Clinical and functional outcome after surgical labral repair in patients over the age of fifty

Tomer Ben Tov et al, Arthroscopy, 2014
The aim of this study was to assess the clinical and functional outcome of arthroscopic repair of the labrum in patients over the age of fifty. The authors carried out a prospective analysis of twenty patients over the age of fifty who underwent arthroscopic repair of a labral tear. The indication for hip arthroscopy was groin pain of multiple causes, with or without mechanical symptoms, which had not responded to non-operative treatment for more than six months. Intraoperatively, all patients were found to have pathological changes of the labrum. The mean duration of symptoms was 3.1 years and the mean follow-up was 22 months. The outcome was assessed prospectively with the modified Harris Hip Score and the Hip Outcome Score. The indication for hip arthroscopy was femoroacetabular impingement with a cam lesion and a labral tear in four patients, pincer-type femoroacetabular impingement with a labral tear in one patient, femoroacetabular impingement of both types in one patient, a gluteus medius tear in two patients and an isolated labral tear in 12 patients. Chondral lesions of the acetabulum were seen in 11 patients. The conclusion drawn from this study was that arthroscopic management of femoroacetabular impingement and of labral tears in patients over the age of fifty without significant arthritis, according to the Tonnis arthritis classification system, is associated with a significant improvement in outcome. Because of the great importance of the labrum for the long-term integrity of the hip, the authors recommend repair of the labrum, where this is possible, in these patients.