How Do You Relieve Inner Thigh Pain?

In most cases, the inner thigh pain is not a serious condition; however, in a few cases, it is associated with underlying conditions such as:

Groin strain

Groin strain or groin pull is due to excess stress or tear of one of the muscles of the groin or inner thigh. Groin pulls are commonly seen in people who play sports where a lot of running and jumping are involved, such as football, basketball, and hockey.

Symptoms of groin strain include:

• Severe pain and tenderness in the groin
• Pain when you bring your legs together
• Excess pain when you raise your knee

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)

A condition in which blood clots are formed more in the deep veins of the body, especially in the legs. Although these clots appear in the legs, they result in symptoms such as:

• Pain
• Swelling
• Discoloration of the skin
• Tenderness
• Warmth on the affected leg
• Pulmonary embolism (life-threatening; symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain rapid breathing)

Hernia

A condition in which internal organs push through a weak point in muscle or tissue. Inner thigh pain is caused by a very uncommon hernia called a femoral hernia. Femoral hernias occur in only three percent of all hernias and six percent of all groin hernias.

Femoral hernias are caused when a tissue part of the bowel moves through the groin muscle wall of the inner thigh. This is pushed through a weak area called the femoral canal. Common causes of femoral hernia are obesity, severe cough, overstrain while exercising, and passing stools.

Symptoms of a femoral hernia include:

• Lump in the groin or inner thigh causing discomfort and abdominal pain
• Nausea
• Vomiting

Pregnancy

Inner thigh pain is commonly seen during pregnancy, but the severe pain of the inner thigh during pregnancy may be due to a condition called symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD). SPD is caused by the hormone released by the placenta during pregnancy called relaxin. This hormone loosens the ligaments, which leads to pain and inflammation. Relaxin also helps prevent premature birth of the baby. SPD is mostly seen by the end of the second trimester, and this condition resolves on its own once the baby is delivered.

Symptoms of SPD include:

• Burning or shooting pain that travels down the inner thigh
• Difficulty while walking, climbing stairs, or changing position while sleeping
• Clicking while moving

Hip-related issues such as osteoarthritis

One of the common causes of hip pain may also cause pain in the lower thigh. This type of osteoarthritis is caused by the cartilage breakdown that covers joints in the hips.

The common symptoms of osteoarthritis include pain, stiffness, and inflammation.

Muscle injury

Pain in the inner thigh may be due to the injury of thigh muscles or adductors caused by certain activities such as running and turning quickly. This muscle damage can cause severe pain in the inner thigh accompanied by swelling and bruising around the affected area.

Kidney stones

Crystal-like structures form solid lumps in the kidney. When these kidney stones are passed through the urinary tract, they cause severe pain and discomfort in the abdomen and the inner thigh area, especially when there are larger stones.

Other symptoms of kidney stones include:

• Lower back pain or pain in the groin area
• Restlessness
• Nausea
• Pain while urinating
• Blood in the urine
• Cloudy urine

Risk factors of inner thigh pain include:

• Exercise without warm-up
• Pregnancy
• Obesity

Consult your doctor as soon as possible if you can't put any weight on the injured leg or can't walk more than four steps without excruciating pain.

If the RICE method does not relieve your pain or discomfort within a week, see your doctor immediately.

The following measures can help relieve inner thigh pain:

• Adequate rest and avoiding activities that strain your thigh muscles
• Hot compressions and ice application
• Bandages or compression wraps that help provide support to the muscular injury and help to heal fast
• Over-the-counter pain medicines
• Taking an Epsom salt bath 
• Prescription medicines such as corticosteroids 
• Using a foam roller to stretch and massage
• Performing stretching exercises
• Pelvis belt in women with symphysis pubis dysfunction that may help relieve pain
• Lifestyle changes such as weight loss may reduce the pressure on the joints and can reduce the pain
• In very rare cases, the doctor may recommend surgery