Life After Hip Replacement

After having a hip replacement, you may expect your lifestyle to be a lot like how it was before surgery—but without the pain. In many ways, you are right, but returning to your everyday activities will take time. Being an active participant in the healing process can help you get there sooner and ensure a more successful outcome.

Hospital Discharge

Your hospital stay will typically last from 1 to 4 days, depending on the speed of your recovery. If your hip replacement is done on an outpatient basis, you will go home on the same day as surgery.

Before you are discharged from the hospital, you will need to accomplish several goals, such as:

• Getting in and out of bed by yourself.
• Having acceptable pain control.
• Being able to eat, drink, and use the bathroom.
• Walking with an assistive device (a cane, walker, or crutches) on a level surface and being able to climb up and down two or three stairs.
• Being able to perform the prescribed home exercises.
• Understanding any hip precautions you may have been given to prevent injury and ensure proper healing.

If you are not yet able to accomplish these goals, it may be unsafe for you to go directly home after discharge. If this is the case, you may be temporarily transferred to a rehabilitation or skilled nursing center.

Once you are back home please be aware that, hip replacement surgery will hurt. All surgery does! Be prepared that you will experience a significant amount of discomfort in the first three days following surgery. Your mobility will be limited, and you will need to depend on others to help you with your regular activities of daily living. Even simple things like going to the bathroom will require assistance.

On the first day, a significant amount of surgical pain medication will be in your system. You may feel groggy but not as uncomfortable. On the second day, you will likely be able to get out of bed and start moving with assistance. Although you had surgery on the largest joint in your body, you will be walking on it in only one or two days.

How Long Will the Artificial Hip Last?

In most cases, the hip replacement should outlast your lifespan. The 15-to-20-year data on the longevity of hip replacement components is excellent, with more than 90 percent of the implants still functioning well in many studies. But, this is neither a guarantee nor assurance, for the simple reason that life is unpredictable.

Many factors affect the future of a hip replacement or resurfacing, such as accidents, fractures, late infections, and deterioration in your overall health. How well you take care of yourself down the road is something the surgeon cannot control.

Orthopedic Corner | Leon Mead MD Orthopedic Doctor | 730 Goodlette Road North, Suite 201  Naples Florida 34102 | Phone: (239) 262-1119