Sports Injuries of the Hip Abductors

The abductors of the hip are critical in hip stability, changes of direction, and locomotion. However, the lateral hip is also important in the kinetic chain and injury protection. Weakness in the lateral hip can be related to injuries as distal as the foot inferiorly and the shoulder superiorly. This very dynamic and functional group of three primary muscles performs in multiple planes of action. Assessment of the region locally and as a piece of the kinetic chain is a skill reserved for high-level clinicians.