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Hip Arthroscopy & Preservation

Hip Arthroscopy: Fixing the Problem Inside Your Hip Through Small Incisions

What is hip arthroscopy and what can it fix?

Hip arthroscopy is an outpatient surgery that uses a small camera and slim instruments, placed through two or three small incisions, to treat problems inside the hip joint. It is most often used to repair a torn labrum, reshape bone that causes impingement (FAI) and remove loose bodies, while keeping your natural hip.

The hip sits deep under thick muscle, so for years fixing anything inside it meant a large open operation. Hip arthroscopy changed that. Through a few small incisions, Dr. Stride can see the labrum, cartilage and bone shape directly and treat what is causing your groin pain, catching or clicking.

Written and medically reviewed by Dr. Stride, MD, board-certified orthopedic surgeon
Last reviewed October 2026
Runner on a park trail holding the outside of his hip

At a glance

Also called
hip scope, arthroscopic hip surgery, minimally invasive hip surgery, keyhole hip surgery
Typical recovery
Months 4 to 6
Ask about Hip Arthroscopy →(713) 555-0168

Is this right for you?

Usually a good fit if

  • Groin pain with clicking, locking or catching that has not settled after 3 months of physical therapy
  • A labral tear on MRI that matches what Dr. Stride finds on exam
  • Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) in an active adult with healthy joint cartilage
  • Loose fragments of cartilage or bone floating in the joint

Another option may be better if

  • Moderate or advanced hip arthritis, where a scope tends to give little lasting relief and replacement is often the better answer
  • Pain that is really coming from the lower back or the outside of the hip
  • Severe hip dysplasia (a shallow socket) that needs the socket itself corrected

What happens, step by step

  1. Pinning down the source

    At your visit, Dr. Stride checks hip rotation and runs the FADIR and FABER tests, then examines your lower back so spine pain is not mistaken for a hip problem. X-rays show bone shape and joint space, and an MRI or MR arthrogram shows the labrum. A numbing injection may be used to prove the pain starts inside the joint.

  2. Gentle traction

    Under anesthesia, your leg is placed in gentle traction to open a small space in the ball-and-socket joint. This lets the camera and instruments move safely without scraping the cartilage.

  3. Repair inside the joint

    Through two or three incisions about a centimeter long, the torn labrum is stitched back to the socket rim with small anchors, bone spurs causing impingement are shaved down, and loose pieces are removed. The joint is checked through its full motion before finishing.

  4. Home the same day

    Most patients go home a few hours later with crutches, a written rehab plan and physical therapy scheduled within the first week.

Typical recovery timeline

Weeks 1 to 2

Crutches with partial weight, a stationary bike with no resistance, and gentle motion exercises. Many patients sleep better within days because the catching pain is gone.

Weeks 2 to 6

Crutches are weaned once you walk without a limp. Desk workers often return to work in 1 to 2 weeks. Driving resumes when you are off narcotic pain medicine and can brake firmly.

Weeks 6 to 12

Strength work for the glutes and core builds in physical therapy. Swimming and the elliptical come back.

Months 3 to 4

Light jogging, golf swings and a gradual return to the gym, based on strength and control rather than the calendar.

Months 4 to 6

Pickleball, running programs, dance and cutting sports for most patients, once single-leg strength looks right on testing.

Timelines are typical ranges. Your plan depends on your hip, your health and what was done in surgery.

“A hip scope is a great operation on the right hip and a disappointing one on the wrong hip. My job is to tell you which one you have before anyone books an OR. If your cartilage is still healthy, I want to protect it for the next few decades.”

Dr. Stride, MD

Frequently asked questions

Is hip arthroscopy a major surgery?

Hip arthroscopy is done through small incisions and most patients go home the same day, but it is real surgery on a deep joint. Expect crutches for about 2 to 4 weeks and a structured rehab program lasting several months.

How long does it take to recover from hip arthroscopy?

Most people are walking normally by 4 to 6 weeks and back to everyday activity by 3 months. A full return to running or cutting sports typically takes 4 to 6 months, and the hip keeps improving for up to a year.

Can hip arthroscopy prevent arthritis?

Correcting impingement and repairing the labrum may reduce ongoing wear on the cartilage, and that is part of the reason to treat a young hip. It cannot reverse arthritis that is already established, which is why careful selection matters.

Why do you need physical therapy before a hip scope?

Many labral tears and impingement symptoms calm down with targeted therapy, and some people avoid surgery entirely. If surgery is still needed, stronger hips and core muscles going in usually mean a smoother recovery.

Related treatments

Preservation

Hip Labral Repair

Hip labral repair is an arthroscopic surgery that reattaches a torn labrum, the ring of cartilage around the hip socket, using small anchors.

Read more →Preservation

FAI Surgery

FAI surgery is an arthroscopic procedure that reshapes extra bone on the ball (cam) or rim of the socket (pincer) so the hip stops pinching when it bends and rotates.

Read more →Diagnosis

Diagnostic Hip Injection

A diagnostic hip injection places a numbing medicine directly into the hip joint under ultrasound or X-ray guidance.

Read more →Non-surgical

Hip Physical Therapy

Physical therapy helps many types of hip pain, including arthritis, gluteal tendinopathy, hip impingement and many labral tears.

Read more →Compare

Arthroscopy vs Replacement

Hip arthroscopy and hip replacement treat different problems.

See the comparison →Compare

Surgery vs Physical Therapy

Many hip labral tears improve with physical therapy and activity changes, so a structured therapy trial of about 3 months usually comes first.

See the comparison →

Hip pain this can help with

Hip pain · symptom

Hip Clicking, Popping and Snapping

Hip clicking or snapping, called snapping hip syndrome or coxa saltans, usually comes from a tendon sliding over bone.

Causes & treatment →
From the Hip Health Library

Questions patients ask about this

All guides →
Runner on a park trail holding the outside of his hip
Treatment & Recovery

Hip Arthroscopy Recovery Time: What Really Happens

Most people use crutches for 2 to 6 weeks after hip arthroscopy, return to desk work within 1 to 2 weeks, and recover over about 4 to 6 months.

5 min read Read
Active older adult playing pickleball
Tears & Injuries

Hip Impingement (FAI) Symptoms in Active Adults

Hip impingement usually causes a deep ache or sharp pain in the groin, sometimes toward the outside of the hip.

6 min read Read
Woman in a low lunge stretching the front of the hip
Pain & Warning Signs

Is It Normal for Your Hips to Pop?

Yes, hip popping is often normal.

6 min read Read
SourcesReferences used for this page3

Medically reviewed by Dr. Stride, MD against current guidance from these sources. Last reviewed October 2026. How we write and review content

  1. Hip Arthroscopy (opens in a new tab) AAOS OrthoInfo
  2. Hip arthroscopy (opens in a new tab) MedlinePlus
  3. Hip Preservation for Young Adults (opens in a new tab) Cleveland Clinic
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