area. This usually begins with pain only during activities. It progresses to pain at rest and eventually disturbs sleep at night. With longstanding arthritis in the hip, motion in this area can be extremely limited, especially in flexion (bending) and internal rotation. Frequently, one limb becomes shorter than the other. Simple activities such as tying shoes and cutting toenails become compromised with advanced arthritis. A pronounced limp known as a Trendelenburg gait can result in which the shoulders move towards the side of the affected hip during weight bearing.