Is Prophylactic Surgery for Femoroacetabular Impingement Indicated?: A Systematic Review.
There has been a growing body of research in recent years suggesting that femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) may contribute to degenerative joint disease of the hip. To date, the success of conservative treatment is limited, with many patients experiencing a progression of osteoarthritis and mechanical symptoms. Consequently, surgical intervention is gaining momentum as conventional treatment – attempting to correct these morphological abnormalities prior to the onset of irreversible joint damage. This is a contentious issue, as up to 74% of those with radiological signs of FAI are asymptomatic and pain-free. The purpose of this systematic review was to determine whether prophylactic surgical intervention is warranted for asymptomatic patients with radiological evidence of FAI in an attempt to prevent osteoarthritis of the hip.
The results suggest that there is currently a paucity of evidence to support surgical intervention as a first-line treatment of FAI in asymptomatic patients. In essence, the current literature does not support the implementation of prophylactic surgery for asymptomatic FAI in the vast majority of cases. Nevertheless, a small body of evidence indicates that asymptomatic patients who have previously undergone total hip arthroplasty of the contralateral hip are significantly more likely to experience early osteoarthritis of their ipsilateral hip. Further research is required to further clarify indications for surgery > From Collins et al., Am J Sports Med (2013) (Epub ahead of print). All rights reserved to Sage.
The Pubmed summary of the article can be found here.
See an other post on Anatomy & Physiotherapy about femoroacetabular impingment with informative videoclip and picture.