Hip pain radiated down to the leg

Dear Ask The Doctor: 32 year old male previous hernia surgery left side five years ago healed fine. Moderate to severe pain in left hip radiating down leg and into right side. swelling and pain at sight. over the counter pain killers dont affect it. physical therapy makes the pain worse x-ray and ultra sound show nothing of use

Dear Matthew: Possibly you are experiencing an episode of Hip bursitis, which is an inflammation of the hip bursa caused by repetitive use, trauma, infection, or systemic inflammatory disease; in your case maybe the repetitive daily living activities might be causing the pain.  Bursae are flattened sacs that serve as a protective buffer between bones and overlapping muscles (deep bursae) or between bones and tendons/skin (superficial bursae). These synovial-lined sacs are filled with minimal amounts of fluid to facilitate movement during muscle contraction. Symptoms of bursitis may or not include localized tenderness, swelling, redness, and/or reduced /limited movement. Most likely the treatment for bursitis is conservative and aimed to reduce inflammation and of course the pain. Conservative treatment includes rest, local cold and heat treatments, elevation, non steroidal anti-inflammatory medication (“Motrin”, “Aleve”), if needed :bursal aspiration, and intrabursal steroid injections (with or without local anesthetic agents).  I strongly recommend you that if you try all of the above and the pain persists or worsens, have a consultation with your doctor to rule out some other possible causes of the pain.