Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on hip surgery in Japan: An analysis using National Database Open Data

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic significantly disrupted surgical services worldwide. This study aimed to assess the pandemic's impact on hip surgeries in Japan using data from the National Database of Health Insurance Claims and Specific Health Checkups of Japan (NDB). Five types of hip surgery were analyzed, including total hip arthroplasty (THA), pelvic osteotomy, femoral osteotomy, hip arthroscopic synovectomy, and hip arthroscopic labral repair, based on NDB Open Data from 2014 to 2022. Annual procedure counts were examined, and percentage changes were calculated for 2019–2020, 2020–2022, and 2019–2022. Poisson regression was used to evaluate temporal trends. The total number of hip surgeries declined in 2020 compared with 2019 but rebounded by 2021 and exceeded pre-pandemic levels in 2022. During the observation period, THA and arthroscopic labral repair showed significant upward trends ( p ​< ​0.0001 and p ​= ​0.0033, respectively), while pelvic osteotomy, femoral osteotomy, and arthroscopic synovectomy declined ( p ​< ​0.0001 for all). THA was the least affected by the pandemic. Arthroscopic labral repair showed the greatest post-pandemic growth, whereas pelvic osteotomy showed a persistent decline, remaining below pre-pandemic levels in 2022. THA and arthroscopic labral repair recovered and increased during the later phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, while pelvic and femoral osteotomy experienced a decline and have not recovered. Although the trends might be temporary rather than sustained, the pandemic may have significantly impacted the strategy for hip disorders in Japan. Ongoing monitoring of these trends over the long term is warranted. • The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted surgical services worldwide. • This study assessed the pandemic's impact on hip surgeries using Japanese NDB data. • Total hip arthroplasty and arthroscopic labral repair increased after the COVID-19 pandemic. • Conversely, pelvic osteotomy experienced a sustained decline. • The pandemic may have led to lasting changes in hip surgery trends in Japan.