Femoroacetabular impingement syndrome

OBJECTIVE To provide family physicians with an approach to the diagnosis and management of nonarthritic hip pain in young adults, which might occur as a result of femoroacetabular impingement syndrome.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION A MEDLINE search from 1950 to April 2007 was carried out using the MeSH terms femoroacetabular, impingement, hip, and syndrome. The existing literature consists of level II studies. To date, randomized controlled trials have not been carried out.

MAIN MESSAGE Nonarthritic hip pain in the active adult population has long been a difficult clinical problem to manage. Arthroplasty is rarely an appropriate option and the usual conservative therapies for musculoskeletal problems are frequently ineffective. Recently, abnormal impingement between the acetabulum and femoral head-neck junction, or femoroacetabular impingement syndrome, has been recognized as a relatively common and possibly prearthritic cause of these symptoms. Family physicians can identify these patients by recognizing the clinical history and through specific examination findings. Emerging evidence suggests that early surgical intervention improves function and perhaps prevents or delays the onset of degenerative changes in the hip joint.

CONCLUSION Family physicians can identify patients with possible femoroacetabular impingement syndrome and play an important role in the appropriate management of these cases.