Objective: Arthroscopic surgery is recommended for the treatment of hip synovial chondromatosis, as it allows patients to resume daily activities quickly and requires only a short rehabilitation period. Despite its advantages, there is currently no standardized protocol for arthroscopic hip synovectomy, and complete removal of intra-articular loose bodies remains challenging. The objective of this study is to evaluate long-term clinical outcomes of arthroscopic treatment for hip synovial chondromatosis using a standardized protocol based on clock-face-guided, imaging-based lesion localization.
Methods: A consecutive cohort of patients undergoing arthroscopic treatment and diagnosed with synovial chondromatosis between June 2016 and July 2019 was included in the study. All patients underwent preoperative imaging-guided localization of loose bodies followed by arthroscopic removal performed by a single surgeon, with a minimum postoperative follow-up of 30 months. Preoperative and postoperative assessments included standard radiographs (x-ray), three-dimensional computed tomography (3D-CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), intraoperative arthroscopic images, visual analog scale (VAS) for pain, range of motion (ROM), modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS), and International Hip Outcome Tool (iHOT-12). The percentage of patients achieving the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) was calculated to summarize and compare differences in clinical outcomes.
Results: Seventeen patients were enrolled, with a mean postoperative follow-up duration of 71 months. No major complications were observed. Patients achieved weight-bearing ambulation at a mean of 7 days postoperatively and were discharged at a median of 2.5 days (range: 1–3 days). PROs demonstrated significant improvements: VAS for pain decreased from 7.6 to 2.1, mHHS increased from 54.6 preoperatively to 89.4 postoperatively, and iHOT-12 improved from 38.1 to 75.2 (all p < 0.001). At long-term follow-up, all patients met MCID thresholds for both mHHS and iHOT-12 scores.
Conclusion: Arthroscopic treatment using a standardized protocol can result in favorable long-term clinical outcomes.
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