Hip arthroscopy is a well-established technique becoming more and more an indispensable tool in institutions specialized in hip diseases. Several surgeons around the world have developed and refined the proper instruments and the surgical technique for this operation. By now, the indications have been well formulated for both diagnostic and interventional purposes.

My personal experience is of 98 hip arthroscopies performed in the last 6 years. Most common preoperative indication has been chronic hip pain after failure of conservative treatment. Other indications or arthroscopic findings have been: labral pathology, hip dysplasia, synovial chondromatosis, initial osteoarthritis, calcium pyrophosphate disease, ligamentum teres damage, chondral damage, post-traumatic loose bodies, avascular necrosis, sepsis, villonodular synovitis.

More recent, indications for hip arthroscopy are staging of avascular necrosis of the femoral head and shaving of polyethylene debris after total hip replacement.

Contraindications to arthroscopy include recent fracture of the pelvis osteoarthritis with osteophytosis, AVN with head collapse.

Hip arthroscopy can facilitate both comprehensive access to and treatment of an evolving series of conditions that affect the hip joint. Purpose of this presentation is to show the surgical technique and present the results obtained. New indications and potential future evolutions are also discussed.