Identifying Hip Arthroscopy Trends in Turkey

Background: Hip arthroscopy (HA) procedures have continued to increase worldwide. However, no data are currently available regarding the increasing HA case volume and trends in Turkey. Purpose: To identify trends in postoperative care habits and incidence of HA in Turkey using data from the national Health Coding Reference Server (SKRS) database. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: Patients who underwent HA and were recorded in the SKRS database between 2016 and 2023 were identified and retrospectively analyzed. Age, sex, institution type, geographic zone, and number of procedures were determined. The incidence of HA, overall annual case volume, chemoprophylaxis prescriptions, and postoperative care habits were also evaluated. The International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision codes for femoral neck fracture after the index procedure and total hip arthroplasty conversion rate were analyzed. The authors utilized Poisson regression to determine the ratios of before and after periods in comparison with the same periods. Statistical analysis was performed using the statistical package SPSS software. Results: In total, 1580 HA procedures were identified. The mean age of the included patients was 39.2 +/- 11.0 years (range, 18-65 years). Throughout the research period, an 833% increase in the number of surgeries was observed, whereas the incidence increased from 0.37 to 2.86 per 100,000 cases (P = .001). A significant annual increase in incidence was noted from 2017, 2018 and 2021 compared with the respective prior year. Moreover, 56.1% of all HA cases were performed in the Marmara region, whereas 47.7% of the cases were treated in private hospitals. Femoral neck fractures were encountered in 2 (0.1%) cases throughout the study duration. Enoxaparin sodium was the most preferred chemoprophylactic drug (99.4%). The 2-year total hip arthroplasty conversion rate was 3.5%. Conclusion: This study describes the current trends in HA across Turkey and provides a perspective on physician preferences. Notably, HA procedure counts, the ratio between HA and other orthopaedic procedures, and the incidence of HA demonstrated an increasing trend, with enormous potential for further advancement. These findings highlight the need for the creation of a national registry capable of obtaining more specific and accurate data.