Surgical treatment of hip dysplasia in children and adolescents.

Residual hip dysplasia (a relatively common condition in young children and adolescents) left undetected or partially treated, almost certainly leads to further progression of deformity, eventually ending in a nonfunctional, painful hip joint. Therefore, every effort should be made to identify and treat hip dysplasia early.The use of 3D imaging, including CT and MRI assessment, has enhanced the diagnosis and treatment of patients with dysplasia because they facilitate proper identification of important pathomorphologic anatomy and cartilage degeneration. Future studies should take these novel imaging modalities into consideration with the attempt to (re-) evaluate optimal selection criteria for surgery, risk factors for clinical failure and optimal deformity correction. Treatment of residual hip dysplasia requires corrective surgery. The goal of surgical treatment is to normalize joint loading by increasing the contact area and improving the level arm of the hip to forestall the development of OA. Proper selection and performance of a correction osteotomy and adjunctive procedures are prerequisites for a good clinical outcome and high survivorship of the reconstructed hip. Augmentation procedures, such as the Chiari osteotomy or the shelf procedure described by Staheli, remain as a salvage option in cases when irreversible cartilage damage is present or when reorientation is not feasible.