Longitudinal Evaluation of Hip Cartilage Degeneration: the Effect of Femoroacetabular Impingement

Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is one of the most common mechanisms leading to the development of early cartilage and labral damage in the non-dysplastic hip. Anatomic abnormalities of the proximal femur and/or acetabulum result in repetitive injury during dynamic hip motion, leading to abnormal regional loading of the femoral head-neck junction against the acetabular rim. The resulting damage to the cartilage, labrum, and surrounding capsular structures predispose the patient to developing hip pain and early osteoarthritic changes. Clinically, patients with FAI are a heterogeneous group, with a wide array of presentation from pain to instability that may or may not be related to activity. To date no studies have identified specific prognostic indicators associated with successful surgical treatment of FAI, leaving surgeons without adequate criteria to determine which patients are best suited for arthroscopy. The investigators propose to address this critical knowledge gap by identifying the patient characteristics and morphological features of the hip that are associated with the optimal clinical outcomes in patients undergoing hip arthroscopy or non-operative management for treatment of suspected FAI in order to establish a treatment algorithm for FAI patients.