ALERT
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Arthroscopic Labral Excision or Repair Trial (ALERT) – A Randomised Controlled Trial to Determine the Effectiveness of Arthroscopic Hip Labral Surgery
IRAS ID
184490
Contact name
Sion Glyn-Jones
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Clinical Trials and Research Governance
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The labrum of the hip is a structure which surrounds the socket aiding in normal function. It is commonly injured and causes significant discomfort and limitation of function. Very little work has been undertaken to determine how best to treat this problem. At present the convention is to remove the damaged portion but over recent years reports have begun to appear advocating its' repair. Both these operations are performed as "key-hole" surgery called "arthroscopy" and are outwardly very similar to patients.
The labrum can be injured as a consequence of alterations in the shape of the hip joint between people and also as a result of activity. While there are clear benefits in principle to repairing the labrum there are also technical challenges to repairing it. No studies have been performed to compare the two treatment strategies and therefore both strategies are performed with significant variations between regions and individual surgeons.
This trial will randomise patients to either repair of the labrum or removal of the damaged portion of labrum so that we can compare these treatment options. We will monitor patient symptoms and use advanced MRI scanning techniques to determine which treatment is superior. We will follow them for a minimum of two years after their treatment.
REC name
South Central - Oxford B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/SC/0731
Date of REC Opinion
8 Feb 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion