25/08/2025
🦵 Hip Muscles and Their Clinical Importance
The hip joint is stabilized and moved by a complex group of muscles, each with a specific role in mobility and posture.
🔹 Flexors
Iliacus & Psoas major (Iliopsoas) → Primary hip flexors, crucial for gait and activities like stair climbing.
Tensor fasciae latae → Assists flexion, abduction, and medial rotation.
🔹 Adductors
Adductor longus, brevis, magnus & Gracilis → Bring the thigh toward the midline, essential in balance and sports requiring quick side-to-side movement.
Pectineus → Aids in flexion and adduction.
🔹 Lateral Rotators
Piriformis → Important stabilizer; tightness can compress the sciatic nerve (piriformis syndrome).
🔹 Stabilizers
Iliotibial tract (IT band) → Provides lateral stability to the knee during movement.
⚕️ Clinical Relevance for Physiotherapists:
Weakness of hip flexors → Difficulty in walking and stair negotiation.
Tight adductors → Can contribute to groin pain and limited hip abduction.
IT band syndrome → Common in runners due to overuse.
Piriformis tightness → May mimic sciatica.
➡️ Understanding these muscles is essential for rehabilitation, injury prevention, and performance training.
