Abstract
Objectives:
Women of reproductive age are among the most frequent recipients of hip arthroscopic procedures in the U.S., and anecdotal evidence suggests that some female patients consider pregnancy a factor in their decision to undergo, delay, or avoid such surgeries. In addition, anatomical changes during pregnancy may exacerbate existing hip pathologies such as femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) and labral tears, potentially leading to greater pain and risk of complications during gestation, labor, and delivery. However, the impact of hip pain and arthroscopy on pregnancy-related decision-making and outcomes is poorly understood. The aims of this study were to determine (1) how pregnancy planning affected patients’ decisions to pursue hip arthroscopy, (2) whether undergoing hip arthroscopy affected hip pain before and after pregnancy, and (3) whether hip arthroscopy was associated with any pregnancy-related complications.
Methods:
We retrospectively studied female patients aged 18-45 years who underwent hip arthroscopy for the treatment of FAI and/or labral tears at our center from 2010-2021. Subjects were identified using a prospectively-collected single-surgeon database. Eligible subjects were administered an electronic survey that assessed obstetrical history, concerns about how their hip pain and/or the process of undergoing hip arthroscopy could affect future pregnancies, location and intensity of hip pain at various time points (before surgery, after surgery, during pregnancy), and complications experienced during pregnancy. Hip pain intensity was reported on a 10-point Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Subjects also completed the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS). Continuous variables were compared within groups with Wilcoxon signed rank test and between groups with Kruskal-Wallis test. Fisher’s exact test was used to compare categorical variables between groups. P-values < 0.05 were considered significant.
Results:
A total of 86 patients completed the survey. Mean age at time of surgery was 32.3 ± 6.4 years (range 18 - 45), mean BMI was 24.5 ± 4.7 (range 18.7 – 39.8), and mean follow-up time was 52.0 ± 34.3 months (range 6 – 146). 47 patients (54.7%) had been pregnant at least once. Half of the cohort reported moderate or high concern that their hip pain would worsen during a future pregnancy, while a slight majority felt that hip surgery would not raise their risk of complications during pregnancy (56.0%) or impair hip function after pregnancy (51.2%). 27 patients (31.4%) had become pregnant after hip surgery at an average of 6.3 ± 1.4 months (range 2 – 8) postoperative, of whom 13 (48.2%) cited hip pain as a factor in getting surgery before pregnancy and 9 (33.3%) reported delaying a planned pregnancy to undergo surgery. Patients who became pregnant after surgery experienced a significant increase in VAS hip pain during pregnancy (p = 0.02), most commonly during the third trimester, though pain resolved after pregnancy in most (19 of 27, 70.4%). Five patients (5 of 27, 18.5%) experienced a miscarriage and the most common complication reported was vaginal/perineal tear (13 of 27, 48.1%). Of the 39 nulligravid patients, 28 (71.2%) were considering a future pregnancy and 32 (84.2%) did not consider hip pain to be a factor in their nulligravid status. There was no significant difference in mHHS at latest follow-up between nulligravid patients, patients who had not been pregnant since hip surgery, and patients who got pregnant after hip surgery (mean 79.6 vs 80.0 vs 79.6, p = 0.94).
Conclusions:
Most female hip arthroscopy patients were not concerned that their surgery would have a negative impact on their pregnancy outcomes or hip function after pregnancy. Within the hip arthroscopy population, although hip pain was exacerbated during pregnancy, most patients experienced a resolution of pain following delivery. Pregnancy-related complications did not occur more frequently in the hip arthroscopy cohort compared to the wider U.S. population. Patient-reported hip outcomes were comparable between nulligravid women and those who had only been pregnant prior to surgery.