Relationship Between Age at Onset of Symptoms and Intraoperative Findings in Hip Arthroscopic Surgery

BACKGROUND: Hip arthroscopic surgery is intended to treat multiple abnormalities in an effort to delay the progression to osteoarthritis, especially in young patients. However, the length of time in which patients experience joint pain before seeking a specialist for a diagnosis can delay hip preservation surgery and influence clinical outcomes. PURPOSE: To investigate the relationship between age at symptom onset and findings during hip arthroscopic surgery as well as outcomes after 2 years of clinical follow-up. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. METHODS: values <.05 were considered significant. RESULTS: < .001). CONCLUSION: Of the multiple intraoperative findings in hip arthroscopic surgery, many are related to age at onset of symptoms. Although we found a statistically significant improvement in clinical outcomes in both groups after 2-year follow-up, apparently the less complex and smaller lesions observed in both the articular cartilage and the labrum of younger patients result in better outcomes compared with older patients.