Value of measurement of hip movements in childhood hip disorders.

After the reproducibility of measurement of hip joint motion by different techniques was ascertained, the ranges of motion of hips of 325 normal schoolchildren ages 5 to 14 years were measured with a fluid level goniometer. All movements of the hip decreased in a nonlinear fashion with increasing age. The regression line with the closest fit to the mean values of each hip movement was that obtained by applying the sixth-order equation. A grid was designed to record the ranges of movement of the hip. The ranges of movement of 93 children with pathology in one or both hips were measured by the same technique and marked on the grid. Characteristic abnormal grid patterns were noted for each condition. Careful documentation of alterations in hip joint movement in children with symptoms related to the hip can be of value in establishing the diagnosis of the underlying pathology.