High or low return to sport rates following hip arthroscopy is a matter of definition?

Correspondence to Tobias Wörner, Department of Health Sciences, Lund University, Lund SE-22100, Sweden; tobias.worner@med.lu.se A 2018 meta-analysis reports an overall return to sports (RTS) rate of 91% and high patient satisfaction following hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (‘arthroscopy’ in this paper).1 Even though three in four athletes were reported to return to pre-injury levels of sports, it remains unknown if they also reach their pre-injury level of performance. [...]in light of our findings, previously reported RTS rates of 91%1 appear realistic in relation to a return to participation but overly optimistic in relation to return to pre-injury level of sport and performance. Considering the rapid increase in performed arthroscopies5 and patient expectations that often exceed realistic outcomes,6 the increasing importance of providing accurate information to the rising number of patients presenting to our clinics, applicable to their individual goals regarding RTS, should be acknowledged.