Why it's done

Conditions that can damage the hip joint, sometimes necessitating hip replacement surgery, include:

• Osteoarthritis. Commonly known as wear-and-tear arthritis, osteoarthritis damages the slick cartilage that covers the ends of bones and helps joints move smoothly.
• Rheumatoid arthritis. Caused by an overactive immune system, rheumatoid arthritis produces a type of inflammation that can erode cartilage and occasionally underlying bone, resulting in damaged and deformed joints.
• Osteonecrosis. If there is inadequate blood supply to the ball portion of the hip joint, the bone may collapse and deform.

You might consider hip replacement if you're experiencing hip pain that:

• Persists, despite pain medication
• Worsens with walking, even with a cane or walker
• Interferes with your sleep
• Affects your ability to go up or down stairs
• Makes it difficult to rise from a seated position

Risks

Risks associated with hip replacement surgery may include:

• Blood clots. Clots can form in your leg veins after surgery. This can be dangerous because a piece of a clot can break off and travel to your lung, heart or rarely your brain. Your doctor may prescribe blood-thinning medications to reduce this risk.
• Infection. Infections can occur at the site of your incision and in the deeper tissue near your new hip. Most infections are treated with antibiotics, but a major infection near your prosthesis may require surgery to remove and replace the prosthesis.
• Fracture. During surgery, healthy portions of your hip joint may fracture. Sometimes the fractures are so small that they heal on their own, but larger fractures may need to be corrected with wires, pins, and possibly a metal plate or bone grafts.
• Dislocation. Certain positions can cause the ball of your new joint to become dislodged, particularly in the first few months after surgery. If the hip dislocates, your doctor may fit you with a brace to keep the hip in the correct position. If your hip keeps dislocating, surgery is often required to stabilize it.
• Change in leg length. Your surgeon takes steps to avoid the problem, but occasionally a new hip makes one leg longer or shorter than the other. Sometimes this is caused by a contracture of muscles surrounding the hip. In this case, progressively strengthening and stretching those muscles may help.
• Loosening. Although this complication is rare with newer implants, your new joint may not become solidly fixed to your bone or may loosen over time, causing pain in your hip. Surgery might be needed to fix the problem.
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