Exact Answer: 1.5 hours
In hip replacement surgery, some portions of the hip would be replaced with implants. The portions of the pelvis and thighbone are done in the hip replacement surgery. This surgery would not take more than 1 hour and 30 minutes. Sometimes, hip arthritis can cause huge pain and this can be treated by hip replacement surgery.
Many doctors suggest hip replacement surgery for treating injuries. Improper hip growth is another cause of getting hip replacement surgery done by a person. People mainly do hip replacement surgery to treat the issues and symptoms of hip arthritis.
The surgery time would depend on the causes and procedure to be followed in the hip replacement surgery.
How Long Does Hip Replacement Surgery Take?
Hip Replacemnt Surgery | How Long Does Hip Replacement Surgery Take |
Minimum time | 1.5 hours |
Maximum time | 2 hours |
The procedure of hip replacement surgery is time taking as the doctor is supposed to cover many steps. From making an incision to implanting the prosthetic socket, the process is quite long. The time of hip replacement surgery would be different for everyone. As not all the person would have the same pain intensity and hip growth.
The doctor would guide the patient with certain preparation for the surgery. The doctor would go through the medical history of the patient before trying out the surgery. The patient may have to do various blood tests and MRIs. All these would help the doctor to understand the body type and condition of the patient.
The doctor would check the strength of the surrounding motion before continuing with the replacement surgery. The patient has to inform the expert or doctor about any serious health problems as some health issues may not support post replacement recovery.
There are many kinds of hip replacement surgery and the time would be different for each type. The 3 types of hip replacement surgery are:
Hip resurfacing
Total hip replacement
Partial hip replacement
In this total hip replacement, the damaged portions of the hip are replaced by implants. In a partial hip replacement, one side of the hip would be replaced by using implants. Hip resurfacing is done mainly on all young and active patients.
Hip surgery can be done by two methods. These are the anterior approach and posterior approaches. To do the hip surgery, the doctor would either do the incision on the posterior or anterior part of the hip. Both the methods would reduce the pain and help in movements.
Why Does Hip Replacement Surgery Take This Long?
The doctor will make an incision to remove the damaged part in the hip area. After the hip replacement is done, patients will have to stay in the hospital for around 2 days or more.
Some patients may experience some type of risk associated with hip replacements surgery. These are:
Infection- The incision site may experience some infections where the hip replacement is done. These infections can be treated and cured by antibiotics. Some major infections may happen that need surgery to get cured.
Blood clots- Some people may face the issues of clots forming in the leg veins. These clots can be very dangerous in some cases where a few pieces of the clot can move towards the lungs or different parts of the body.
Nerve damage- During the replacement process, the nerves of the hip area can get damaged or injured. Any damage to the nerve can cause numbness or weakness.
Fracture- Some parts of the hip joint may get fractured during the replacement process. The risk of fracture is mainly for the few months after the hip replacement.
The time of the hip replacement completely depends on what kind of hip replacement surgery is going to happen. The time for total and partial hip replacements would be different as the steps to be followed are not the same.
Conclusion
The hip replacement surgery can take around 2 hours depending on the person’s requirement. The doctor would evaluate what is the reason for the hip replacement. After the hip replacement process is done, the person has to follow a few precautions for a fast recovery.
The patient will have to take some medications as prescribed by the doctor.