Dr. House famously uses a cane because of his leg injury in House M.D.
House’s cane is one of the character’s most recognizable visual details. He walks with a limp after suffering an infarction in the quadriceps muscle of his right leg, a condition that causes chronic pain and permanent muscle damage.
The injury occurred before the main events of the series. House initially receives treatment, but a dispute over how the damaged muscle should be managed contributes to the lasting impairment. His reliance on the cane is therefore connected to both his medical history and his ongoing dependence on pain medication.
The cane also functions as part of House’s characterization. It emphasizes his physical limitations while contrasting with his mental confidence, and he sometimes uses it for gestures or comic effect. The prop is not merely a generic hospital aid.
Viewers sometimes describe it as a walking stick, but the canonical object associated with House is a cane. His limp and pain are recurring elements of the story rather than temporary symptoms in a single episode.