Commonly – and dangerously – mis-categorised as an adductor problem, Osteitis Pubis (OP) is a term used to describe pain emanating from the pubic symphysis, the joint where the two halves of the pelvis come together at the front of the pelvis.
The pelvic bones form a ring with the pubic symphysis at the front and are joined at the back of the pelvis at joints on each side of the sacrum (the sacro-iliac joints). The pubic symphysis is a thin joint that under normal circumstances has very minimal motion.
OP is thought to result from inflammation of the pubis symphysis and the ligaments that attach to it, and is characterised by pain, sclerosis and bony changes of the pubis symphysis, which can be seen on X-ray and MRI scans. It can be very debilitating for sportsmen and women, and for women post-childbirth.