Femoral head chondrosarcoma causing femoroacetabular impingement in an adult professional football player.

Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is often diagnosed as a cause of hip pain in athletes. Benign tumorous conditions presenting with FAI symptoms have been described in the literature, but there is no mention of any malignant lesion causing impingement. We report the case of a femur head chondrosarcoma in a 23-year-old professional football player who presented with FAI symptoms. Magnetic resonance imaging of the hip showed a bumpy outgrowth (hyperintense T2-weighted signal) from the anteroinferior portion of the femoral head without any signal changes in the rest of the head or in the hip joint. Clinical, laboratory, and radiologic findings remained inconclusive regarding a specific diagnosis. The lesion was excised through an anterior approach to the hip. Histologic evaluation of the specimen revealed an undifferentiated chondrosarcoma. Six months after surgery, the patient, completely free of pain and impingement symptoms, resumed his sports activity. At 3-year follow-up, there was no limitation in activity, and there was no evidence of tumor recurrence. Although rare, bony malignant conditions of the hip can present with FAI symptoms and a complete radiologic evaluation is warranted prior to any surgical intervention.