Structured physical therapy protocols following hip arthroscopy and their effect on patient-reported outcomes—a systematic review of the literature

: The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of structured physical therapy protocols on patient-reported outcomes (PROs) following hip arthroscopy. A literature search was completed in October 2019 according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines to identify articles reporting specific rehabilitation protocols following hip arthroscopy that document PROs. Studies meeting all inclusion and exclusion were reviewed and data were extracted. Six studies were included in analysis. The mean age was 34.7% and 56.6% were males. Five studies described rehabilitation protocols in phases with specific goals and progression criteria. All studies included range of motion (ROM) and weight-bearing (WB) precautions. Return to sport (RTS)/activity varied between 7 and 32 weeks. The studies used variations of 21 different PROs. Significant improvements in baseline and post-operative PROs noted across studies. Rehabilitation protocols following hip arthroscopy typically consist of 4–5 phase programs with set goals and progression criteria. Several commonalities existed between studies on WB, ROM precautions and gait normalization. However, timing and recommendations for RTS/return to work varied between studies and were dependent on the concomitant procedures performed as well as type of patient population. Clinically significant improvement in PROs from baseline noted in majority of the studies reviewed that involved a structured rehabilitation program following arthroscopic management of femoroacetabular impingement. As there is heterogeneity in patient-specific characteristics across the included studies, no determination can be made as to which protocol is most effective and further high-quality comparative studies are needed. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Adopting phase-based rehabilitation protocols following arthroscopic femoroacetabular impingement treatment help achieve improved outcomes that are predictable