Purpose: Surgical hip dislocation (SHD) and hip arthroscopy are surgical methods used to correct deformity associated with femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). Though both of these approaches appear to benefit patients, no studies exist comparing healthcare resource utilization of the two surgical approaches. This systematic review examines the literature and the records of two surgeons to evaluate the resource utilization associated with treating symptomatic FAI via these two methods.
Methods: EMBASE, MEDLINE and PubMed were searched for relevant articles. The articles were systematically screened, and data was abstracted in duplicate. To further supplement resource utilization data, a retrospective chart review of two surgeon's patient data (one using SHD and another using an arthroscopic approach) was completed. Experts in pharmacy, physiotherapy, radiology, anaesthesia, physiatry and the local hospital finance department were also consulted.
Results: There were 52 studies included with a total of 460 patients (535 hips) and 3886 patients (4147 hips) who underwent SHD and arthroscopic surgery for FAI, respectively. Regardless of approach, most patients treated for symptomatic FAI improved across various outcomes measures with low complication rates. Surgical time across all approaches was similar, averaging 118 ± 2 min. On a per patient basis, hip arthroscopy ($10,976) uses approximately 41 % of the resources of SHD ($24,379).
Conclusion: There were no significant differences in outcomes for FAI treated with SHD or arthroscopy. However, with regard to healthcare resource utilization based on the OHIP healthcare system, hip arthroscopy uses substantially less resources than SHD within the first post-operative year.
Level of evidence: Systematic Review of Level IV Studies, Level IV.
Keywords: Cost; Femoroacetabular impingement; Outcomes; Quality; Resource utilization.