What pain in right side of buttocks could be
Pain in the buttock can be local from the hip/buttock or it can stem from another area like the low back or even the knee. Sometimes the source of the pain can be confusing and multifaceted and understanding the mechanism of injury (if there is one), symptom presentation and factors that improve or worsen the pain are important to consider when coming up with a diagnosis or cause.
Some common conditions by joint, primarily focusing on the hip and knee are listed below.
Common causes for pain in the right side of your buttocks
Hip/buttock conditions:
Piriformis syndrome
Piriformis muscle is one of the muscles that is important in moving the hip and stabilizing the pelvis
If there is repetitive load to the muscle, it can cause spasm, swelling and nerve compression (compression in sciatic nerve resulting in sciatica)
Painful buttock or hip pain that can radiate down the back of the thigh, calf and the bottom of the foot
Aggravated with prolonged sitting, walking, squatting or crossing the leg over midline
Bursitis (inflammation of the bursa (fluid-filled sacs that act as cushions between joints))
Ischial bursitis
Inflammation of the bursa between the ischial tuberosity (sit bone) and the gluteus maximus
Aggravated by sitting and overloading muscles around the area
Greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS) including trochanteric bursitis
Trochanteric bursitis is the inflammation of the bursa on the greater trochanter (located on the side of the hip)
GTPS can also be due to tendinopathy (affecting the tendons) of gluteus medius/minimus
Pain on side of hip; pain may refer to the thigh and buttock
*For more intense bursitis, medications may be needed and connecting with a primary care provider is important to relieve symptoms; this may be helpful in conjunction with physio exercises that strengthen surrounding muscles to minimize the stress on inflamed areas
Hamstring tendinopathy
pain/dysfunction in hamstring tendons, typically at their attachment to the sit bones (though can occur on the other end at the tendons of the knee joints as well)
Aggravated with running, lunging, squatting and sitting
Muscle strain - gluteal muscles, hamstring muscles
Can be due to overloading the muscle, injury, poor positioning etc.
Pain and stiffness to the muscles after engaging those muscles
Hip osteoarthritis
Joint pain and stiffness and can radiate into the groin, thigh, buttocks or knee
Usually associated with decreased hip mobility and stiffness in the morning/after rest
Low back conditions:
Radiculopathy including sciatica - causes: herniated disc, degenerative disc disease, facet joint syndrome
These causes can create compression/stress (including surrounding irritation, inflammation) on nerves in the lower back that can cause radiculopathy (symptoms such as pain, numbness or tingling, muscle weakness, decreased reflexes, that radiates into other areas like the hips/buttocks and legs)
Sciatica is a type of radiculopathy that involves compression on the sciatic nerve
Sacroiliac joint dysfunction
Usually due to too much or too little movement in the joint (connects the bottom of the spine and pelvis) or malalignment
Pain usually localized over the buttock and can radiate down the thigh, though usually not past the knee
Aggravated by prolonged sitting, forward bending
Other:
Myofascial pain syndrome
Chronic pain from trigger points formed by previous muscle injury or ongoing muscle overloading
Fractures - such as of the pelvis
Other non-musculoskeletal causes including infections, tumors/abnormal growths
What to do if you have pain in right side of your buttocks
As noted above, there can be quite a few conditions that may be the cause of buttock pain and many have similar symptoms and presentation.
Some causes can even be prevented with movement including proper posture/technique for exercises/activities, frequent breaks and changing positions, regular stretching and strengthening and progressively loading the body and muscles appropriately to avoid overloading.
If you’re unsure of what your buttock pain could be and/or the pain has worsened over time, it may be helpful to understand the cause and what you can do about it.
If you’re interested in booking an assessment with a physiotherapist, they can help you understand your situation and work with you to develop a treatment plan to get you back to the activities you enjoy.
Where to get treatment for your low back pain
Our team has various tools in our toolbox from manual hands on therapy, acupuncture, dry needling, exercise rehabilitation and clinical pilates to help you achieve a full recovery and return you to the activities you love to do!
Book in with one of our very skilled therapists here to start feeling better today!
We are centrally located in the Annex neighbourhood of Toronto and very accessible to TTC!
