I just had a pelvic MRI done for some ongoing hernia-related problems and, according the the report, "There is a likely left labral tear. The right labrum is not visualized. If there is concern for labral pathology, consider follow-up with right hip MRI with arthrography."
I've never had pain in either hip. So, I am not concerned. But, I am just wondering how common it is for asymptomatic people to be diagnosed via an MRI with a labral tear. Also, is this something that is likely to become symptomatic in the future? Again, I'm just curious. I see no reason to modify my lifting at this point.
That's good to know. I'm 39. My doctor said that it is not common for somebody my age. But, he is not an orthopedic surgeon. He does abdominal/thoracic operations. So, he said it would be better to consult with an orthopedic or sports medicine surgeon for an opinion. In any case, as mentioned above, I have no pain or stiffness in my hips. So, I do not plan to modify my training or see a surgeon about this (non)-issue.
To be fair, I am not an orthopaedic surgeon nor a sports medicine fellowship trained physician. I'm simply a physical therapist with a specialization in orthopaedic physical therapy, so your physician may not place any trust in my analysis of the prevalence or incidence of orthopaedic findings on advanced imaging and their clinical significance. Then again, for all you know, I could be an investment banker with Goldman Sachs and have no medical training or experience whatsoever.
With no mechanical dysfunction of the hip, it would be a very remote possibility that the labral tear was anything more than an incidental finding on imaging with no clinical significance at all at the present time. An MR Arthrogram would be the appropriate imaging study to properly assess for a labral tear, but a significant tear will almost certainly show up on a routine MRI. Also, at 39, if I were a PT and not an investment banker and you came to my clinic for an evaluation with this MRI, I'd point you towards several articles that show a very high prevalence of subclinical or asymptomatic labral tears in people across various age groups.
I guess I implicitly assumed that, if you were answering my question, you had at least some basis for doing so. I would hope that those who have no expertise on the topic in question would not answer.
Side note: some of the smartest people I know are actually investment bankers and early cryptocurrency investors. Even though they lack formal medical training, if they took the time to offer an opinion on a medical topic, I would take them seriously. The reason is, they don't offer opinions on topics they know nothing about.