Doing the activities you enjoy might be difficult or impossible if your hip is in bad shape. Hip replacement surgery could significantly improve your life if you’re suffering from hip stiffness or tenderness that keeps you from carrying out routine tasks. Surgery to replace your hip can improve your mobility and functional capacity while relieving your unpleasant symptoms. However, some people just need conservative therapies.
What exactly is Hip Replacement?
Hip replacement surgery involves removing compromised hip tissue and substituting it with prostheses or artificial implants. The ball and socket, the two bones that make up the hip joint, are the primary tissues involved in hip replacement. The ball, also known as the femoral head, makes up the lower portion of the hip joint and the top of the femur bone. The acetabulum, also known as the socket, is a component of the pelvic bone at the top of the hip joint. A titanium socket and ceramic ball make up the implant. To support the prosthetic joint, a ceramic ball is fastened to a metal stem that is put into the femur bone. The titanium cup is fixed to the pelvic bone, allowing unrestricted movement of the prosthetic hip joint. Patients may occasionally just require a partial hip replacement. In these situations, the surgeon just changes the ball of the hip joint and leaves the socket alone.
Every year, tens of thousands of individuals worldwide get hip replacement surgery. Surgery is growing more and more prevalent with each passing day. Well, there’s a reason for that.
A hip replacement is typically a last choice, chosen only after trying all other non-invasive options that have failed to produce the desired results. To repair the hip issue, the doctor would often suggest hip replacement surgery if drugs, physical therapy, and other options had failed. Hip replacement surgeries have been performed for more than 50 years. With the development of technology and medical procedures throughout the years and decades, a lot has changed and improved. Nowadays, hip replacement is regarded as one of the safest operations. There are hazards, of course, as there are with any intrusive procedure. However, if a skilled surgeon performs the procedure, such dangers are unlikely. Unwanted results after hip replacement surgery are quite uncommon.
Now the question arises, how can you tell if getting a new hip is the best course of action for you?
Following are 8 indicators that will help you determine whether you require hip replacement surgery;
- Routine Tasks Are Hard for You to Complete Because of Your Hip Disability
How much your damaged hip is hurting your life is the most crucial consideration when selecting whether or not to get hip replacement surgery. Even if you can tolerate the discomfort, severe hip joint dysfunction can make even the simplest chores challenging or impossible.
- Your normal range of motion in the joint is limited by hip stiffness
This is a sign that you may need hip replacement surgery if your hip has been seriously damaged. Consult with an orthopedic professional as soon as possible if you discover that joint stiffness is preventing you from lifting your leg, walking, or bending your hip joint. Acute hip stiffness after an accident is normal, but persistent hip stiffness requires immediate medical intervention. Acute hip stiffness appears out of nowhere and disappears quickly. On the other hand, persistent hip stiffness never goes away.
- Test Results Indicate Advanced Arthritis or Serious Joint Damage
A ball-and-socket joint makes up your hip. Where the femoral head and pelvic bone socket contact, friction is decreased by cartilage and synovial fluid. Hip osteoarthritis (OA) causes the cartilage to erode, resulting in discomfort and joint deterioration. Without cartilage, the bones start to break down and harm the joint because there is no cushion to prevent them from grinding against one another. In situations of severe joint injury, surgery can be required.
- You Experience Prolonged and Severe Pain
Hip joint damage can result in severe, persistent discomfort between your hip and knee. The recuperation period limits activities, which is one of the main reasons patients choose not to have hip replacement surgery. Therefore, it makes more sense to have surgery to restore function to your hip joint if your discomfort is already significantly restricting your activities. One of the primary reasons individuals seek a hip replacement is severe pain, but this isn’t the only sign that you could require the procedure.
- Joint Pain Is Depleting Your Mental and Emotional Resources
Hip joint discomfort has apparent physical effects on your mobility and capacity to carry out tasks. But persistent joint pain can also negatively impact a patient’s emotional and mental health. Even if you can put up with your current degree of hip discomfort, after living with it for several months or even years, you can start to exhibit symptoms of a mental health problem. Studies have shown that persistent pain can worsen the symptoms of underlying mental illnesses, including despair and anxiety.
- Hip Pain is Not Adequately Relieved by Conservative Therapies
Many persons with hip joint disorders like arthritis do not require hip replacement surgery right away. Your doctor will likely start by using cautious treatments. Hip issues cannot be cured with these therapies. They can, however, enhance functionality and lessen hip discomfort. Regrettably, there can come a time when these cautious steps lose their potency and fail to offer relief. Your doctor could then advise hip replacement surgery in that situation. Before choosing surgery, doctors advise these conservative methods unless hip discomfort is intolerable.
- You’ve observed adverse reactions from medications for hip pain
When used for a brief period, painkillers your doctor prescribes, such as NSAIDs, are generally considered to be safe. However, extended usage may result in negative effects.
- Less Complex Surgical Techniques Are Not Likely to Be Beneficial
Alternatives to hip replacement surgery include a few different surgical techniques. However, because hip replacement has become quite successful for the majority of patients, surgeons no longer frequently do these. You may be a prime candidate for hip replacement surgery if your doctor is unsure that you will benefit from less invasive surgical methods. This group frequently includes significant hip fractures, especially in older people.
Meet the Hip Specialists we recommend
If you struggle with severe hip pain or disability, you may be a candidate for hip replacement surgery. To find out if that’s an appropriate treatment option for you, contact Dr. Vikas Mehra, the best Orthopaedic Surgeon in Chandigarh, India. His post-graduate studies (MS) were completed at the famous PGI Chandigarh, and he also holds fellowships in joint replacement from the best hospitals in North America and is a Diplomate of the National Board of Orthopaedics. Around 50,000 orthopaedic procedures have been carried out by Dr Mehra, including difficult hip, shoulder, and knee replacements, fracture repair, and spine surgery. He also performs arthroscopies for sports-related injuries. Additionally, he offers cutting-edge physiotherapy services at his facility. He is also one of the most senior surgeons in India, with thirty years of clinical expertise.
Simply register a time slot, arrive at the designated hour, and receive discounted treatments. With only one phone call, you can now select a hip replacement surgeon in Chandigarh. Schedule a consultation now!