When Should You See a Specialist for Back, Hip or Knee Pain?
You should see a specialist when pain lasts longer than six weeks, keeps coming back, disturbs your sleep or daily routine, or has not got better with rest and simple painkillers. Pain that moves from one area to another, such as a sore back that starts to affect your hip or knee, is another strong reason to get it checked further.
Key points
- Pain that lasts more than six weeks or gets worse over time needs a specialist's attention.
- Sudden numbness, weakness, or loss of bladder or bowel control is a medical emergency.
- Pain that moves between your back, hip and knee may point to an alignment problem rather than an injury in one area.
- Scans done lying down can miss problems that only appear when you are standing and carrying your body weight.
- A standing whole-body image can show the real source and help guide the right treatment plan.
Most adults have back, hip or knee pain at some point. Often it eases on its own within a few weeks. But when it does not, or when it keeps coming back, it can be hard to know whether to wait longer or whether something more is going on.
This page will help you spot the signs that it is time to stop "waiting and seeing" and get proper answers.
What are the signs your pain needs a specialist?
Think about seeing a specialist when your pain changes from a short-term nuisance into something that affects how you live. These are the most common warning signs.
Short-term pain usually settles. If yours has not, there may be a structural cause worth looking into.
Pain that slowly gets stronger, rather than better, suggests something is progressing rather than healing.
If pain stops you sleeping, sitting at a desk, or doing everyday tasks, your body is telling you something needs attention.
Repeated flare-ups suggest an underlying cause that has not been found or dealt with.
Back pain that starts to affect your hip, or hip pain that shows up in your knee, may be a sign of a chain of compensation through your body.
If physiotherapy, injections or medicines have not worked, the diagnosis itself may be incomplete.
When should you go to the emergency department instead of a specialist?
Some symptoms need urgent medical attention, not a specialist appointment. If you have any of the following, contact your doctor or go to the nearest emergency department straight away.
Get urgent help if you have:
- Sudden numbness or tingling in both legs, your groin, or around your bottom
- Loss of bladder or bowel control
- Sudden, severe weakness in one or both legs
- Pain after a significant fall or injury, especially if you are over 50
- Weight loss you cannot explain, along with your pain
- A high temperature or fever with severe back pain
These can be signs of serious conditions such as cauda equina syndrome or spinal infection. They need to be checked the same day, not with a planned scan. Do not wait.
Why does waiting too long make things harder?
Waiting too long lets your body build compensation patterns that can cause new problems in areas that were healthy to begin with. Your body is a connected chain, from your feet to your head. When one joint or area is not working properly, the areas above and below it adjust to make up for it.
This is why a sore hip can, in time, lead to knee pain on the other side. Or why a subtle pelvic tilt causes lower back stiffness that no amount of stretching fixes. The longer these compensations go on, the harder it becomes to separate the original cause from the knock-on effects.
Getting an accurate picture of how your whole body is aligned, while you stand in your natural posture, is the most direct way to find the root cause instead of chasing symptoms.
How does standing imaging show what other scans miss?
Standing imaging captures your skeleton under the real load of gravity, in the posture you actually live in. Standard X-rays, CT and MRI are usually done lying down. When you lie flat, gravity is removed, your muscles relax, and your joints settle into positions they never hold in daily life. This can hide the very alignment problems causing your pain.
An EOS scan takes a full-length, standing image from head to feet in one go. It uses about 90% less radiation than a standard X-ray, around ten times less. Because it captures your whole body at once, your specialist can see how your spine, pelvis, hips, knees and ankles relate to each other, not just the one area that hurts.
Want to know what the scan involves? Visit our EOS scan overview for full details of the process.
When is MRI the better choice? EOS shows bones, joints and alignment. For soft tissue problems such as discs, ligaments or nerve compression, MRI is usually the better tool. The two often work well together. If your free consultation suggests MRI would suit your symptoms better, we will tell you.
What should you do if you think it is time to see someone?
The first step is getting a clear, accurate diagnosis. Without one, any treatment you try is based on guesswork. Here is a practical way forward.
If it has been more than six weeks, that is your cue. Waiting longer rarely helps.
Ask whether standing, weight-bearing imaging could give a fuller picture than the scans you have had before.
Your pain might not be where the problem is. Whole-body imaging helps your specialist see the full chain.
ScanAlign is a diagnostic imaging clinic. We do not treat your condition, but we provide the detailed, standing alignment images that help the right specialist plan the right treatment. You do not need a referral from your doctor to book.
Before you start a treatment, or change the one you are on, it is worth getting a detailed diagnosis. Knowing whether the cause lies in your pelvis, your legs or your spine changes what will actually help.
For more on what the scan involves and how to prepare, see our frequently asked questions.
Which area is causing you trouble?
If you already know which part of your body is the main problem, these pages go into more detail.
How standing alignment imaging helps find spinal problems that lying-down scans may miss.
Learn more → Hip Hip pain and alignmentWhy hip problems often start with pelvic alignment and show up in surprising places.
Learn more → Knee Knee pain and leg alignmentHow the angle of your whole leg under load affects your knee joint.
Learn more →Frequently asked questions
See a doctor if your back pain lasts more than six weeks, is getting worse, disturbs your sleep or daily life, or has not responded to rest and over-the-counter painkillers. Pain that spreads into your legs or comes with numbness also needs prompt attention.
Hip pain that limits your walking, keeps you awake at night, or makes you limp is worth looking into. If it has lasted more than six weeks, or you notice your other hip, knee or back is starting to ache as well, get specialist advice.
Knee pain that swells often, locks, gives way, or has not improved after six weeks of conservative care should be checked by a specialist. Persistent knee pain can sometimes come from a hip or alignment problem rather than the knee itself.
Yes. Your body makes up for problems in one area by shifting load to another. A stiff lower back can change the way your pelvis sits, which changes the angle at your hip and knee. This is why imaging your whole alignment, not just one area, can be so valuable.
No. ScanAlign accepts self-referrals. You can book a free video consultation directly. If your consultant or doctor would like to refer you, they are welcome to do so as well.
An EOS scan is a standing, full-body X-ray that captures you from head to feet in your natural, weight-bearing posture. It uses about 90% less radiation than a standard X-ray, around ten times less, and shows how your bones and joints relate to each other under the real load of gravity.
Yes. The radiation dose is about 90% less than a standard X-ray, around ten times less. It is one of the lowest-dose full-body imaging methods available. More safety details are on our FAQs page.
For patients travelling from abroad, the price is confirmed during the free video consultation. You can find more details on our FAQs page. The free video consultation costs nothing and has no obligation.
When you lie down, gravity is removed. Your muscles relax and your joints settle into positions they do not hold when you are upright. Alignment problems, uneven leg lengths and pelvic tilts can disappear on a lying-down scan, only to return the moment you stand up.
You will have a short video call with a specialist diagnostic radiographer. They will discuss your symptoms, review any scans you have had before, and advise whether a standing EOS scan is likely to give you useful new information. There is no cost and no obligation to go ahead.
Ready to find out what is really going on?
A free video consultation with a specialist diagnostic radiographer, from wherever you are. No referral needed, no obligation, no pressure.
Book a free video consultationWritten by Abbas Dhami (Specialist Diagnostic Radiographer)
Sources
- NHS. "Back pain: when to get medical help." nhs.uk, 2023.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). "Low back pain and sciatica in over 16s: assessment and management" (NG59), 2016, updated 2020.
- Dubousset J, Charpak G, Dorion I, et al. "A new 2D and 3D imaging approach to musculoskeletal physiology and pathology with low-dose radiation and the standing position: the EOS system." Bulletin de l'Académie Nationale de Médecine, 2005;189(2):287-297.
This page is general information and not a diagnosis.
ScanAlign is the trading name of CoreMed Solutions Ltd and operates under The Harley Street Hospital's CQC licence.