Is the hip replacement procedure safe?

 

Hip replacement surgery is an old age method in which a trained doctor replaces a damaged hip joint bone with an artificial one. The pain or damage to hip joint mostly happens due to arthritis. After the surgery the original hip bone is replaced with an artificial one which is either made of plastic or of some metal. Considered as a last resort, doctors perform this surgical procedure after trying all the possible ways to relieve the patient of the pain in the joint and enable comfortable walking,failing which the surgery takes place.

With the advancement in technology, the procedure has also evolved. Earlier the hip replacement was done with a wide incision but now it can be performed by making an extremely small incision.

During the procedure safety

The replacement process is done by injecting local anesthesia to relax you and put you temporarily into a deep sleep so that you do not feel any pain while the surgery is taking place. Alternatively, sometimes doctor may give a local anesthesia in your spine only in which case you will be fully conscious of your surroundings. Make sure the surgery is performed by an experienced doctor to guarantee the chances of success.

Risks involved after the surgery

• Although hip replacement surgery is quite common but there are huge chances of blood clots prior to the surgery due to the non-movement of your body and specially the lower body. You will be treated with blood thinners during the surgery as a precautionary measure. Still you may suffer from clots in the veins of your legs and hip area. Possibly the infection in or near to prosthesis may result in another surgery to replace the infected one with the new one.


• The worst thing that can happen is that you can be left with legs of different length which is quite normal occurrence in case of hip replacement surgery. Do not panic it can be corrected by continuous sessions with your physiotherapist. The regular stretching and exercising under strict supervision will make the difference negligible.


• Once the healing process is underway take care not to sit with your legs crossed for a long period of time or you may dislocate your newly replaced hip joint.


• You may experience swelling and little numbness in the nerves too.


• Sometimes due to infection and pressure the bone marrow may become loose and cause the pieces of your bone to enter the lungs causing grave breathing issues.


• Sometimes while doing the surgery a small fracture can happen near the area of surgery. They generally heal themselves in few days’ time, failing which you will have to get it repaired via wires and bone grafting process.


• It is recommended not to bend below 90 degrees after the procedure has been performed. In simpler terms do not bend below the middle line of your body to avoid any dislodgement of hip joint. In case you do so by mistake then be prepared to wear braces to avoid dislocating it again and heal it fast. Please note your careless attitude may lead to another surgery to tackle the worsening situation.


• Tear and wear: Like any other piece of metal or plastic the hip joint will wear out with time and you might need to undergo second surgery for the replacement.


• Avoidable complications: Till date some doctors use metal on metal prosthesis. Please avoid it any cost as it might cause erosion of the metal and lead to the mixing of the metal pieces with your blood.