Hip arthroscopy in the presence of dysplasia

Abstract

Purpose: Intra-articular pathology of the hip is often associated with dysplasia. The presence of dysplasia is often believed to be a harbinger of poor results for arthroscopy. The purpose of this study was to report the results of operative hip arthroscopy in conjunction with dysplastic disease of the hip.

Type of study: Prospective clinical case series.

Methods: All patients undergoing hip arthroscopy are prospectively assessed with a modified Harris hip score performed preoperatively and postoperatively at 3, 12, 24, and 60 months. A minimum of 1-year follow-up has currently accumulated for 184 consecutive cases. The center edge (CE) angle of Wiberg is measured on the anteroposterior pelvis film and categorized as normal (> 25 degrees ), dysplastic (< 20 degrees ), or borderline dysplasia (20 degrees -25 degrees ).

Results: In this study, 48 patients were identified with either dysplasia (16) or borderline dysplasia (32). At an average of 27 months, 100% follow-up was noted. For the dysplastic group, the average preoperative score was 57 and postoperative score was 83. For borderline dysplasia, the average preoperative score was 50 and postoperative score was 77. Statistically, no difference was found between the 2 groups. Collectively, the average improvement was 27 points, with 79% (38 patients) of patients showing at least a 10-point improvement.

Conclusions: The results of arthroscopy in the presence of dysplasia compare favorably with the general population previously reported. The response to treatment is probably dictated more by the nature of the intra-articular pathology rather than simply the presence or absence of radiographic evidence of dysplasia.