Abstract
Background:
The diagnostic criteria for surgical indication of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) remain controversial. With a growing body of literature investigating the quality of these criteria, little is known about the direction that these have had on changes of third-party policies. The purpose of this study was to measure how these changes in policy would affect the exclusion of a cohort of previously identified FAI patients who were treated operatively.
Methods:
Four insurance companies’ coverage policies with specific criteria for the surgical treatment of FAI were applied to this population at two time points, 2012 and 2018, to determine whether these third-party payer criteria for FAI surgery were met. The insurance criteria were assessed in a prospective multicenter cohort of 712 patients undergoing primary FAI surgery. The policies listed various combinations of age, symptom duration, positive impingement test, radiographic osteoarthritis, radiographic sign of CAM and/or pincer impingement, and physical exam findings.
Results:
The cohort of 712 hips included 324 men [45.5%] and 388 females [54.5] with a mean age of 28.7 years. Overall, insurance criteria were not met in: Insurance #1 old 30.1%, new 25.7%; Insurance #2 old and new 17.8%, Insurance #3 old 21.9%, new 21.1%; and Insurance #4 old 17.8%, new 14.9%-20.6%. In 2012, the average percent exclusion of the four companies was 21.9%, this number decreased slightly to 20.6% overall in 2018. The most likely reason to be excluded was found to be failure to meet imaging criteria. The second most likely failed characteristic was a negative impingement test (65 patients excluded). Several insurance companies continue to utilize Outerbridge criteria for cartilage lesions which cannot be assessed preoperatively.
Discussion and Conclusion:
The diagnosis of FAI and its surgical indications have no definitive set criteria. Our study shows that with a six-year span of growing literature and updated policies, nearly 1 in 5 patients deemed to need surgical intervention by experienced hip preservation surgeons would still be denied coverage. There is a need for continued improvement of consensus regarding the diagnosis of FAI and appropriate indications for surgical intervention based on the available literature.