Deep Gluteal Pain in Orthopaedics: A Challenging Diagnosis

Hip External Rotation Decreases Ischiofemoral Distance: A Positive Correlation Between Cadaveric and Fluoroscopic Studies

PURPOSE

To determine the effect of hip external rotation or extension/adduction on minimizing the ischiofemoral distance (IFD) and assess the correlation between cadaveric and fluoroscopic IFD measurements in different hip positions.

METHODS

This cadaveric study involved 33 hip joints from 17 embalmed cadavers. IFD, the distance between the lesser trochanter and lateral ischium, was measured in different hip positions: neutral, external rotation at 30°, and external rotation at 60° with the hip in both neutral extension and adduction as well as 10° hip extension and 10° hip adduction. Differences in IFD related to positions and correlation between cadaveric and fluoroscopic measurements were analyzed.

RESULTS

IFD measurements showed that the greatest reduction occurred at 60° of external hip rotation, with a significant difference observed only between neutral and 60° external rotation in cadaveric groups (7.60 ± 4.68 vs 5.05 ± 3.48, 95% CI, 0.14-4.96; P = .036). No substantial difference was observed between the extension and adduction positions. Positive correlations were observed between cadaveric and fluoroscopic measurements, especially in the neutral position (r = 0.492, P = .004), external rotation at 30° (r = 0.52, P = .002), external rotation at 60° (r = 0.419, P = .015), and the extension/adduction positions combined with neutral rotation (r = 0.396, P = .023).

CONCLUSIONS

The IFD significantly decreased with increasing degrees of hip external rotation, particularly at 60°. No significant reduction was observed in the extension/adduction positions. In addition, positive correlations were observed between cadaveric and fluoroscopic measurements for specific hip positions: neutral rotation, external rotation at 30° and 60°, and extension/adduction at 10° with neutral rotation.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Surgeons can use this knowledge to improve hip impingement assessment through radiography, focusing on positions in which IFD reduction is most notable. Understanding the relationship between hip positions and IFD can enhance the diagnosis of ischiofemoral impingement syndrome and benefit patient care and outcomes.

Comprehensive Open Management of Buttock/Ischiofemoral Symptoms: The COMBIS Procedure for Posterior Hip Pain

Background:

Posterior hip and buttock pain can arise from several overlapping but distinct etiologies. Ischiofemoral impingement, sciatic neuropathy, and proximal hamstring tendinopathy, occurring alone or in combination, have been implicated as precipitants. However, diagnosis and management of underlying pathology can be challenging, as few diagnostic modalities reliably differentiate between these etiologies and surgeon decision-making may be complicated by uncertainty over which pathology to address.

Indications:

Posterior hip and buttock pain which occurs in a sciatic nerve distribution and is refractory to conservative measures (eg, physical therapy, analgesics, and activity modification) raises suspicion for 1 or several of the above pathologies. A combined procedure to address all 3—ischiofemoral decompression, sciatic neurolysis, and proximal hamstring repair—is described here.

Technique Description:

The patient is placed prone on a radiolucent table. An incision is made, and dissection is taken down through the superficial layers of the buttock, gluteal fascia, and fascia overlying the proximal hamstring tendons. The sciatic nerve is identified, mobilized, and lysed using blunt dissection. The fascia overlying the ischium is incised and the tendinous insertion decorticated with rongeur. Two anchors are placed, and sutures are passed through the proximal hamstring tendon in mattress fashion. An incision is made in line with the external rotators and dissection is taken down to the lesser trochanter. The lesser trochanter is identified, and osteotomy performed, with mobilization and removal of the resected fragment. The interval in the external rotators is closed with interrupted suture.

Results:

This is an uncommon procedure with little data on patient outcomes. Nonetheless, it is effective for relief of symptoms related to the pathologies enumerated above. Keys to success include careful diagnosis and comfort with surgical technique.

Conclusion:

The COMBIS procedure simultaneously addresses 3 common etiologies of posterior hip and buttock pain. Although it is important to conduct a thorough diagnostic evaluation to rule out imitators, patients with symptoms due to ischiofemoral impingement, sciatic neuropathy, proximal hamstring tendinopathy, or combination thereof may experience good relief of symptoms with appropriate application of this technique. The author(s) attests that consent has been obtained from any patient(s) appearing in this publication. If the individual may be identifiable, the author(s) has included a statement of release or other written form of approval from the patient(s) with this submission for publication.

Endoscopic Sciatic Neurolysis for Deep Gluteal Syndrome: A Systematic Review

Deep gluteal syndrome (DGS) is an underdiagnosed condition caused by an extra-spinal entrapment of the sciatic nerve in the deep gluteal space. Symptomatic patients who fail conservative treatment require surgical decompression of the nerve either by an open or endoscopic approach. In recent times, there has been an increasing trend towards minimally invasive surgery performed with endoscopic techniques. This systematic review aimed to assess the effectiveness of endoscopic sciatic nerve decompression in the management of DGS. A comprehensive search of the PubMed, Web of Science, Cumulated Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), and SPORTDiscus databases were performed on January 3, 2022. All English-language clinical studies on DGS treated with endoscopic surgical decompression were included. The initial search criteria identified 145 articles, of which four studies were available for the final review. There was one level III evidence, while the remaining three were level IV, comprising 144 patients with a mean age of 46 years. The Coleman methodology score (CMS) was utilized to assess the quality of the studies and the mean score was 62 (range, 52 to 71). The presence of fibrovascular bands and bursal tissue was the most common cause of DGS, followed by musculotendinous structures. The average follow-up of the included studies was 26.3 months (range, 12 to 32 months). Less favorable outcomes were seen in patients with major traumatic sciatic neuropathies after fractures or open reconstructive hip surgeries. Conversion to formal open surgery was recorded in one case of DGS caused by sciatic nerve schwannoma due to poor endoscopic access. One patient developed postoperative recurrent sciatic nerve entrapment due to a foreign body reaction requiring an open decompression. Overall, the available studies reported a high degree of clinical success with a low rate of complications, albeit no high-quality studies could be identified.