Abstract:Objective To assess the clinical and functional outcome of labral repair in patients undergoing arthroscopic surgery. Methods We performed a prospective analysis of 63 patients who had undergone hip arthroscopic repair of a torn acetabular labrum (24 men and 39 women; mean age, 36.7 years). The indication for surgery was groin pain due to various causes with or without associated mechanical symptoms that did not respond to operative treatment for more than 6 months and preoperative imaging examination and intraoperative arthroscopic examination confirmed the existence of hip labrum tear and no significant arthritis lesion (T?nnis level 1 or below). The mean duration of symptoms was 3.1 years (range, 0.5 to 11 years). The mean follow-up period was 26 months (range, 12 to 36 months). The outcome was prospectively measured with the modified Harris hip score (MHHS), hip outcome score (HOS) and hip outcome score-activities of daily living (HOS-ADL). Results Intraoperatively, all patients were diagnosed with labral pathology. The indication for surgery was femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) with cam deformity and a labral tear in 14 patients, FAI with pincer deformity and labral tear in 11 patients, FAI with both deformities in 27 patients, and isolated labral tear in 11 patients. Acetabular chondral lesions were present in 11 patients (17.46%). The mean preoperative and postoperative MHHS were 61.2 and 86.8, respectively (P < 0.05); the mean preoperative and postoperative HOS were 51.7 and 87.9, respectively (P < 0.05); and the mean preoperative and postoperative HOS-ADL were 45.8% and 74.6%, respectively (P < 0.05). These differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusions Arthroscopic management of FAI and labral repair in patients without significant arthritis (T?nnis level 1 or below) are associated with significant improvement in outcome. Because of the importance of the labrum for long-term hip joint integrity, we advocate to repair the labrum as far as possible.