Hip Replacement Surgery
What Is Hip Replacement?
The hip is one of the largest weight-bearing joints in the body. Hip replacement is an operation to implant surgically an artificial hip joint, replacing the normal one. The goal of the surgery is to restore the regular function of the hip and help patients return to a pain-free active way of life.
A hip can be damaged by injury or disease. Indications for hip replacement surgery are when the following parts of the hip joint are damaged:
- Bursae (fluid-filled sacs that cushion where muscles or tendons move across bone)
- Cartilage (smooth tissue layer acting as cushion to assist the ball when it rotates within the socket)
- Bone
Total Hip Replacement
During a total hip replacement operation, surgeons replace a damaged or diseased hip with an artificial, metal-on-metal hip. The man-made hip consists of:
- A metal stem with a ball fitted on top. This replaces the ball of the normal ball-and-socket joint. It is called the femoral head. The metal stem is inserted into the femur or thigh bone and keeps the implant in place.
- An artificial socket, looking similar to a hollow ball cut in half. This socket, called the acetabular shell, is anchored into the pelvic bone.
- A metal liner fit into the acetabular shell.
The ball on top of the femur articulates within the liner of the acetabular shell, mimicking the action of the normal hip joint.
Recovery from Hip Replacement Surgery
Recovering from hip replacement surgery is an involved and lengthy process during which the patient regains strength and essentially relearns to:
- Walk
- Use a walker
- Get out of bed
- Sit in a chair
- Climb up and down stairs
- Use crutches
- Turn
- Bend
- Avoid risky movements
- Get in and out of a car
- Confront the common problems of recovering from surgery such as dealing with pain, using the shower, bath, toilet, constipation, cleaning the house, and many other details of daily life
Need for Revision Surgery
When hip replacements fail or are recalled, patients must endure all of the above for a second time when recovering from the second (called revision) surgery. In addition to the pain and suffering that accompany revision surgery, patients and their families must bear the added expense of another operation and recovery.
Hip Replacement Versus Hip Resurfacing
Hip replacement involves replacing the whole hip joint. Hip resurfacing tries to conserve more of the original bone and reconfigures the surface of the bones to work together. The hip resurfacing system has only been approved for use outside the United States. Total hip replacement, however, is used in the United States as well as worldwide.
Two of these artificial systems have now been recalled because of an early failure rate. The recalled hip replacement systems, made by DePuy Orthopaedics, a division of Johnson & Johnson, have been known to fail in as early as five years. The recalled systems include the ASR™ XL Acetabular System and DePuy ASR™ Hip Resurfacing System.
Patients with hip implants can find out if they have a recalled implant from their doctor. If their hip implant is defective and causing them pain, DePuy says it will pay for revision surgery. Patients should know they might also be eligible to seek additional compensation by working with an attorney. Contact our hip implant lawyers today for more information.
DePuy Hip Replacement Recall Information
DePuyHipImplantRecall.org intends to provide patients with up-to-date information about the recent DePuy hip implant recalls. For more information, please select from the following: