Hip Replacement Surgery

Hip Replacement surgery is a process where damaged hip joints are removed and replaced with artificial implants. It is usually done for common reasons when the hip area becomes painful and is usually done as a treatment for hip arthritis where the hip joints become inflamed. After knee replacement surgery, hip replacement surgery is the second most performed joint replacement process.

Hip Arthritis

Hip arthritis is a condition in which the joints of the hips are inflamed and can lead to pain while performing some activities. It can result in the thinning of the smooth cartilage over the bone until it wears away. Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis found in the category of hip arthritis.

Symptoms of Hip Arthritis

Hip Arthritis symptoms are not consistent and sometimes it can feel like the symptoms can get better or worse in a fluctuating period. Some of the common symptoms of hip arthritis include limited motion of the hip, stiffness in the hip area, a limp in walking, or feeling pain with activities in the hip area.

Process of Hip Replacement Surgery

Hip Replacement surgery is focused on the bone and cartilage of the ball-and-socket hip joint where the first step is to remove the damaged cartilage and bone by cutting off the bone. Then a reamer tool is used to scrape off the remaining cartilage or bone and a new hip socket called acetabulum is inserted and held in place by the pelvis. A femoral stem is then implanted into the hollow center of the thigh bone where cement is either used to fused the implants in the bone together or it is wedged tightly into the bone. After, a metal ball is fitted onto the top of the stem and placed into the socket.

Risks of Hip Replacement Surgery

• Blood Clot

• Blood Loss

• Infection

• Hip Dislocation

• Pulmonary Embolism

• Nerve Injury

• Deposition of bone in soft tissues

• Difference in leg length

Alternatives to Hip Replacement Surgery

Usually, a hip replacement surgery is considered the last possible option for a patient and sometimes a hip replacement surgery may not be the preferred option or a patient’s condition may prevent them from getting a hip replacement surgery. Some alternatives to hip replacement surgery include other non-surgical or alternative treatments such as losing weight, activity alteration, the use of joint supplements, or anti-inflammatory medication.

Weight Loss

Losing up to 5 or 10 percent of your body weight can help in reducing the symptoms of hip arthritis and joint pain. Swimming or other activities such as breeze walking can help to lose weight while not placing unnecessary stress on the joints and the hips. Watching out for diets to decrease the intake of fatty food and have more healthy fibrous food such as vegetables or food with protein and calcium can also help to strengthen the bones and muscles.

Joint Supplements

Sometimes the uses of joint supplements such as glucosamine or chondrotin are used in the treatment of hip arthritis as alternatives to hip replacement surgery. They are molecules found in the makeup of cartilages and joints and helps with the formation of the necessary building blocks used in the body’s repairing of cartilages. It has fewer side effects than anti-inflammatory medicine. However, the effectiveness for how well the joint supplements can actually deal with hip arthritis is still questionable.

Conventional Hip Replacement versus Anterior Hip Replacement

In a conventional hip replacement surgery, a patient will usually take from 6 to 8 weeks to recover hip movements while in anterior hip replacement, the patient can usually move their hips freely right away. There is also a limitation of the flexing of the hips or activities such as driving, using the toilet, or putting on shoes for a conventional hip replacement while in anterior hip replacement, normal functions are usually available.