Reduced Hip Adduction Is Associated With Improved Function After Movement-Pattern Training in Young People With Chronic Hip Joint Pain.

This is an ancillary analysis of a feasibility trial, and the pooled analysis did not compare movement-pattern training with a control group, so it cannot establish that the treatment caused the improvements. All patients received both task-specific movement training and hip strengthening, so the contribution of either component cannot be separated. The sample was small, with 28 analysed participants, and the authors state the vast majority were women. The authors could not determine whether changes in hip adduction motion or modified Harris Hip Score were clinically meaningful, because minimum important change values for this movement measure and for non-surgical hip pain were not established. The optimal dosage and duration of movement-pattern training are unknown. Baseline hip adduction motion differed between patients who did and did not reduce it (21.9 ± 7.0 versus 16.8 ± 3.2, P=.02), but the authors could not recommend a predictive threshold.

Do not conclude that movement-pattern training alone caused the improvements. The analysis pooled everyone who received both task-specific movement training and hip strengthening, had no control group in this ancillary analysis, and the authors could not separate the contributions of either component.