What causes a tight sensation on my left hip?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 27-year-old male. For about the last year, I have had this weird sensation on my left side, from my left hip up to below the bottom of my left ribcage. It is mostly just when I am lying on my side. When I lay on my left side, it feels like I am laying on something like a flat piece of cardboard or something like that. It is mostly along the hip and under the ribs. When I turn over and lay on my right side, my left side feels really tight, and it is very uncomfortable. Once in a while, it will also feel like it is back behind my left shoulder blade also. Again this has been going on for about a year now. I had blood work and a CT scan about six months ago, and they both came back with nothing. The feeling just is not going away, though. What could be causing this?

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Most probably, you have musculoskeletal pain.

Characteristics of musculoskeletal pain are:

1. Dull aching.

2. Increase with certain movements and certain positions.

3. Tender muscles.

Do you have similar features?

Do you practice heavy exercise?

What kind of work do you do?

Have you tried muscle relaxants?

The other less likely possibility is irritable bowel, characterized by attacks of chronic diarrhea and bloating.

Answer 2

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

The pain you described has nothing to do with tumors. Tumors are painless masses that cause significant weight loss and cause symptoms like blood in stools, blood in urine, jaundice, etc. Most of the time, there is no pain except in the case of an advanced tumor with metastasis to bones which is less likely in your scenario.

So again, please do not worry about this issue. Muscle spasms cause tight dull pain. So, a trial of deep heat cream three times per day will be helpful. Please send me the CT (computed tomography) report you performed in order to make a better decision.

Answer 3

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

CT is a good tool for imaging. It shows us the internal organs and can detect even small masses. So, by far, if there is a mass, the CT would have detected it.

Let us discuss all the possible causes of your pain. There are three possible causes:

Musculoskeletal pain due to sprains, spasms, or inflammation - pain is tight and increases with certain movements and positions.
Renal colic- pain is colicky, on and off, and moves from the back to the groin area, most likely due to renal stones (normal CT makes it less likely).
Skin nerve inflammation (the nerve that supplies the skin) - pain is burning in nature and covers a certain area of the skin.
The other less likely cause is the bowel, but it manifests as constipation, diarrhea, bloating, etc.

Have you experienced Herpes zoster before, as some cases may develop postherpetic neuralgia with persistent pain for months?

Please send me the CT report anytime and keep me updated.