Lenny, a 37-year-old male, was taken to the hospital after feeling a painful pop in the left hip region when his knee hit the dashboard during a car accident. Lenny’s left lower limb was shown to be adducted and medially rotated causing the right limb to be longer than the left. A mass in the lateral gluteal region was also noted with severe pain to follow. The patient is most likely suffering from a posterior hip dislocation.
A hip dislocation can damage the bones, ligaments, muscles, vessels, and nerves of the region. The hip joint is a ball and socket joint composed of the head of the femur bone and the acetabulum of the pelvic bone. A band of fibrocartilage deepens the acetabulum. A fibrous joint capsule surrounds the coxofemoral joint. …show more content…
A sciatic nerve injury may often arise from a hip dislocation and is often difficult to diagnose immediately. Loss of sensation in the posterior leg and the foot, loss of dorsiflexion or plantarflexion, and loss of deep tendon reflexes at the ankle can point to sciatic nerve damage. The deep tendon reflex at the ankle is tested by striking the achilles tendon with a reflex hammer and noting plantar flexion. Then the results are compared to the other side. If left untreated, the sciatic nerve can become encased in heterotopic ossification (Rodriguez-Merchan and Goddard, 2000). A femoral nerve injury is also a possibility. Symptoms resulting from the nerve injury include sensation over the thigh, weakness of the quadriceps muscles and loss of deep tendon reflexes at the knee. Blood vessels can also be sheared or torn in a dislocation, and can lead to osteonecrosis of the femur. If the patient is showing signs of hematoma, loss of pulses, and pallor, a vascular injury is likely (McMillan, 2016). Any muscles in the hip region may also be stretched, torn, or otherwise damaged in a hip dislocation. Arthritis is a common long-term complication of hip dislocation due to damage of the articular cartilage. Myositis ossificans, the growth of bone tissue inside muscle tissue, can occur from soft tissue damage (Gammons,
A hip dislocation can damage the bones, ligaments, muscles, vessels, and nerves of the region. The hip joint is a ball and socket joint composed of the head of the femur bone and the acetabulum of the pelvic bone. A band of fibrocartilage deepens the acetabulum. A fibrous joint capsule surrounds the coxofemoral joint. …show more content…
A sciatic nerve injury may often arise from a hip dislocation and is often difficult to diagnose immediately. Loss of sensation in the posterior leg and the foot, loss of dorsiflexion or plantarflexion, and loss of deep tendon reflexes at the ankle can point to sciatic nerve damage. The deep tendon reflex at the ankle is tested by striking the achilles tendon with a reflex hammer and noting plantar flexion. Then the results are compared to the other side. If left untreated, the sciatic nerve can become encased in heterotopic ossification (Rodriguez-Merchan and Goddard, 2000). A femoral nerve injury is also a possibility. Symptoms resulting from the nerve injury include sensation over the thigh, weakness of the quadriceps muscles and loss of deep tendon reflexes at the knee. Blood vessels can also be sheared or torn in a dislocation, and can lead to osteonecrosis of the femur. If the patient is showing signs of hematoma, loss of pulses, and pallor, a vascular injury is likely (McMillan, 2016). Any muscles in the hip region may also be stretched, torn, or otherwise damaged in a hip dislocation. Arthritis is a common long-term complication of hip dislocation due to damage of the articular cartilage. Myositis ossificans, the growth of bone tissue inside muscle tissue, can occur from soft tissue damage (Gammons,