Your hip joint is a large joint located where your pelvis meets your leg. It is held in its socket by ligaments, and synovial fluid surrounding the joint acts as a lubricant.

The hips can become affected by injury or arthritis, and result in pain located in the hips, lower back, buttocks, and legs.

How it Works

A hip injection is made up of a local anesthetic and a long-lasting steroid. Performing a hip injection can be done to provide pain relief by reducing inflammation. It can also be performed to diagnose the cause of pain. If pain relief is experienced by numbing the joint, then it confirms that the hip is the source of pain.

What to Expect

The injection is performed using x-ray imaging for accuracy, and takes only a few minutes. Your doctor may ask you to evaluate how your pain is affected by the injection, especially if it is being performed for diagnostic purposes.

You will likely feel immediate pain relief from the anesthetic, and it will take a couple of days for the steroid to take effect. You may experience pain and redness at the injection site and other risks, like infection, are rare. You will be able to resume regular activities the next day.