For anybody who is having lower back pain as well as pain in the thigh joint it could be your iliopsoas muscle. This muscle controls the ability to lift your leg. I had been having trouble for about three months now, had an MRI and found out that the muscle was either inflammed or torn. I'm in physical therepy now along with Bextra (anti-inflammatory) and Norflex (muscle relaxers) and I finally have some relief. I know there were a few out there with similar problem, so hope this may help.

I have a script of Bextra but haven't gotten it filled yet. I just keep putting it off. I had horrible side effects with Celebrex, Vioxx and Relafin, and after all that can't seem to do it. I think part of the leg and joint pain is from becoming inactive from the back pain.

MaryAnn,

I've had absolutely NO side effects from Bextra. I've tried the others in the past with no luck so I was surprised when the Bextra helped, which was almost immediately.
You're right about lack of exercise. If you're having pain I would look up exercises for iliopsoas muscle. They have helped unbelievably. After two PT sessions, my back no longer hurts-amazing.
Good luck.

Question for Jitterbug and others with hip/thigh as well as back pain--I also have both areas of pain, but this has been attributed to upper lumbar disk problems which are evident on MRI. Have you also had an MRI? Any sense of how the docs distinguished between a disk problem and the iliopsoas problem?

Thanks,

Standingman