Prevalence of radiologic acetabular dysplasia in asymptomatic Asian volunteers

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of acetabular dysplasia in an asymptomatic Asian population as one of the most important risk factors of hip osteoarthritis. From December 2014 to March 2015, we investigated the data of 200 asymptomatic volunteers (400 hips) aged 18-50 years recruited from our institution. Pelvic radiographs were taken and reviewed by two experienced orthopaedic surgeons. Lateral centre-edge (LCE) angle, Sharp angle, Tonnis angle and acetabular depth-to-width ratio (AD/WR) were measured. We investigated the mean values and identified the statistical differences between the sexes and evaluated the prevalence and bilaterality of acetabular dysplasia defined by each parameter. Mean LCE angle, Sharp angle, Tonnis angle and AD/WR were 26.2 degrees, 41.3 degrees, 8.5 degrees and 0.28, respectively. All parameters showed more dysplastic results in females than in males and were statistically significantly different, except for AD/WR. When defined acetabular dysplasia as LCE angle <20 degrees, Sharp angle >45 degrees, Tonnis angle >14 degrees or AD/WR <0.25, the prevalence of acetabular dysplasia by each parameter was 15.0%, 12.8%, 13.3% and 12.8%, respectively. There was a higher prevalence in females than in males; however, only Sharp and Tonnis angles showed significant differences. The bilaterality of acetabular dysplasia was 18.6-39.5% for all subjects. There is high prevalence of asymptomatic dysplastic hips in the Asian population.