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Hip Replacement

01 November 2021

Hip Replacement | Dr. Pankaj Bajaj
Hip Replacement

Everything You Need To Know About Hip Replacement

Hip joint being the largest joint in your body, bears the brunt of your body weight. Hips support your ability to walk and move. When they are damaged, it affects your quality of life. Once the joint wears down, it can lead to resting pain as well.

Osteoarthritis, avascular necrosis of hip, rheumatoid arthritis areamongst the biggest contributors to why hips wear out, although fractures and several others conditions can also play a role.  Damage to the cartilage that covers the bones and allows the joints to move smoothly along with persistent pain, muscle weakness,the need for walking aids, stiffness and difficulty in performing activities of daily living, and you may be acandidate for a total or partial hip replacement.

WHAT IS A HIP REPLACEMENT?

During hip replacement surgery, surgeon removes your worn out joint and replaces it with a new artificial joint made of metal, plastic, ceramic or a combination of these materials. Patients can either receive a partial or total hip replacement depending on the extent of the damage.

 

Total hip replacement, is one which replaces the head of femur and resurfaces the socket, its considered the treatment of choice for people with arthritic conditions. Partial hip replacements, are the ones where only the head of the femur is replaced (allowing it to rotate in the body’s natural hip socket) 

WHAT’S INVOLVED?

There are different approaches which can beused lateral approach, posterior approach, anterior approach involves cutting through muscle and tendons. Because of the precision needed for this surgery, only a highly skilled surgeon should perform it. Your doctor can explain the pros and cons of each surgery in more detail, and which is right for you.

Your surgeon will consider your age, overall health, mobility, activity level and support system at home to determine if you are a good candidate.

Prior to surgery, you will be instructed how to prepare your home for optimal recovery. This could involve obtaining walking aids or assistive devices (cane, walker, elevated toilet seat), installing grab bars.

TYPES OF HIP REPLACEMENTS:

  • Ceramic on Plastic : Ceramic femoral components are used here instead of metal with plastic. Ceramic is used for those people whose bodies react when coming in contact with nickel. 
  • Ceramic On Ceramic : Ceramic is used to make femoral and tibial components as it is the most non-reactive component with the surface of the body and the body parts.
  • Metal On Metal : Metal implants were developed to incorporate in longer-lasting joint replacements for younger people. But metal-on-metal implants have been significantly decreased in numbers because metal leaking into the bloodstream disturbs the whole blood circulation system and damages organs.

FIXATION TECHNIQUES:

There are different ways to affix:

  • Cemented fixation : For fast-curing bone cement
  • Cementless fixation : For new growing 
  • Hybrid fixation : For total Hip replacement

HOW LONG DOES RECOVERY TAKE?

Recovery varies with the patient depending on the person’s age and overall health prior to surgery.

 Physical therapy plays a major  role in recovery as it helps in building  strength in the muscles that support your new joint.

One of the things you have to Take care during recovery is to prevent dislocation of your new hip. You can avoid this by making sure to follow all the precautions advised by your doctor such as not to bend your hips or knees more than 90 degrees. Along with avoiding to cross your legs beyond midline or lifting your leg up. 

You may be advised not to resume high impact sports, like running playing contact sports.It takes time and patience to adjust to your new hip joint,and the ultimate reward is returning to normal activities without pain.

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Dr. Pankaj Bajaj

Orthopedics
MBBS, MCh orthopedics , DNB orthopedics , MS orthopedics

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