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Medicines: You must follow them as mentioned in your dischargesummary.Activity / Therapy: At home you will be required to follow the sameprotocol as has been explained during the hospital stay. If you donot feel confidant you may call a physical therapist at home to helpyou become independent in walking, going up and down stairs,getting in and out of bed, and doing exercises to improve the rangeof motion and strengthen your hip joint.
Care of wound: Do not try to interfere with your dressing or wet yourhip area till stitches are out. They are usually removed two weeksafter the operation.
Do call your Surgeon if you notice any of the following symptoms:
Increased hip pain
ŸPain or swelling in calf or leg
ŸUnusual redness, heat ordrainage at the incision site
ŸTrouble in breathing; shortness of breath
ŸFever over 100 degrees F
Return to work: You can usually return to work approx. after 2- 3months or as advised by your surgeon. Car driving etc. is possibleafter 2-3 months.
After the Conventional Total Hip operation few precautions need tobe ollowed strictly:
Do not cross your leg.
Do not bend the operated hip excessively.
Do not twist the operated leg in or out.
Do not roll or lie on un-operated side without pillow in between the legs.
Do not squat or sit cross leg.
Do not use Indian type commode.
Sitting cross leg and squatting after the surgery
You may be allowed to sit cross legged depending on your musclestrength and overall level of fitness. However, squatting is usually notadvised. Your doctor will let you know what is suitable for you.
The initial rehabilitation generally takes 5-7 days during the hospitalstay. It will gradually begin on 3rd day with standing, followed bytaking a few steps with the aid of a walker or crutches.You will beallowed to take weight as tolerated on the operated limb beginning2 -3 day after the surgery. Most patients with a stable hip and goodmuscles will be able to walk with the stick and will also be able toclimb stairs before discharge from the hospital.The other part of initial rehabilitation includes learning to sit andgetting up from the chair, commode shifting and physical therapy tofurther strengthen your muscle and improve your motion. You willalso be told some don’ts e.g. not to bend forward more than 90degrees, always using a thick pillow between your legs and using ahigh chair including high toilet seat (if your chair is low, using acushion is mandatory).
The type of material used for the ball and inner lining of the socket (Bearing Surface).
Fixation:
The socket and the stem are the only parts that are in direct contactwith the bone. The ball is mounted on the stem and fits perfectly intothe socket. The effectiveness of the surgery depends on how wellthe stem and the socket fit into the bone.Medical research and clinical studies have shown that pressfit oruncemented fixation gives better results as the bone can grow overthe implants. However, there are limitations and every total hipreplacement is unique.In certain cases, your surgeon will recommend a cemented total hipwhich means that both the socket and stem will be fixed to the boneusing bone cement. In other cases, the surgeon may recommend ahybrid total hip in which one implant is attached using bone cement,and the other pressfit or uncemented.The type implants differ based on whether fixation is Cemented,Uncemented or Hybrid.
Materials used (Bearing Surface):
The ball and the inner lining of the implant are in direct contactwhich creates some friction every time a person moves his hip. As aresult, the type of material used for the ball and the inner lining ofthe socket can affect the wear and tear to the artificial hip.Typically, in a total hip replacement, the surgeon will opt for a metalball and a special plastic inner liner. This is the most commonoption in elderly patients because the wear and tear of the innerlining is very little and the patient can walk comfortably with his hipfor at least 15 years.
In younger patients who require total hip replacement, the surgeonmay opt for using a ceramic head and ceramic liner as this givesmore range of motion and results in almost negligible wear and tearallowing the younger patient to use his hip for a longer period oftime.The surgeon may choose any combination of the above such as aceramic ball and plastic liner, or a metal ball and ceramic linerdepending on your specific condition.
