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Dr. Chrysoula I. Liakou MD, PhD
- Treated online: Yes, for assessment and a treatment plan; imaging happens in person.
- Age and pain location narrow the cause fast: true groin pain often means the hip joint itself, while pain over the outer hip is usually the tendons and bursa beside it.
- Osteoarthritis is the most common cause of hip pain in older adults and often responds well to exercise and pain relief.
- New pain and stiffness across both hips and shoulders after 50 can be polymyalgia rheumatica, which needs prompt blood tests.
- A hot, swollen hip with fever means 112, because septic arthritis cannot wait.
After a fall or injury, being unable to stand or bear weight on the leg, or a leg that looks shortened or turned outward, can mean a hip fracture: get to an emergency department now or call 112, do not book an online appointment. A hip that is hot and swollen with fever (possible joint infection), or sudden severe pain in someone with osteoporosis or on long-term steroids, also needs urgent in-person care.
Can an online doctor treat hip pain?
Yes, for most causes. Hip pain is assessed from where it sits, what provokes it and how you move, and all three come across on video, so a consultation can often provide enough information to work out the likely cause, rule out red flags and agree a plan.[1] A suspected fracture after a fall, or a hot swollen joint with fever, needs in-person care today, and prescribing rules vary by country.
How an online consultation helps with hip pain
- Location decoded: “Hip pain” means different things. Groin pain often points to the joint itself; outer-hip pain usually points to the tendons and bursa beside it; buttock or back-of-thigh pain often comes from the spine, not the hip at all.
- Age patterns used properly: The likely causes differ across the decades, so the doctor uses your age to steer the assessment rather than treating every hip the same.
- The fracture question, asked first: After any fall, the consultation screens for the features that mean an emergency department rather than an appointment.
- A plan, not just a painkiller: Most hip pain improves with targeted exercise and load management; the doctor sets that up and prescribes pain relief where it helps, opioids excepted, as they are not prescribed online.
📷 Before your appointment: point to where it hurts with one finger and photograph or note it, and if you can, film a few steps of walking. Whether the pain is in the groin, the outer hip or the buttock is the single most useful thing you can show the doctor.
What the doctor checks in an online hip pain consultation
The assessment is structured around location, pattern and safety. In a hip pain consultation, the doctor will typically check:
- Exactly where it hurts: groin (hip joint), outer hip over the bony point (tendons and bursa), or buttock and back of thigh (often the spine or sciatic nerve).[1]
- The injury and fall history: any recent fall, and whether you could weight-bear afterwards, asked early because it changes the destination.
- A movement screen on camera: how you walk, whether you limp, and which movements provoke pain, such as putting on socks or turning in bed.
- The pattern over time: gradual stiffening pain that worsens with activity suggests osteoarthritis; sharp outer-hip pain when lying on that side suggests tendon or bursa trouble.
- Red-flag screen: fever, feeling unwell, night pain that never eases, a cancer history, unexplained weight loss, osteoporosis or long-term steroids.
- Medication and safety history: stomach, kidney and heart history before any anti-inflammatory is considered, plus what you have already tried.
- Function and load: walking distance, stairs, work demands, and any recent spike in running, standing or activity.
What causes hip pain, by age and pattern
Hip pain has a shortlist of causes that shifts with age, and location narrows it further: true groin pain points to the joint, outer-hip pain to the soft tissues beside it, and buttock pain often to the spine. Matching age to pattern is how the doctor reaches a likely cause quickly and safely.
Swipe sideways to compare →
| Age group | Common causes | Where it is usually felt |
|---|---|---|
| Children and teens | Irritable hip after a virus, growth-plate conditions; always assessed in person | Groin, thigh or referred to the knee |
| Young and active adults | Muscle or tendon strain, hip impingement, labral irritation | Groin or deep in the front of the hip |
| Middle age | Gluteal tendon or bursa pain (outer hip), early osteoarthritis | Outer hip, or groin for the joint |
| Older adults | Osteoarthritis; fracture after a fall; polymyalgia rheumatica in over-50s | Groin and thigh; both hips in polymyalgia |
Two patterns deserve a flag of their own. Osteoarthritis of the hip typically causes groin and thigh pain, stiffness after rest, and trouble with socks, shoes and turning; it is the most common cause of hip pain in older adults and often responds well to exercise and analgesia.[3][4] And in people over 50, new pain and stiffness across both hips and both shoulders, worst in the morning, can be polymyalgia rheumatica, which needs prompt blood tests because it responds dramatically to the right treatment.[2]
Is my hip pain actually from my hip?
Often it is not, and this catches people out. Pain felt in the buttock or the back of the thigh frequently comes from the lower spine or an irritated nerve root rather than the hip joint, while pain over the bony point on the outside of the hip is usually the gluteal tendons or bursa, not the joint inside.[1] Genuine hip-joint pain is classically felt in the groin, and can even show up as knee pain because of how the joint refers. Getting the source right matters, because spine-driven pain, tendon pain and joint pain are treated in different ways. If the picture points to the back, our back pain assessment is the better route; if it points to the tendons, the approach follows tendon-pain principles.
Which hip pain treatment might the doctor recommend?
Treatment follows the cause and the red-flag screen. This is the decision framework our doctors use, aligned with cited guidance:[1]
Swipe sideways to compare →
| Presentation | Likely first step | Suitable for online care? | When referral or in-person care is needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outer-hip pain, worse lying on that side (gluteal tendon or bursa) | Load management, targeted exercise, topical or short oral anti-inflammatory | Usually yes | No improvement after a good rehab trial |
| Groin and thigh pain, stiffness after rest (osteoarthritis pattern) | Exercise plan, weight management, analgesia as needed | Usually yes | Severe limitation or night pain despite care: orthopaedic opinion |
| Over 50 with new pain and stiffness of both hips and shoulders | Prompt inflammatory-marker bloods for suspected polymyalgia rheumatica | Yes to organise; bloods done locally | New headache, jaw or scalp pain, or visual change: emergency care |
| Unable to weight-bear after a fall, or leg shortened and turned out | Emergency department now | No | Possible hip fracture; needs X-ray and surgical assessment |
| Hot, swollen hip with fever or feeling unwell | Call 112 or go to an emergency department now | No | Possible septic arthritis; the joint can be destroyed within days |
Availability of individual medicines and who may prescribe them vary by country; your doctor confirms what applies where you are.
Not sure which row is your hip? A doctor can tell you in one consultation.
See available times →What actually helps hip pain
For the common soft-tissue and osteoarthritis causes, the evidence points the same way as the rest of the joint world: keep the hip moving, build the muscles around it, and manage load rather than resting into weakness.[1] For gluteal tendon and bursa pain, the specific trap is compression: crossing your legs, standing hip-dropped on one side, and lying on the painful side all squeeze the tendons and keep them angry, so the first fixes are postural before they are pharmacological. For hip osteoarthritis, strengthening and aerobic exercise reduce pain and improve function, and losing excess weight takes several times its own load off the joint with every step.[4] None of this is fast, and the doctor will not pretend otherwise; meaningful change comes over weeks of consistency.
Treatment options for hip pain
What you can do yourself
Keep walking within comfort, and avoid the two extremes of pushing through sharp pain and stopping altogether. For outer-hip pain, stop crossing your legs, avoid lying on the sore side, and stand evenly on both feet rather than hanging on one hip. Use heat for stiffness and ice for a hot flare. Short-term pain relief from a pharmacy can make movement possible; a pharmacist can advise what suits you. Add graded strengthening once the sharpest pain settles.
Prescription treatment
A prescription is never issued without a consultation. Where suitable, the doctor may prescribe a short course of an anti-inflammatory (NSAID) at the lowest effective dose after checking your stomach, kidney and heart history, or a topical anti-inflammatory for the outer hip.[1][5] Opioids (codeine, tramadol and stronger) and other controlled medicines are not prescribed through online consultations, and they are a poor fit for the ongoing, movement-based problems that cause most hip pain. Steroid injections for stubborn bursa or joint pain, and joint replacement for advanced osteoarthritis, are in-person options the doctor can refer you towards when the time is right. Suspected polymyalgia rheumatica is treated with a specific steroid regimen started after blood tests, which the doctor arranges.
When we treat hip pain online, and when we refer you
We treat online: outer-hip tendon and bursa pain; hip osteoarthritis assessment and ongoing management, including exercise planning and analgesia reviews; muscle and tendon strains; suspected polymyalgia rheumatica, where we organise bloods and start treatment; and hip pain that is really coming from the back, which we redirect to the right pathway.
We refer or redirect you: a suspected fracture after a fall, an inability to weight-bear, or a leg that looks shortened and turned out goes to the emergency department now. A hot, swollen hip with fever means 112, because septic arthritis cannot wait. Any child or teenager with hip pain is assessed in person, promptly, as some causes are time-critical. Severe osteoarthritis limiting your life despite good care is referred for an orthopaedic opinion, and over-50s with girdle stiffness plus new headache, jaw or scalp pain or visual change need emergency assessment.
When to get in-person care
Go to an emergency department or call 112 now if, after a fall, you cannot stand or bear weight, or the leg looks shortened or turned outward: this can be a hip fracture. Call 112 for a hip that is hot and swollen with fever (possible joint infection). Seek urgent in-person care for sudden severe hip pain with osteoporosis or long-term steroid use, any child with hip pain, or hip pain with unexplained weight loss, night sweats or a cancer history.
How Mobi Doctor works
- Book a time that suits you: open daily 7am–11pm. Most patients speak to a doctor within about 15 minutes of their booked time. no subscription, exact price up front.
- Speak to a licensed doctor about hip pain: a private video call: you describe what you feel, the doctor asks what matters, and you agree the right plan together.
- Leave with your plan: everything agreed before you hang up: any prescription reaches a pharmacy near you in most EU countries, or a full refund.
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Frequently asked questions about hip pain
Can an online doctor prescribe pain relief for hip pain in the EU?
Yes, an online doctor can prescribe pain relief for hip pain in the EU after a consultation. Suitable options such as anti-inflammatory tablets or gels can be prescribed and sent to a pharmacy in most EU countries. Opioids such as codeine or tramadol and other controlled medicines are not prescribed through online consultations, and they suit ongoing hip problems poorly in any case. Prescribing rules vary by country, and your doctor confirms what applies to you.
How much does an online hip pain consultation cost, and how fast is it?
The exact price of a video consultation is shown before payment, and there is no subscription. Appointments run daily from 7am to 11pm, often within about 15 minutes. If your hip needs in-person care instead, the doctor tells you and you get a full refund with clear directions to the right care.
Is my pain from my hip joint or somewhere else?
Location is the biggest clue. True hip-joint pain is usually felt in the groin and can refer to the thigh or even the knee. Pain over the bony point on the outside of the hip is usually tendon or bursa trouble, and pain in the buttock or back of the thigh often comes from the lower spine rather than the hip. A doctor uses where it hurts, and how you move, to work out the source.
Do I need an X-ray or scan for hip pain?
Not usually at the start. Most soft-tissue and early osteoarthritis hip pain is diagnosed from the story and a movement assessment, and imaging rarely changes early treatment. An X-ray is needed urgently after a fall if a fracture is suspected, and imaging earns its place later when surgery is being considered or the diagnosis is unclear.
What is the pain on the outside of my hip when I lie on it?
That pattern, sharp pain over the bony point that is worst lying on that side, is typically gluteal tendon or bursa pain rather than the joint. It is aggravated by compression: lying on the painful side, crossing your legs and standing hip-dropped. First-line treatment is postural change and targeted strengthening, with anti-inflammatories or, for stubborn cases, an injection considered later.
When is hip pain an emergency?
After a fall, if you cannot stand or bear weight, or the leg looks shortened or turned outward, go to an emergency department now: this can be a hip fracture. A hot, swollen hip with fever needs 112, as it may be a joint infection. Sudden severe pain with osteoporosis or long-term steroids, and any child with hip pain, also need urgent in-person assessment.
Can hip osteoarthritis be treated without surgery?
Often, yes, especially in the earlier stages. Exercise to strengthen the muscles around the joint, weight management and sensible pain relief improve pain and function for many people and can delay or avoid surgery. Joint replacement is a highly effective option reserved for advanced osteoarthritis that limits your life despite good non-surgical care, and the doctor can refer you when that point is reached.
- Osteoarthritis in over 16s: diagnosis and management (NG226), NICE, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2022.
- Polymyalgia rheumatica, HSE, Health Service Executive (Ireland), reviewed 2023.
- Osteoarthritis fact sheet, WHO, World Health Organization, 2023.
- Exercise for osteoarthritis of the hip, Cochrane, Cochrane Collaboration, 2014.
- Topical NSAIDs for chronic musculoskeletal pain in adults, Cochrane, Cochrane Collaboration, 2016.
This page is for information only and is not a substitute for a medical consultation. Guideline links are provided for transparency; treatment decisions are made with your doctor.
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