Hip Pain Glossary of Terms

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Abdominal: Relating to the abdomen, the belly, that part of the body that contains all of ...

Abdominal pain: Pain in the belly. Abdominal pain can be acute or chronic. It may reflect ...

Abnormal: Outside the expected norm, or uncharacteristic of a particular patient.

Acetabular: Pertaining to the acetabulum, the cup-shaped socket of the hip joint which is ...

Acetabulum: The cup-shaped socket of the hip joint. The acetabulum is a feature of the pel...

Acetaminophen: A nonaspirin pain reliever or analgesic. Acetaminophen may be given alone t...

Acute: Of abrupt onset, in reference to a disease. Acute often also connotes an illness th...

Adjacent: Lying nearby. Related terms include superjacent, subjacent, and circumjacent. Fr...

Aging: The process of becoming older, a process that is genetically determined and environ...

Anatomy: The study of human or animal form, by observation or examination of the living be...

Anesthesia: Loss of feeling or awareness, as when an anesthetic is administered before sur...

Ankylosing: Having a tendency to stiffen and fuse together.

Ankylosing spondylitis: A form of chronic inflammation of the spine and the sacroiliac joi...

Arthritis: Inflammation of a joint. When joints are inflamed they can develop stiffness, w...

Arthroscopy: A surgical technique in which a tube-like instrument is inserted into a joint...

Aspirin: Once the Bayer trademark for acetylsalicylic acid, now the common name for this a...

Avascular necrosis: A condition in which poor blood supply to an area of bone leads to bon...

Avascular necrosis of the femoral head: See Legg-Calve-Perthes disease. Avascular necros...

Back pain: Pain felt in the low or upper back. Causes of pain in the low and upper back in...

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms that can exist either as independent (free-living) ...

Bacterial: Of or pertaining to bacteria, as in a bacterial lung infection.

Bladder: A hollow organ in the lower abdomen that stores urine. The kidneys filter waste f...

Body mass index: A key index for relating weight to height. Abbreviated BMI. BMI is a pers...

Bone mineral density: BMD, a measure of bone density, reflecting the strength of bones as ...

Bone scan: A nuclear medicine technique for creating images of bones on a computer screen ...

Bowel: The small and large intestine.

Broken hip: Fractured bone in the hip, a key health problem among the elderly, usually due...

Bursa: A closed, fluid-filled sac that functions as a gliding surface to reduce friction b...

Bursitis: Bursitis is inflammation of a bursa. A bursa is a tiny fluid-filled sac that fu...

C-reactive protein: An acute-phase plasma protein whose blood concentration reflects the p...

Calcium: A mineral found mainly in the hard part of bones, where it is stored. Calcium is ...

Capsule: Capsule has many meanings in medicine including the following:

1. In medici...

Cartilage: Firm, rubbery tissue that cushions bones at joints. A flexible kind of cartilag...

Cauda equina: A bundle of spinal nerve roots that arise from the end of the spinal cord. T...

Cauda equina syndrome: Impairment of the nerves in the cauda equina, characterized by dull...

Cell: The basic structural and functional unit of any living thing. Each cell is a small c...

Chills: feelings of coldness accompanied by shivering. Chills may develop after exposure t...

Chiropractic: A system of diagnosis and treatment based on the concept that the nervous sy...

Chronic: In medicine, lasting a long time. A chronic condition is one that lasts 3 months ...

Colitis: Inflammation of the large intestine (the colon). There are many forms of coliti...

Computerized tomography: Pictures of structures within the body created by a computer that...

Contrast: Short for "contrast media." Contrast media are X-ray dyes used to provide contra...

Corticosteroid: Any of the steroid hormones made by the outer portion (cortex) of the adre...

Crohn's disease: A chronic inflammatory disease, primarily involving the small and large ...

CRP: C-reactive protein.

Cutaneous: Related to the skin.

Degenerative joint disease: Also known as osteoarthritis, this type of arthritis is cause...

Diabetes: Refers to diabetes mellitus or, less often, to diabetes insipidus. Diabetes mell...

Diagnosis: 1 The nature of a disease; the identification of an illness. 2 A ...

Diarrhea: A common condition that involves unusually frequent and liquid bowel movements. ...

Differential diagnosis: The process of weighing the probability of one disease versus that...

Epiphysis: The growth area near the end of a bone.

Erythrocyte: A cell that contains hemoglobin and can carry oxygen to the body. Also called...

Fatigue: A condition characterized by a lessened capacity for work and reduced efficiency ...

Femoral: Having to do with the femur.

Femur: The single bone in the thigh, which is the largest bone in the human body. Also kno...

Fever: Although a fever technically is any body temperature above the normal of 98.6 degr...

Fibromyalgia: A disease characterized by chronic pain, stiffness, and tenderness of muscle...

Food poisoning: A common flu-like illness typically characterized by nausea, vomiting and...

Fracture: A break in bone or cartilage. Although usually a result of trauma, a fracture ca...

Fractured hip: Broken bone in the hip, a key health problem among the elderly, usually due...

Groin: The area where the thigh meets the hip.

Hernia: A general term referring to a protrusion of a tissue through the wall of the cavit...

Hip fracture: Broken bone in the hip, a key health problem among the elderly, usually due ...

Hip pain: Hip pain is the sensation of discomfort in or around the hip joint, where the up...

Ibuprofen: A nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is commonly used to treat pa...

Idiopathic: Of unknown cause. Any disease that is of uncertain or unknown origin may be te...

Infant: A young baby, from birth to 12 months of age.

Infection: The invasion and multiplication of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, an...

Inflammation: A localized reaction that produces redness, warmth, swelling, and pain as a ...

Inflammatory bowel disease: A group of chronic intestinal diseases characterized by infla...

Inguinal: Having to do with the groin.

Injury: Harm or hurt. To harm, hurt, or wound. The word injure may be in physical or emot...

Joint: The area where two bones are attached for the purpose of permitting body parts to m...

Juvenile: Between infantile and adult. Used in medicine to indicate onset in childhood, as...

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis: See: Arthritis, systemic-onset juvenile rheumatoid.

Knee: The knee is a joint which has three parts. The thigh bone (the femur) meets the lar...

Labrum: In medicine, a ring of fibrocartilage (fibrous cartilage) around the edge of the a...

Lateral: 1. In anatomy, the side of the body or a body part that is farther from th...

Lateral femoral cutaneous nerve: A nerve that supplies sensation to the outer portion of t...

Leg: In popular usage, the part of the body from the top of the thigh down to the foot, an...

Ligament: A tough band of connective tissue that connects various structures, such as two ...

Liver: The largest solid organ in the body, situated in the upper part of the abdomen on t...

Liver disease: Liver disease refers to any disorder of the liver. The liver is a large org...

Lumbar: Referring to the five lumbar vertebrae, the disks below them, and the correspondin...

Lyme disease: An inflammatory disease that is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi...

Medical history: 1. In clinical medicine, the patient's past and present which may ...

Meralgia paresthetica: Entrapment or pinching of the nerve that supplies sensation to the ...

MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging.

Muscle: Muscle is the tissue of the body which primarily functions as a source of power. T...

Narcotic: 1. A drug that causes insensibility or stupor. A narcotic induces narcosi...

Necrosis: The death of living cells or tissues. Necrosis can be due, for example, to ische...

Nerve: A bundle of fibers that uses electrical and chemical signals to transmit sensory an...

Normal range: Characteristic of 95 percent of values from a normal population. The remaini...

Obesity: The state of being well above one's normal weight.

Onset: In medicine, the first appearance of the signs or symptoms of an illness as, for ex...

Operation: In medicine, a surgical procedure. Many operations are named after persons. The...

Osteoarthritis: A type of arthritis caused by inflammation, breakdown, and eventual loss ...

Osteoporosis: Thinning of the bones, with reduction in bone mass, due to depletion of calc...

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pa...

Pelvic: Having to do with the pelvis, the lower part of the abdomen, located between the h...

Pelvic pain: : Pain perceived in the area of the pelvis, the lower part of the abdomen loc...

Pelvis: The lower part of the abdomen, located between the hip bones. Structures in the fe...

Peptic ulcer: An ulcer in the lining of the stomach, duodenum, or esophagus. Peptic ulcers...

Pharmacist: A professional who fills prescriptions and, in the case of a compounding pharm...

Physical therapist: A person who is trained and certified by a state or accrediting body t...

Piriformis muscle: A muscle that begins at the front surface of the sacrum (the V-shaped b...

Piriformis syndrome: Irritation of the sciatic nerve that is caused by compression of the ...

Poisoning: Taking a substance that is injurious to health or can cause death. Poisoning i...

Posterior: The back or behind, as opposed to the anterior.

Posture: The carriage of the body as a whole, the attitude of the body, or the position of...

Pregnancy: The state of carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the female body. Thi...

Prescription: A physician's order for the preparation and administration of a drug or dev...

Prognosis: The forecast of the probable outcome or course of a disease; the patient's chan...

Progressive: Increasing in scope or severity, advancing, or going forward. For example, a ...

Protein: One of the three nutrients used as energy sources (calories) by the body. Protein...

Proximal: Toward the beginning, the nearer of two (or more) items. For example, the proxim...

Radiate: To spread out from a central area. For example, sciatic pain may radiate outward ...

Radioactive: Emitting energy waves due to decaying atomic nuclei. Radioactive substances a...

Radiologist: A physician specialized in radiology, the branch of medicine that uses ionizi...

Ramus: In anatomy, a branch, such as a branch of a blood vessel or nerve. For example, the...

Range of motion: The full movement potential of a joint, usually its range of flexion and ...

Rheumatoid arthritis: An autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation of joint...

Scan: As a noun, the data or image obtained from the examination of organs or regions of...

Sciatic nerve: The largest nerve in the body, the sciatic nerve begins from nerve roots in...

Sciatica: Pain that results from irritation of the sciatic nerve and typically radiates fr...

Sedimentation rate: A blood test that detects and monitors inflammation in the body. Abbre...

Sensation: In medicine and physiology, sensation refers to the registration of an incoming...

Septic: Infected, or denoting infection. For example, septic shock is shock that is caused...

Septic arthritis: Joint inflammation caused by infection from blood poisoning (sepsis) or ...

Sickle cell disease: A genetic blood disorder caused by the presence of an abnormal form ...

Sleep: The body's rest cycle.

Sleep disorders: Any disorder that affects, disrupts, or involves sleep. The most common...

Sore: 1. (adjective) A popular term for painful, such as a sore throat. 2. (...

Spasm: A brief, automatic jerking movement. A muscle spasm can be quite painful, with the ...

Spinal cord: The major column of nerve tissue that is connected to the brain and lies with...

Spinal stenosis: Narrowing of the spinal canal. Spinal stenosis is most commonly caused by...

Spine: 1) The column of bone known as the vertebral column, which surrounds and protects ...

Spondylitis: Inflammation of one or more of the vertebrae of the spine. Diffuse inflammati...

Stenosis: A narrowing. For example, aortic stenosis is a narrowing of the aortic valve in ...

Still's disease: See: Arthritis, systemic-onset juvenile rheumatoid.

Stress: In a medical or biological context stress is a physical, mental, or emotional fact...

Surgeon: A physician who treats disease, injury, or deformity via operative or manual meth...

Surgery: The branch of medicine that employs operations in the treatment of disease or inj...

Syndrome: A combination of symptoms and signs that together represent a disease process.

Synovitis: Inflammation of the synovial membrane, the lining of the joints.

Systemic: Affecting the entire body. A systemic disease such as diabetes can affect the wh...

Tear: A drop of the salty secretion of the lacrimal glands which serves to moisten the con...

Therapy: The treatment of disease. Therapy is synonymous with treatment.

Thigh: The thick, muscular portion of the leg that extends from the hip to the knee. The t...

Tomography: The process for generating a tomogram, a two-dimensional image of a slice or s...

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

Trochanter: One of the bony prominences toward the near end of the thighbone (the femur). ...

Tylenol: See: Acetaminophen.

Ulcer: A lesion that is eroding away the skin or mucous membrane. Ulcers can have various ...

Ulcerative colitis: A bowel disease that is characterized by inflammation with ulcer forma...

Vertebral column: The 33 vertebrae that fit together to form a flexible, yet extraordinari...

Viral: Of or pertaining to a virus. For example, if a person has a viral rash, the rash wa...

Virus: A microorganism that is smaller than a bacterium that cannot grow or reproduce apar...

Vitamin D: A steroid vitamin which promotes the intestinal absorption and metabolism of ca...

Weight loss: Weight loss is a decrease in body weight resulting from either voluntary (die...

White blood cell: One of the cells the body makes to help fight infections. There are seve...

White blood cell count (leukocyte count): The number of white blood cells (WBCs) in the b...