Combined hip arthroscopy and limited open osteochondroplasty for anterior femoroacetabular impingement

Background: A variety of surgical techniques have been introduced for the treatment of femoroacetabular impingement, but clinical outcome studies of less-invasive treatment with a minimum duration of follow-up of two years are limited. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the early clinical and radiographic outcomes of combined hip arthroscopy and limited open osteochondroplasty of the femoral head-neck junction for the treatment of cam femoroacetabular impingement. Methods: We performed a retrospective review of our first thirty-five patients (thirty-five hips) in whom cam femoroacetabular impingement had been treated with combined hip arthroscopy and limited open osteochondroplasty. Thirty-five patients (twenty-eight men and seven women) with an average age of thirty-four years and a minimum duration of follow-up of two years were analyzed. The modified Harris hip score was utilized to assess hip function. The Tönnis osteoarthritis grade and the alpha angle were determined to assess osteoarthritis progression and deformity correction, respectively. Results: The average modified Harris hip score improved from 63.8 points preoperatively to 87.4 points at the time of the last follow-up. Twenty-nine (83%) of the thirty-five patients had at least a 10-point improvement in the Harris hip score, and 71% had a score of >80 points. The average alpha angle was reduced from 58.6° preoperatively to 37.1° at the time of follow-up when measured on cross-table lateral radiographs, from 63.9° to 37.8° when measured on frog-leg lateral radiographs, and from 63.1° to 44.8° when measured on anteroposterior radiographs. Two patients had osteoarthritis progression from Tönnis grade 0 to grade 1. Minor complications included one superficial wound infection, one deep vein thrombosis, and four cases of asymptomatic Brooker grade-I heterotopic ossification. There were no femoral neck fractures or cases of femoral head osteonecrosis, and no hip was converted to an arthroplasty. Conclusions: Early results indicate that combined hip arthroscopy and limited open osteochondroplasty of the femoral head-neck junction is a safe and effective treatment for femoroacetabular impingement. In our small series, most patients had symptomatic relief, improved hip function, and enhanced activity after two years of follow-up. Level of Evidence: Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions to Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.