Osteoid osteoma accounts for 13% of benign bone tumours and is found in people aged 15 to 20 years. It usually occurs in the long bones, its main symptoms being local and night pain that improves with anti-inflammatory drugs.
Treatment of osteoid osteoma includes drug treatment, CT-guided removal and percutaneous radiofrequency ablation. However, in some cases these techniques are associated with complications such as infection, skin burns, bleeding, nerve injury, iatrogenic damage to the articular cartilage and incomplete removal of the tumour.
Arthroscopic excision of osteoid osteoma from the hip has become more popular in recent years. A new study set out to assess the effectiveness of arthroscopic excision of intra-articular osteoid osteomas of the hip.
The records of 25 patients who underwent arthroscopic excision of an osteoid osteoma of the hip were reviewed retrospectively. The data related to the site of the lesion, the symptoms, the duration of symptoms and the postoperative improvement, which was assessed with the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS) and the International Hip Outcome Tool (iHOT12). The reasons for revision surgery and the characteristics of the progression of the osteoid osteoma postoperatively were also assessed. The main symptom was pain in the groin, which was managed with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. There was a restriction of range of motion of varying degree in all the patients. Sclerosis around the «nidus» of the tumour was the main CT finding and is characteristic of the condition. However, the findings were also seen on plain radiographs, as well as on MRI, where bone marrow oedema and a joint effusion were observed.
After the preoperative and postoperative assessment of the patients, the investigators found that osteoid osteoma of the hip typically presents with pain and restriction of movement, that the condition can mimic the symptoms of femoroacetabular impingement or synovitis, and that CT is the main diagnostic tool. Arthroscopic removal appears to be an effective method for treating this condition.
Source: “Arthroscopy”, October 2021
