IC 12-2025 Sports-Specific Approach to the Athlete's Hip (CME)-IC 12-2025 Sports-Specific Approach to the Athlete's Hip (CME)

Video Transcription

Video Summary

This instructional course addressed hip pain in athletes through a sports-specific lens, emphasizing individualized approaches to diagnosis, treatment, and return to play. Dr. Thomas Bird discussed hip issues in contact/collision sports like football and rugby, highlighting femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) as a prevalent structural problem often developing since childhood. He stressed early diagnosis, appropriate rehab, judicious corticosteroid use, and timely surgery when symptoms worsen to prevent progression and improve outcomes. Long-term hip arthritis is common in retired football players.<br /><br />Mark Philippon focused on laxity athletes (dancers, gymnasts, figure skaters), who often have ligamentous laxity and micro-instability requiring careful evaluation and treatments such as labral repair/reconstruction, capsule repair or augmentation, and ligamentum teres reconstruction. He emphasized the importance of addressing collagen disorders and muscle balance to improve function and return-to-sport rates (~95%).<br /><br />Steve Aoki presented on cutting/pivoting sports (basketball, soccer, hockey), underlining the hip’s complex biomechanics and high load during rapid direction changes. Common injuries include adductor strains, core injuries, osteitis pubis, and FAI. He stressed that cutting and pivoting generate significant joint forces, impacting injury risk and surgical outcomes. Early intervention is recommended if symptoms worsen.<br /><br />The course concluded with a discussion on unilateral arm-dominant athletes (baseball, tennis, volleyball), where hip range of motion and strength profoundly impact kinetic chain function, injury risk, and performance. Studies showed loss of hip internal rotation correlates with upper extremity injuries. Hip arthroscopy outcomes are promising with high return-to-sport rates, although return to pre-injury performance may vary.<br /><br />Overall, the panel emphasized the importance of early recognition, tailored conservative management, informed shared decision-making regarding surgery timing, and addressing sport-specific biomechanical demands to optimize long-term hip health and athletic performance.

Keywords

hip pain

athletes

femoroacetabular impingement

ligamentous laxity

labral repair

cutting and pivoting sports

hip biomechanics

kinetic chain

hip arthroscopy

return to sport