Grant: Project Grant

We are trying to understand if there is such a thing as an unstable hip joint and if it causes arthritis. In a condition described as hip microinstability, individuals have hip pain that seems to be caused by a loose and unsteady hip joint. It is important to understand microinstability better because it may cause hip osteoarthritis, and surgery to stabilize the hip might protect the joint from osteoarthritis. We will develop a new measure of hip stability using a specialized MRI machine that allows us to measure hip movement for the first time in the postures that surgeons use to test for clinical microinstability. We will develop other methods for measuring hip stability in conventional scanners so that more researchers can use them. We will use these measures to better understand the connection between symptoms and hip instability. We will then see if there are early signs of cartilage degeneration in hips that are unstable. The result will be a better understanding of how microinstability affects the hip, which will help surgeons identify patients and plan surgery to protect hips.