Hold The Hip Shaving, At Least Until We Know It Works

Very healthy skeptic and amateur runner (not to mention New York Times health writer) Gina Kolata has some advice for those considering the increasingly popular hip surgery known as hip impingement or bone shaving: hold off until we know it works. Lots of well known athletes (Alex Rodriguez) have not held off, and many who have had the expensive (about $10,000) operation swear that it has relieved their pain. Still, says Kolata, sports medicine researchers are unconvinced, mainly because the procedure is actually two procedures: a shaving of the hip bone and a repair of tissue that has been torn by the irregular bone. Could it be that the tissue repair alone would provide as much relief as the shaving and repair? Lots of questions, says Kolata. Few answers. Read more in the New York Times.