Arthroscopy: The Journal of Arthroscopic & Related Surgery
Original articlesMagnetic resonance imaging of the hip: Detection of labral and chondral abnormalities using noncontrast imaging
Section snippets
Patient selection
To find patients in whom we could directly compare MRI with arthroscopic results, we reviewed the records of patients who had MRI and subsequent arthroscopy of the hip at our institution from January 1997 to July 2000. These patients were found by cross-referencing an MRI database and the hospital’s radiology report system with the records of 2 surgeons who perform hip arthroscopy at our institution. We excluded patients for whom a comprehensive surgical record, including arthroscopic pictures
Results
The study group comprised 92 patients with 58 women (63%) and 34 men (37%). The mean patient age was 38.5 years (range, 15 to 74 years). There were 56 (61%) right hips and 36 (39%) left hips. The average interval between MRI and arthroscopy was 93 days (range, 1 to 562 days).
Discussion
The acetabular labrum is a fibrocartilaginous ring that surrounds the bony acetabulum and blends inferiorly with the transverse acetabular ligament. It increases the joint surface area by adding depth to the acetabulum, and thereby reduces mechanical stress on the articular cartilage.9, 10
The labrum consists of densely packed collagen bundles that are more loosely organized when compared with the meniscus of the knee.11 Electron microscopy divides the labrum into 3 distinct layers, of which the
Conclusion
In conclusion, MRI offers a noninvasive method to screen patients with symptoms referable to the hip by revealing the presence of focal chondral lesions and labral tears. This preserves hip arthroscopy as a therapeutic, rather than diagnostic, tool.
Acknowledgment
The authors thank Dr. Margaret Peterson for her help in the statistical analysis of the data from this project.
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