Total Hip Replacement Surgery

Total hip replacement (THR), also known as hip arthroplasty, is a kind of treatment of hip's orthopedic problem that involves removing the ball and socket of the arthritic hip joint. People get experience of pain in the hip joint area due to injury, natural aging, severe trauma to the hip joint or a congenital deformity & extreme arthritis in the hip joint. Hip consists of two main parts that is- a ball (femoral head) at the top of your thighbone (femur) that fits into a rounded socket (acetabulum) in your pelvis and it is body's largest weight-bearing joints. Problem in this area of body largely affect your daily normal life. Common activities such as walking or getting in and out of a chair may be aching and painful. Your hip may be inflexible and it may be tough to put on your shoes and socks. You even feel uncomfortable while sleeping or resting. Through the surgery of hip replacement you can relieve your pain, increase movement that enables you to get back to enjoying normal, everyday activities.

Surgery for total hip replacement (THR) is performed in outpatient basis where patient is admitted to the hospital and general anesthesia is applied to perform the surgery. Initially prior to surgery a tourniquet is generally positioned up high around the thigh in order to limit bleeding during the operation. Surgeon makes an incision over the side of the hip. Through the surgery, the diseased cartilage along with the deteriorated bone of the hip joint is replaced with synthetic materials. The ball and socket of the hip is removed and then an artificial metal ball is positioned inside the femur bone. The material which are used in artificial hip joints consist of two basic devices such as- the ball (made of a extremely polished strong metal or ceramic substance) and the socket element (a durable cup made of plastic, metal or ceramic which may have an outer metal shell). This bone-like special surgical cement called methylmethacrylate is used to fix the prosthesis into the femur and to fill the gap between the prosthesis and remaining natural bone for securing the artificial joint. After the placing of new metal, plastic or ceramic joint surfaces in place of damaged cartilage and bone, incision is made close.

The surgical procedure of total hip replacement usually takes 2-3 hours. Patient is monitored by the doctor after the surgery at the hospital room for 1-2 hours. Your stay at the hospital for a few days is required. It is advised to patient that he/she should use V shaped pillow after a few days of surgery for fast relief.