The learning curve is humbling, but if you remember that it is for self-education then it is extremely rewarding.

Abstract

When I started as an attending in an academic group in October 2024, I knew that hip arthroscopy would be a major part of practice. Multiple studies have reported on the hip arthroscopy learning curve, and I wanted to start my own study with an in-depth evaluation of how surgical times, patient-reported outcomes (PROs), and intraoperative decisions evolve over time as a new attending performing hip arthroscopy. By consistently tracking data on my patients and surgical times (including total operative time, traction time, femoroplasty time, and capsular closure time), I am constantly thinking about how I can improve as a hip arthroscopist. The learning curve also provides insight into surgical decision-making. When patients do not do well after initial surgical treatment of pre-arthritic hip conditions, it is important to perform a re-review of all information to identify reasons for failure, and to correct those issues whenever possible. Collecting long-term outcomes will provide the best insight into how the surgical decisions made at the time of hip arthroscopy affect PROs, revision rates, and conversion to periacetabular osteotomy or total hip arthroplasty. I look forward to sharing these results as they become available in an effort to continuously improve the level of care for our patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level V.