Outcomes of Staged Bilateral Hip Arthroscopic Surgery in the Context of Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome: A Nested Matched-Pair Control Study Focusing on the Effect of Time Between Procedures

Background: Bilateral hip symptoms from femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS) are a common finding in patients regardless of athletic involvement. Oftentimes, patients and surgeons choose to stage bilateral hip arthroscopic surgery. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was (1) to compare minimum 2-year outcomes between patients who underwent staged bilateral hip arthroscopic surgery for FAIS to a propensity score–matched control group that underwent unilateral hip arthroscopic surgery and (2) to investigate the effect of time between bilateral procedures on patient-reported outcomes (PROs). We hypothesized that, after bilateral hip arthroscopic surgery, the improvement in outcomes would be similar to that after unilateral hip arthroscopic surgery and the time duration between bilateral procedures would not affect the final outcome. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: Data were retrospectively reviewed on a consecutive series of patients who underwent primary hip arthroscopic surgery at our institution between June 2008 and November 2017. Patients who underwent bilateral hip arthroscopic surgery with minimum 2-year PROs for the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS), the Nonarthritic Hip Score (NAHS), the Hip Outcome Score–Sports Specific Subscale (HOS-SSS), patient satisfaction, and a visual analog scale (VAS) for pain were included. The study group was matched 1:1 based on age, sex, and body mass index to a control group that only required unilateral hip arthroscopic surgery. Additionally, a subanalysis was performed on the study group to determine the effect of time between arthroscopic procedures. Rates of achieving the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) and Patient Acceptable Symptom State (PASS) for the mHHS and HOS-SSS were determined. The P value was set at <.05. Results: A total of 205 patients (410 hips) were included. The mean age and body mass index of the study group were 32.3 ± 13.2 years and 25.0 ± 5.1, respectively. All 410 hips that met the inclusion criteria were matched. There were no significant differences in patient, radiographic, or procedural data. A significant and comparable improvement was reported for all PRO measures and the VAS ( P < .0001) in both groups. Similarly, rates of achieving the MCID and PASS were comparable. After dividing the study group based on whether the contralateral procedure was performed <3 months or >3 months after the first procedure, it was determined that patients had a significant improvement and favorable outcomes regardless of time between bilateral procedures. Conclusion: Patients who underwent unilateral and bilateral hip arthroscopic surgery for FAIS had a significant and comparable improvement in PROs at a minimum 2-year follow-up. A time interval of <3 months or >3 months between bilateral procedures did not affect PROs.