Greetings, Dr. Roach I go to France in 2022 to see friends and take in the sights. After spending my days in Paris walking and climbing stairs, I began to get hip and leg pain. (One day, I walked sixteen miles!) I took ibuprofen before bed and relaxed over the evening. This was a unique trip, so I continued with my activities.
I went hiking in the Alps later in my trip. Everywhere in France, there are stairs with little modifications for people with mobility impairments. It was quite incapacitating. My doctor ordered an X-ray when I got home and determined that I had hip bursitis on both sides.
I spent several weeks in physical therapy. I occasionally get some pain if I engage in activities like trekking or lengthy walks. Due to my relative health, I dislike restricting my activities. I’m 60 years old now and going back to France. Without limiting my activities, what can I do to keep this pain from recurring again? Or, if I experience pain, what can I do to lessen it? Being sedentary is not something I want. J.M.C.
ANSWER: Although the hip bursa isn’t actually inflamed, greater trochanteric pain syndrome is nevertheless commonly referred to as trochanteric bursitis. This ailment does seem similar to your diagnosis, though. It is brought on by overusing the hip’s tendons and muscles, especially the gluteus medius and minimus muscles.
The activities that are most likely to trigger a repeat of your symptoms are climbing stairs and hills. You might be able to stop the symptoms from coming again, though. Your hip abductors, or the muscles that pull your leg away from your body’s midline, are the muscles you want to develop.
You can prevent the inappropriate stresses on your gluteal muscles and tendons by strengthening these muscles. You can learn how to accomplish this from your physical therapist using an elastic resistance band or a spring-resisted sliding platform. This should stop GTPS from happening again.
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Greetings, Dr. Roach My 84-year-old husband takes 100 mg of sertraline in the morning and 10 mg of amitriptyline before bed. I’m worried about these substances. He is starting to experience memory problems, and Alzheimer’s runs in his family.
Are sertraline or amitriptyline used for other medical conditions? I’m worried about his mental health and don’t understand why he’s taking antidepressants. How do you feel about these? — C.W.
ANSWER: Your husband is not taking amitriptyline as an antidepressant, however amitripylene can be taken as such. Amitriptyline is typically taken in doses of 300–600 mg as an antidepressant. Although there are other applications, chronic pain is the most prevalent reason for a 10-mg dosage.
The usual dosage for sertraline (Zoloft), which is frequently used to treat depression, is 100 mg. However, it can also be utilized for a variety of conditions, including anxiety, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The memory problem is complicated. It sounds like a serious (and understandable) worry for you that medications like amitriptyline and sertraline may cause memory problems. However, early dementia-like symptoms might also be caused by depression. He may be receiving treatment for underlying depression from his doctor, which could improve rather than worsen his mental health.
As you can see, things may get complicated. If your husband is comfortable with it, you may accompany him to see the physician who is writing the prescriptions.
Although he regrets not being able to respond to each letter individually, Dr. Roach will try to include them in the column. Questions can be sent by mail to 628 Virginia Dr., Orlando, FL 32803 or by email to [email protected].
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