Before his hip issues began, Aaron was an active teen. His days were packed with school, homework, workouts and time with friends. Aaron was a three-sport athlete as a high school freshman and hoped to play basketball and volleyball later in high school. Staying active wasn’t just important; it was his way to unwind and recharge.

After he started having hip pain, Aaron began a treatment journey that included several misdiagnoses, surgery and continued pain, before finding answers here at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). For Aaron, finally getting the right diagnosis changed everything. “It gave me a sense of calm for the first time in a long time,” he said. And for his family, that calm, and clarity, made all the difference.

When something didn’t feel right

Aaron first noticed something was off when he was 16. During a workout, he felt a strange sensation in his hip. “I went for a squat and felt a pop or rubbing—like when you crack your knuckles,” he said.

At first, he thought it might just be an overuse injury. He rested and decided to wait a couple of weeks, hoping it would go away. But the pain kept coming back in waves. Then one moment made it clear that this was something more serious. After dancing at a family wedding, Aaron woke up the next day in so much pain he couldn’t move.

A long and frustrating search for answers to hip pain

Aaron’s journey to find the cause of his pain was long and difficult. He sought treatment at a hospital near his home in Brooklyn, NY. There, he was first diagnosed with a condition in which the top of the thigh bone does not fit properly into the hip socket, called  femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) or hip impingement. This mismatch can lead to abnormal contact between the “ball" and the "socket” of the hip joint when the hip is being bent (in flexion). Over time, this repetitive motion of the hip joint can cause pain and limit hip movement.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Aaron said. “I always considered myself to be pretty lucky. So, to experience what some people would call a career-ending injury was shocking.”

Aaron had surgery at a hospital near his home and thought he was on the road to recovery. But weeks later, his pain hadn’t improved and instead he felt worse both physically and emotionally. He was angry that surgery hadn’t been the fix he’d looked forward to. 

Aaron returned to the doctor where it was suggested three things could be happening: 

• That something had gone wrong with the surgery (which would require re-opening Aaron’s hip to determine with certainty).
• That Aaron had re-torn something during his recovery period.
• Or that Aaron was experiencing a small crack in the “neck” of his thigh bone that can be caused by repetitive activities called a femoral neck stress fracture.

This lack of answers left Aaron feeling confused, and his pain continued. He went through months of treatment, multiple scans, and even had to use crutches and a cane to walk. Aaron remembers thinking that at age 17 he should not need this kind of assistance.

Discovering the CHOP difference: Looking at all sides of the problem 

Aaron and his family didn’t give up. After getting a second opinion in Manhattan, NY, they were still searching for answers. That doctor recognized that Aaron’s previous diagnoses were incorrect but also couldn’t determine the source of the pain. He referred them to Naomi Brown, MD, FAAP, FAMSSM, CAQSM, a pediatric sports medicine specialist in CHOP's Orthopedic Center. 

Aaron felt nervous going into his visit with Dr. Brown and wanted it to be over with as quickly as possible. He had heard too many times that doctors didn’t know the cause of his pain.

But this visit felt different right away.

“I felt like she cared a lot more and was a lot more friendly,” Aaron said. “That allowed me to put down my defenses.”

His mom, Alina, noticed something else: a team-based approach. “She had two other specialists with her—the nutritionist and the physical therapist. She told us, ‘We are looking at all the sides and options of this injury.’” Alina shared that Dr. Brown’s approach was very different from what they’d experienced with other doctors. She noticed they had tried to diagnose or treat Aaron solely from their individual areas of expertise, while Dr. Brown looked at the whole picture, including all Aaron’s scans for the year he’d been undergoing treatment, to determine the best path forward.

Finally feeling heard, and finding the right diagnosis

After viewing Aaron’s full history and imaging, Dr. Brown diagnosed him with a small, noncancerous bone tumor called osteoid osteoma, that can cause significant pain.

For the first time, things made sense. “Everything fell into place,” Aaron said. “I understood what she was explaining. From then on it was like, okay—now how do we treat it?”

A thoughtful, team-based plan to treat osteoid osteoma

Dr. Brown explained all the treatment options to Aaron and his mom. Because of where the tumor was located in Aaron’s thigh bone (femur), some treatment options weren’t safe. Surgery could have damaged nearby ligaments, and the hip joint; his CHOP care team didn't want to do more harm.

Instead, Aaron’s team created a careful plan that included medication infusions and physical therapy (PT). He began working with the Center for Bone Health at CHOP, including David R. Weber, MD, MSCE, the Medical Director.

Aaron appreciated how the team worked together. “I felt very taken care of,” he said. “At other hospitals I could talk to individual specialists, but they were not talking to each other.”

After just a few medication infusions, Aaron gradually began to feel better. His pain decreased over time, and he slowly began exercising and playing sports again outside of PT. He still experienced some challenges with rotation in his hips but was able to overcome them and says, “It was worth it: dealing with side effects (of the medication) and going to a whole other state to fix my problem.”

Getting back to living

Aaron was able to get back to the life he loved. He was able to ride his bike again and even played volleyball during his senior year of high school. 

Today, at 19, Aaron is studying exercise and sports science in college, with a minor in entrepreneurship. He stays active in martial arts and continues to build strength and flexibility.

His experience also shaped his future goals. “I always wanted to be a doctor,” he said, “but during this process I really enjoyed the physical therapy side of it. I realized I could still help people get back to their healthy selves.”

For Alina, seeing him well again has been a huge relief. “When your child is saying they’re in pain and doctors are brushing it off, it’s upsetting that you can’t help,” she said. “Now things are so much better.”

Advice for other families searching for solutions to hip pain

Aaron and his mom both share an important message for others going through similar challenges:

“Keep looking for the solution,” his mom says. “Ask for second opinions. If you don’t like what you hear, don’t accept it because the doctor told you. Somebody will have an answer.”

Aaron adds that it’s important to stay involved in your own care. “Whatever you can control yourself, continue to do that.”