Nashville Hip Institute at TOA

05/15/2026

Most hip snapping isn’t a “joint problem.”

It’s a tendon mechanics problem happening outside the joint.

Snapping hip syndrome occurs when the iliopsoas or IT band moves over bony structures under tension creating a predictable snap with motion.

The contrarian insight:

We don’t fix snapping hips by chasing the sound.
We fix them by understanding why the tendon is overloaded in the first place.

The snap is not the problem, it’s the signal.

Reframe it early, and you treat the mechanics, not just the symptoms.

The most common things that snaps or pops in the hip are the iliopsoas tendon and the iliotibial band. This leads to snapping hip or iliopsoas syndrome.

05/14/2026

In 2003, a conversation in Helsinki helped reshape an entire field.

Dr. Byrd met Professor Reinhold Ganz, who had just published his landmark work describing femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), a mechanical cause of early hip osteoarthritis.

What followed was a shift in perspective.

Surgeons began to realize that many hip problems were not just “wear and tear,” but the result of abnormal contact occurring years before arthritis appeared.

That insight changed everything: arthroscopy was no longer just about cleaning up damage, it became about correcting the mechanics that created it. https://nashvillehip.org/hip-arthroscopy-surgery/

05/13/2026

Dry needling = a targeted tool for muscle dysfunction. We use it to help:
• Reduce pain
• Improve muscle activation
• Restore movement quality

But it’s always paired with exercise and rehab, it’s part of the process, not the whole solution.

Dry needling is a skilled intervention that uses a thin filiform needle to pe*****te the skin and stimulate underlying myofascial trigger points.

05/10/2026

Patients often ask what “healing” really means after hip surgery.

I think I learned the answer watching my mother: Healing isn’t just getting back to normal, it’s learning to move through the world again, differently but fully.

Happy to the quiet surgeons of everyday resilience.

05/07/2026

We think about femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) differently.

It’s not “what does the imaging show?”
It’s “what does the hip experience during movement?”

FAI develops when structural mismatch between the ball and socket creates repeated contact, leading to progressive damage of the labrum and cartilage.

The injury isn’t static.
It’s built one motion at a time.

Femoroacetabular impingement, also known as hip FAI hip & hip impingement, is a bony abnormality of the hip joint that can lead to painful cartilage damage.

05/05/2026

Lateral hip pain isn’t always simple.

Abductor tendon tears can be difficult to diagnose because symptoms often overlap with other hip conditions. MRI and ultrasound may show tendon changes, and ultrasound-guided injections can help confirm the diagnosis or provide relief.

But imaging is only part of the picture. Since many patients have more than one source of pain, treatment requires identifying and prioritizing the true drivers of symptoms.

Abductor tendon injuries are a common source of Greater Trochanteric Pain Syndrome (GTPS) that fails to respond to conservative treatment.

04/30/2026

In this animation, a CAM lesion forms at the femoral head–neck junction. During hip flexion, this bony bump glides under the labrum and engages the acetabular cartilage.

This creates a shear force known as “carpet delamination,” where the cartilage begins to peel away.

Because cartilage has few nerve endings, damage can progress silently. Symptoms often appear later when the labrum begins to tear.

152 likes, 6 comments. "CAM Impingement Animation | CAM Pathology | Hip Pain | Nashville Hip Institute"

04/29/2026

Hamstring injuries: what patients (and even athletes) get wrong:
1. It’s not “just a muscle pull”
Most injuries occur at the muscle–tendon junction or where the tendon attaches to bone, not the muscle belly itself.

2. Eccentric load is the real culprit
Hamstrings fail when they’re contracting while lengthening: think sprinting, cutting, or waterski starts, not just overstretching.

3. They’re uniquely vulnerable by design
Crossing both the hip and knee means they absorb force across two joints simultaneously: one reason recurrence rates are so high.

4. Not all tears are created equal
One tendon vs. all three, partial vs. retracted: these distinctions determine whether rehab or surgery is the right path.

5. Rehab isn’t optional: it’s the treatment
Progressive loading (not just rest) is what restores tendon capacity; surgery is reserved for select high-grade or failed cases.

Hamstring muscle strains can necessitate a protracted period of recovery, but typically heal with rest and rehabilitation.

04/28/2026

Not all sciatica is caused by the piriformis muscle.
In fact, about 95% comes from the lumbar spine.
If symptoms persist or don’t fit the pattern, further evaluation, including imaging, may be needed.

Learn more ⬇️

Piriformis syndrome is a diagnosis that probably gets overlooked and overused in equal proportions. It is characterized by buttock pain.

04/24/2026

This animation highlights how pincer-type hip impingement affects the labrum.

As the hip flexes, the femoral neck repeatedly contacts and compresses the labrum against the acetabular rim. This isn’t a single traumatic event—it’s the result of ongoing, repetitive loading.

Patients may describe a sudden onset of pain, but in reality, this often represents the final stage of a chronic process that can begin early in life.

Arthroscopic views reveal the true story: a consistent, patterned injury shaped over time.

70 likes, 4 comments. "Pincer Impingement Animation | Pincer Pathology | Nashville Hip Institute"

04/23/2026

If injections and physical therapy aren’t enough, what surgery will you need?

There isn’t a single answer.

Options like labral repair, PAO, hip arthroscopy, or hip replacement depend on your diagnosis, imaging, symptoms, and goals.

At our clinic, care is team-based: physicians, physical therapists, nursing staff, and imaging all work together to guide the best long-term plan.

Surgery is just one part of a broader treatment pathway.

The Nashville Hip Institute at TOA physical therapy team answers frequently asked questions about rehabilitation following hip surgery.