Duration Between Staged Bilateral Hip Arthroscopy Does Not Affect Outcomes in Patients With Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome

Purpose To evaluate whether the duration between staged bilateral hip arthroscopy affects patient‐reported outcomes, the rate of arthroscopic revision, or conversion to total hip arthroplasty. Methods A retrospective comparative case series was conducted of a single‐surgeon prospective database of patients who underwent hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome with a minimum of 2‐year follow‐up. Modified Harris Hip Score and Nonarthritic Hip Score were recorded preoperatively and 2 years postoperatively for each hip. For analysis, patients were allocated into 2 groups: staged procedures <1 year apart and ≥1 year apart. Results A total of 76 patients (152 hips) underwent staged bilateral primary hip arthroscopies. Overall, the mean age at the first surgery was 36.1 ± 13.1 years and the cohort was 59.2% women. Of these, 43 patients (56.6%) underwent staged procedures <1 year apart, whereas 33 patients (43.4%) were staged 1 year apart. Age ( P = .092), sex ( P = .828), and body mass index ( P = .867) did not significantly differ between groups. At 2‐year follow‐up, modified Harris Hip Score (first hip: 85.2 ± 17.9 vs 82.5 ± 13.3, P = .588; second hip: 84.7 ± 19.3 vs 79.3 ± 16.0, P = .514) and Nonarthritic Hip Score (first hip: 85.3 ± 19.1 vs 83.2 ± 12.4, P = .660; second hip: 86.5 ± 22.8 vs 84.9 ± 12.2, P = .823) were similar between groups staged <1 year and ≥1 year. There were no significant differences in rates of revision arthroscopy (7.0% vs 12.1%, P = .460) or conversion to total hip arthroplasty (4.7% vs 3.0%, P > .999) between groups staged <1 year and ≥1 year. Based on logistic regression, the duration between hip arthroscopy stages was not associated with the risk of arthroscopic failure (odds ratio: 1.29, P = .227). Conclusions There were no significant differences in patient‐reported outcomes, rates of revision arthroscopy, and conversion to total hip arthroplasty between patients who underwent staged bilateral hip arthroscopy less than or greater than 1 year apart. Duration of time between staged procedures was not found to affect rates of arthroscopic failure. Level of Evidence Level III, retrospective comparative case series.