When Does a Hip Replacement Need to be Revised?

Dr. Albright talks about when a hip replacement needs to be revised.

Transcript of video:

When does a hip replacement need to be revised or redone? That's an important topic.

I'm Dr. Dan Albright. I'm an orthopedic surgeon in Raleigh, North Carolina specializing in hip replacements.

A common concern is if you get a hip replacement now, how long does it last - it should be 20 years. And what do you do, what do you look for when it's wearing out.

The first thing is the pain. Sometimes the plastic can wear out, the plastic liner in the socket of the acetabulum. Sometimes the bone can decay around the femur, the femoral implant, or the acetabular socket implant.

So, the key here is a reasonable lifestyle, having a reasonable lifestyle. So if you are running marathons on a hip replacement, it is going to wear out quicker. It is. If you are swimming, and biking, and doing elliptical trainer your hip's going to last a long time - 20 years on a hip replacement. The key is not pounding on it.

Then when we revise it, what do we do? It's always and often times a harder surgery than the first hip replacement. So you want to ....your first hip replacement is the best one you'll ever have - so you don't want to get it revised until it really needs it.

So respect the hip replacement. Do low impact activities, not high impact, pounding, jumping and it should last for decades for you. The revision will be obvious because you'll hurt and your doctor will take x-rays and see that it is wearing out and hopefully that's decades away and nothing that you have to worry about early.

If you are interested in this topic I am happy to talk with you any time in my office.

Thank you.

Learn more about Dr. Dan Albright by visiting his website at https://www.danalbrightmd.com/ or follow him on Facebook   / danalbrightmd  

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