Hip Replacement

St. Francis offers an award-winning program called Joint Camp for those having knee or hip replacement surgery. Joint Camp involves extensive pre-surgical education, group sessions of physical therapy, a Coach program, graduation ceremony and more. Learn more about Joint Camp >>

For those who have sustained a hip fracture, St. Francis offers the region’s only Geriatric Fracture Program. This program has protocols specifically designed to provide the best and fastest recovery for older patients with hip fractures. Learn more about the Geriatric Fracture Program >>

Candidates for Surgery

The hip is a ball and socket joint, linking the “ball” at the head of the thigh bone (femur) with the cup-shaped “socket” in the pelvic bone. Hip replacement surgery implants a hip prosthesis to replace the damaged bone within the hip joint and allow for smooth, pain-free movement. The prosthesis has three main parts: a metal or plastic cup-shaped implant that replaces your hip socket, a metal or ceramic ball that replaces the head of the thigh bone (femur), and a metal stem that is implanted in the femur to add stability to the prosthesis. There are several reasons for hip replacement surgery, including arthritis, hip fracture, and osteonecrosis.

• Osteoarthritis, a common degenerative disease that causes the cushioning (cartilage) between bone joints to wear away. For those with osteoarthritis in the hip, the cushioning in the hip joint can wear away as osteoarthritis progresses, causing bones to rub together painfully during movement. 
• Those with hip fractures may require a hip replacement surgery depending upon where in the hip the fracture is located.
• Osteonecrosis occurs when part of a bone does not get adequate blood supply and dies. Those with advanced osteonecrosis near the hip may require a hip replacement.
  
  

Your orthopedic surgeon will decide if you are a candidate for hip replacement surgery based on your medical history and response to more conservative treatments for osteoarthritis, like medication and physical therapy.

Total Hip Replacement

Total hip replacement surgery is performed under general anesthesia. First, the surgeon makes an incision (usually over the buttocks) to expose the hip joint. The head of the femur is dislocated from the socket and the surgeon removes a layer of the diseased or damaged bone from the hip socket. Next, the ball-end of the femur is removed.

Then, the prosthesis is inserted. The surgeon implants the cup shaped part of the prosthesis into the hip socket, then inserts the stem of the prosthesis into the femur to add stability. Next, the ball section is added to the top of the stem and the ball and socket sections are joined. The prosthesis may be stabilized with or without cement.

Total hip replacement usually requires a hospital stay of three days, with complete recovery in six to 12 weeks.