Table Of Contents
Anatomy of the Hip
The hip is a ball-and-socket joint where the head of the femur articulates with the acetabulum of the pelvis. The hip joint is more important for weight bearing rather than its range of motion (of which it still has a tremendous amount of).
Femoroacetabular Impingement (FAI)
Femoroacetabular impingement occurs from bony overgrowth (bone spurs) that prevent the femoral head and acetabulum from articulating normally againt one another. The bone spurs cause the anterior femoral head-neck junction to impinge against the anteriosuperior labrum.
Forms of femoroacetabular impingement
| Forms | Description |
|---|---|
| CAM lesion | Abnormal bony growth of the upper femoral head-neck junction |
| Pincer lesion | Abnormal bony growth of the upper acetabulum |
| Combination | CAM an pincer lesions. Most common (70%) |
- Signs and symptoms
- Groin or hip pain
- Exacerbated by hip flexion or prolonged sitting
- Decreased internal rotation that is out of proportion to the loss of other ranges of motion
- Groin or hip pain
- Investigations
- Plain radiograph: bone spurs may be visualized
- CT-scan: delineate bony anatomy and destructive bone changes
- MRI: rule out labral tears
- Non-operative treatment
- Physiotherapy
- Operative treatment
- Osteoplasty of the femoral neck or acetabulum
- Complications
- Labral tears
- Degenerative changes
- Osteoarthritis
