Arthroscopic Capsule Reconstruction in the Hip Using Iliotibial Band Allograft

The hip capsule has been identified as an important static stabilizer of the hip joint. Despite the intrinsic bony stability of the hip socket, the capsule plays a key role in hip stability, particularly at the extremes of motion, and the iliofemoral ligament is the most important stabilizer in extension and external rotation. Patients who do not undergo capsular closure or plication may continue to complain of hip pain and dysfunction postoperatively, likely because of microinstability or muscle invagination into the capsular defect, and high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging or magnetic resonance arthrography will identify the capsular defect. Seen primarily in the revision setting, capsular defects can cause recurrent stress at the chondrolabral junction. An attempt at secondary closure can be challenging because of capsular limb adherence to the surrounding soft tissues. Therefore reconstruction may be the only possible surgical solution for this problem. We describe our new surgical technique for arthroscopic hip capsular reconstruction using iliotibial band allograft.