Not all hip fractures or injuries needed a corrective surgery as invasive as a hip replacement, orthopedic experts say, explaining that this procedure is reserved only for patients whose conditions do not improve with other medical interventions. Artificial hip implantation, however, has become commonplace these days even to younger patients, and it is mostly because of the new prosthesis designs that were believed to be more long-lasting. For instance, the highly scrutinized metal-on-metal hip implants are defended by DePuy, its manufacturer, to have “the potential benefit of greater function and a lower risk of dislocation for some patients”.

Whether you have arthritis, osteoporosis, injuries, or other bone deformities that have caused your hip joints to break, there are still many treatment options your doctor may want you to try out first before he or she introduces you to the potentially dangerous hip prosthesis application. Firstly, you will have to undergo a series of tests so your doctor will know the extent of the damage to your hip joints. Your hip pain will be managed with an acetaminophen, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, or corticosteroids depending on the type of pain that you are experiencing.

If your pain does not improve after a certain period of time after various pharmacological approaches and even with modifications to your daily activities, then your doctor might want you to prepare for a surgical procedure. This is even more recommended if you already have limitations with your hip range of motion that are becoming worse the more the surgery is delayed.

But before proceeding with replacing the hip joints with artificial devices, there are many other conservative surgical procedures that may be studied such as the hip resurfacing procedure which only remove the part of the hip joints that were damaged.

This is particularly useful for younger patients especially those who have active lifestyles. Furthermore, other factors such as age, bone density, and the presence of chronic conditions that may interfere with surgery such as recurring infections and allergic reactions also needs to be addressed first.

Although most doctors recommend that hip replacement procedures be postponed at a later time when the body does not respond positively to non-surgical methods, studies say that patients may benefit from hip replacements better before their aging bodies start to deteriorate. However, not all who goes through a successful hip replacement operation benefits from it.

There have been many artificial hip recipients who experienced serious complications that needed revisions and further medical interventions even after their reconstructive surgeries. This is also one of the many reasons why lawsuits regarding modern hip implants made of metals flooded some medical device manufacturers nowadays. If you have received one of these devices, it might be better for you to learn more about the hip recall law.

References:

newstribune.com/news/2012/jul/14/considering-hip-replacement-dont-rush-it/

medscape.com/viewarticle/760065

nihseniorhealth.gov/hipreplacement/whoneeds/01.html