Purpose: Iatrogenic acetabular retroversion is a known complication after pelvic osteotomy leading to persistent hip pain and increasing risk of subsequent osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study is to document the incidence of acetabular retroversion and signs of impingement in patients who have had a Salter pelvic osteotomy in childhood.

Method: Twenty eight patients (32 hips) had a Salter Osteotomy between 1980 and 1999, 16 were lost to follow-up. Of the 12 studied, eight had a diagnosis of DDH and four had Legg Calve Perthes. Clinical assessment for the presence of the impingement sign, range of motion and leg length discrepancy was done as well as functional scores. AP pelvic radiographs were taken to assess acetabular retroversion (cross-over or ischial sign), osteoarthritis using the Tonnis grade, center-edge and Tonnis angles.

Results: The mean age of the sample was 17.25 years (SD=7.27) with a mean follow-up of 10.56 years (SD=6.27). Impingement sign was positive in seven patients (58.3%). Nine out of the 12 had acetabular retroversion. Nine had Tonnis grade 1, two Tonnis grade 2, and one had a Tonnis grade 3. Mean center edge and Tonnis angles were 26° (SD=16.43) and 9.09° (SD=6.49), respectively. There was no correlation between presence of acetabular retroversion with Tonnis grade (p=.700), hip pain (p=.317) or impingement sign (p=.621).

Conclusion: Retroversion is highly prevalent (69.2%) in patients who underwent a Salter pelvic osteotomy for a childhood hip disease. Although acetabular retroversion is a known cause of impingement in adulthood, our patient cohort was too small to detect a significant impact on the functional scores.