Transient Synovitis: Don't Panic, The 'Transient' Matters

When your child is suddenly limping or even unable to walk at all, that's really worrying — if it happens to your son or daughter, I fully assume that you'll have the same dark thoughts I had. (Thoughts that are not at all relieved by the fact that "leukemia" shows up as one of the answers to "causes of acute pediatric leg pain" if you use "Dr Google".)

Once you have a diagnosis of transient synovitis of the hip, though, there's good news. Although more serious conditions, such as Perthes disease and sceptic arthritis, have to be ruled out, the "transient" bit of the name of this condition means it will soon pass — and the treatment is much simpler than what you might have had in mind when you first noticed something was wrong with your child.

Treating Transient Synovitis Of The Hip

My daughter was ordered to be on complete bed rest (except for bathroom breaks) along with the use of the NSAID ibuprofen, to ease the pain and bring down the inflammation, for four days. That was boring to be sure, but not in the realm of "I'll never be able to walk again".

We went back for a checkup four days later, when she was already a bit better, and she was advised to stay in bed for four days longer. After eight days, we got the all-clear: we went from my daughter not being able to walk at all to her being fully functional again in just over a week, with the advice to come back after six months for a follow-up x-ray. This is because other hip conditions need to be ruled out, or treated if they are indeed present.

Recurrences can happen, but most children never experience the condition or related difficulties again: around 1.5% (yes, there's a period there) go on to develop recurring transient synovitis, Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, Coxa magna, or osteoarthritis.

You may be advised to take your child swimming to strengthen the hip joint, and you may be told your child should refrain from playing other sports a few more weeks, but then you're most likely done, the experience to be relegated to the past.

READ 'Growing Pains' In Kids: Should You Be Worried?

The Bottom Line

In most cases, transient synovitis of the hip initially looks much scarier than it is in reality. Anything that can be completely cured with nothing but bed rest and over the counter anti-inflammatories is good news, no? Because several hip conditions that are indeed more serious are associated with transient synovitis of the hip (also called "irritable hip" in the UK), though, we can only advise you to diligently attend the follow-up appointments your doctor suggests.