Therapeutic hip arthroscopy for the treatment of chondral degeneration remains controversial. A retrospective cohort study examined 70 patients of mean age 47 (range 22–87) years who had undergone hip arthroscopy and assessed them for evidence of chondral degeneration using radiological and arthroscopic means. Clinical outcome was assessed using a modified Farjo and Glick classification. Thirty-nine patients had evidence of chondral degeneration on arthroscopy with or without radiological diagnosis, and 31 had alternative pathology. If patients were found to have chondral degeneration at arthroscopy, they were significantly more likely to have a poor clinical result than if an alternative diagnosis such as a loose body or labral tear was made (p<0.0001). Patients with evidence of degenerative changes on plain hip radiographs were significantly more likely to have a poor clinical result following hip arthroscopy than patients with unremarkable hip radiographs (p<0.0001). Therapeutic hip arthroscopy for osteoarthritis should be used with caution, as a poor clinical result is significantly more likely compared to other pathologies such as a labral tear or loose body.
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