Cartilage Status at Time of Arthroscopy Predicts Failure in Patients With Hip Dysplasia

The purpose of our study was to determine whether chondral damage at the time of arthroscopy predicted conversion to THA in patients with dysplasia. We identified 166 patients with dysplasia who underwent hip arthroscopy. Forty-seven went on to receive THA. The articular cartilage of three regions of the acetabulum and femoral head were assessed for signs of chondral damage (absent, mild, or severe]). A stepwise multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed mild damage on the posterior femoral head (P = 0.001) and severe damage on the anterior acetabulum (P = 0.007) made a significant contribution to the predictor. The presence of mild posterior femoral head chondral changes was indicative of more global cartilage damage in this series of patients. Our findings show that chondral damage on the posterior femoral head and anterior acetabulum is a strong predictor of ultimate conversion to THA in dysplastic patients.