Beware of groin pain in the elderly athlete

A62-year-old man, who was a keen amateur swimmer, presented to the orthopaedic department in June 1996 with a 4-month history of lower back pain, which had developed after he had been swimming. Mild tenderness was noted over his left sacroiliac joint, straight leg raising was normal, and resisted movements failed to reproduce his pain. He was advised to alter activity and discharged. His pain persisted, however, and 10 months later had become localized to his right groin. Further review in the orthopaedic clinic revealed a full range of movement of his hips, but extreme abduction was painful. Plain radiographs of the lumbar spine showed degenerative changes. His pain was attributed to lumbar root irritation, and so he was referred for physiotherapy. By October 1997, 16 months after initial presentation, there was no real improvement. A soft tissue magnetic resonance imaging scan confirmed spondylosis and degenerate discs, but no actual disc prolapse. As he was still troubled with pain, specifically in the...