The signs of acetabular dysplasia may be present on X-rays and scans, and may be completely unrelated to the symptoms you are having.  Therefore it is wise to be checked by a hip specialist to determine what the cause of your pain is.

In many cases your symptoms may respond to non-operative treatment such as activity modification, medications, injections and hip physiotherapy programs.

As the underlying problem with acetabular retroversion is one of the hip joint being malpositioned, it may require correction with surgery. Having an acetabular retroversion treatment may involve either arthroscopic trimming of the bone, or osteotomy (cutting the pelvis and realigning it). In many cases the best option is to reorient the pelvis via an osteotomy (bone realignment procedure) to change the direction the hip joint (socket) is facing and use the existing hip joint to more appropriately cover the femoral head (ball).  Both these procedures are technically complex and require careful patient selection.  There are many advantages and disadvantages to each option, including the recovery time, correction obtained, ability to deal with other associated hip pathology, and the need for metal fixation removal.

If significant hip arthritis is present, or if you are older, then treatment may require a total hip replacement.

If you are suffering from hip pain, and consider that you may have acetabular retroversion, please contact Dr Slattery’s Melbourne rooms to schedule an appointment to talk about femoral retroversion on 03 5752 5020.