At times athletes may be engulfed by various hip problems. The disorders may deteriorate their condition so adversely that players are recommended to stop playing. This tidbit can possibly excite athletes facing similar issues. Orthopedic experts from Rush University Medical Center ascertain that the employment of minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery to treat painful disorders of the hip can allow athletes to get back to their sports at the pre-injury level of competition.
Athletes with hip labral tear by internal ball and socket joint damage to the hip also termed as hip femoral acetabular impingement (FAI) undergoing a hip arthroscopy were examined by the scientists. It was noted that 78 percent of athletes undergoing a hip arthroscopy reported the ability to play their sport after about a little more than nine months of the surgery. In fact, 90 percent of the athletes had the ability to compete at the same level as they did before their early hip impairment.
“Arthroscopic hip surgery is an outpatient procedure that can decrease soft tissue trauma and decrease blood loss, leading to a faster recovery period compared to a more invasive open surgery,” enlightened Dr. Shane J. Nho, lead investigator of the study, who asports medicine and hip arthroscopy expert at Rush University Medical Center.
Arthroscopic surgical outcomes of 47 high-level college, professional and high school group of athletes were examined by the authors. All study athletes aged 23 years played sports like ice hockey, soccer, baseball, swimming, lacrosse, field hockey, football, running, tennis, horseback riding and crew. These patients went through arthroscopic surgery and were analyzed for an average of 16 months to determine their ability of returning back to a high-level of competitive sport.
Nho explained, “Some people may be genetically inclined to develop FAI, but many athletes experience early on-set of symptoms of FAI because of their athletic activities require a high degree of motion and force through the joint. Symptoms of FAI symptoms include pain, limited range of motion, and for athletes, loss of the ability to compete at their top level.”
It was noted that traditional open hip surgery is a more invasive outpatient procedure as compared to hip arthroscopy. An incision of around 1 centimeter each may be made by surgeons for inserting a minute camera to view the inside of a joint. In making the repairs, tiny surgical instruments are employed. The study included patients diagnosed with a condition that occurs when the femoral head of the thigh bone rubs abnormally against the acetabulum, or cup-like socket of the hip joint, called as femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). The rubbing seemingly hampers the rim of the hip socket and the cartilage covering the hip bones.
The study was presented at the annual meeting of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine held in July in Providence, R.I.