Editorial Commentary: With Properly Indicated and Performed Surgery, We Can (Hopefully) Prevent Osteoarthritis in Patients With Hip Femoroacetabular Impingement.

Abstract

Surgical treatment of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) syndrome has been proven to be tremendously successful, outperforming the best conservative care and physical therapy in several prospective multicenter randomized controlled trials. The durability of this operation over time is less commonly reported on. We do know that FAI is associated with the development of hip osteoarthritis, and this is well established. We also know that surgical FAI treatment results in good short-term return to function/sport and improvements in patient-reported outcomes. We do not yet know if we are able to alter the natural history of FAI and prevent or delay conversion to total hip arthroplasty in this population.