Nonoperative management of acetabular labral tear in a skeletally immature figure skater

Abstract

Acetabular labral tear is an uncommon cause of hip pain in the skeletally immature athlete. Treatment outcomes have mostly been described in the surgical literature. We present a case report of a premenarchal 12-year-old figure skater who was diagnosed with an isolated acetabular labral tear without hip deformity. With nonoperative treatment, she was able to return to pain-free competitive figure skating 4 months after her onset of symptoms. Our findings suggest that acetabular labral tears in the skeletally immature athlete can respond to a trial of nonoperative management.