clicking hip

[roadkillbunny]

Hi, this may be nothing at all so wanted to get some advice before I make a doctors appointment for my ds.
My ds who is 2 years 4 months old clicks his right hip, for example if he is laying on my lap having a cuddle he rotates his right leg out to the side and I can hear and to a point feel his right hip litraly click.
There is a history of hip problems on both sides of the family so when he was 6 weeks old he had a hip scan which was fine. I can't see any diference in the length of his legs and do't know what I am looking for when it comes to leg creases however he spends alot of time with his left foot flat on the floor and on his tip toes an the right.
I am really not sure if there is a problem here, if he had not had a hip scan at 6 weeks I think I wouldn't hesitate to take him to the docs but the more he clicks his hip the more I wonder, can the scans be wrong or can the scans be right that at six weeks all looks good but as they grow and learn to walk problems can develop?
Can any one offer me any advice on this, my GP has a history of being very dismisive so I worry about taking ds to the docs only to be told he had a scan and it was fine. Thanks in advance x

Well, just got back from the doctors. The good points, the new GP seems really nice, he listens and didn't seem to just want us out of there as fast a possible. The fantastic point is the x-ray was clear .

The law of sod meant that today ds was walking just fine, it was early in the morning so he hadn't been up and about running around all day so nothing for the doc to see with him. The doc said that because the problems are not all the time he is not too worried, he said that if there was something major going on that we would really know about it by this age and it wouldn't be good days and bad days (although I am not 100% about his take on this given what I have learned from you ladies here). What the plan has become is to wait 2 months to see what happens, if he is still having the problems in 2 months then we go back and take it from there.
What do those with experience think about this? Is this a reasonable stance for the doctor to take? Should I do what the doctor says and wait and see or do I go back and try to push? I told him about the family history and he said it was impossible to say if it had any relevance (I understand that), part of me is okay with this wait and see attitude, 2 months isn't that long of a time and it could just be that ds is having a big grow and once it settles down so will the problems but then there is the part of me that whispers away telling me there is something not quite right, the stories about you lovely ladies dc however I keep thinking that might be the neurotic voice that is just full of Mummy worry and I should just accept what the doctor says and wait and see for 2 months .
I know its hard to impossible for you ladies to give me much advise as you don't know ds and you can't see him but what do you think? If it was your child what would you do? I almost said but I have been told this this and that by this person on mn who's dc has had this that and the other wrong but I worried he would just think I was a bit crazy and looking for a problem where there is non
I am very very happy the x-ray was clear though!

hiya,

Just to say, my dd who is 8 now had a clickinghip at birth. Recently, she had severe problems with that hip, which turned out to be a growth spurt making her affected hip click out.

I just wanted to say that the clicking or snapping hip sound is cuased by tendons.ligaments and muscle literally snapping over the hip, during movement.

If they can't see anything on the xray, ie if the bone looks ok, then that's a good thing. My dd has had a tight iliotibial band, which is the muscle that runs form the hip to the knee. Through investigation and seeing countless docs in the hosp, we finally got help form the ortho man, who at least was able to diagnose. I just wanted to share that sometimes it is to do with growth, and things not catching up. The bone grows and the tendons ligs etc get left behind.

Thanks for that piratecat it is really reassuring to hear that as the doc and I talked a little about if it could be related to a growth spurt as ds is very tall for his age (92nd centile) and has grown quite allot over the last couple of months, as a teen I had a problem with growth and my knees giving me quite a bit of pain, I still have the odd problem and pain now in my 30's.
The clear x-rays are a real boost though, they said that everything was where it should be and developed as it should be, they also ruled out a particular thing but off hand I can't remember what it was called.
I think waiting the two months is going to be the best bet now I have had time to think, try and push it to the back of my mind, keep an eye but relax about it at the same time, the worse things have been ruled out, got to focus on that me thinks!

i hoped you would say he has had a growth spurt. This was integral in dd's recent problems, she was in severe pain, limping for 7 weeks!!

I have been told to poss expect it again. Yet not to say it's exactly what your ds has. My dd has always had very flat feet, her right foot toes in slightly and therefore her gait has been weird at times. This has caused probs in her hip. Yet it's deffo all mechanics.

Really good news about the xray. I would follow the gp's recommendations but take him straight back if there is any reaccurrence(sp?) Incidentally EDS and Hypermobility are undetectable on xray, as the problem is not primarily with the bones or joints but with the too lax connective tissues. Xray only becomes useful for subluxations, dislocations and later damage to the joints themselves as a result of exessive wear and tear. I don't say any of this to worry you, it is fab news that the structure of the joint is normal, and even more fab news that it does not appear to be troubling him at the moment. Just keep an eye on it, try not to stress about it, most kids don't have these conditions,but can still get aches and pains during growth spurts, talk if you need too!

fab news

pirate I am over the moon for you that the pain has not come back, I have had my fingers crossed for you.

sparkle, thankyou so much. it is honestly like miracle.

how is ds? xx

Bad day today, he woke up with terrible neck pain, muscles all spasming. Had to roll him to put neck brace on, he was quite weak for most of the morning, then picked up later, and asked to remove collar at about 6.00ish, gone to bed fine, so fingers crossed for a new day tomorrow. Don't know what set him off, we didn't do anything strenuous yesterday, just the way he slept perhaps.

hi there, how was his night? How is he today?

Have you any more news of your hosp appt, and about the mri?

Hi pirate - much better today thank you, he went through the night with only a few whimpers, but did sleep through, wokr up much more comfortable. I have no idea what set him off though.

Got an appointment from Senior Orthopaedic Surgeon this morning for next thursday (2nd), it is in response to him ordering then cancelling MRI, ordering ctscan of legs for nonexistent nonstructural scolliosis and me telling him where he could shove his ct scan and if he just came to one of his own clinics and actually examined ds then he would know that! Am seeing gp day before (wednesday) so hopefully will get a chance to talk the issues and points to be made through with him.

I just had to share this with you ladies, remember my trials with my out going GP? I came across this it is his retirement article in the local rag, amazing some of the tosh people come out with, yeah, ALL his patients loved him , it does shed a little light a little on why he was so pissed that they couldn't/wouldn't do the x-ray in Abingdon.
They guy wasn't all bad, he was very good when I lost a baby in the early second trimester, he was upset himself and swore, I found that quite comforting, he cared about it and then when ds was born he popped round a couple of times while doing his village rounds to see how we were doing without me asking him to come, okay some people probably wouldn't like their GP to call round unannounced but again for me it was a sign that he did care however since then he seemed to just stop caring, maybe his heart retired before his body, he let my dd down badly with her oral issues and then a few months back when I contacted him about the fact dh and I had decided that we would like one more child to complete our family so I would need to come off one of my medications (I have complex regional pain syndrome) a medication we had not long changed and adjusted his reply was 'well that's blown it' and then I had to push him to get him to tell me what reduction doses I would need to take to get off the med, as the norm he just wanted me off the phone (I had tried to have to conversation face to face but he had messed up his computer at the village hall surgery and canceled all his appointments ), as it was I only lasted a weekend of the med, I was in too much pain so had to go back on, I only communicated this to him by note on my scrip repeat form as really wasn't in the mood to hear his I told you so, I will make an appointment with the new (so far very nice new GP with seems to listen and have time for his patients) to talk it over to see if planing another child is ever going to be possible.
I know totally off topic but was a little cross with the article if I am honest, they trot out such rubbish, I know allot of people in our village had problems with him, some as far as changing surgeries and traveling an extra 7 miles to see a GP, I always had a feeling that some of the other docs at the practice had a problem with him, I mentioned in passing to one of the other GP's once about his ever being put off retirement, I said (in a joking manor) that he must just enjoy the parties and the other doc said 'sounds about right', I could have interpreted that wrong because of my feelings but hey, it doesn't matter now, he is finally gone!
(God epic post, sorry, guess I am venting

Vent away...

How is the new gp working out?