Hip Arthritis

As with other arthritic conditions, early treatment of osteoarthritis of the hip is non-surgical.

Some changes in your daily life can protect your hip joint and slow the progress of osteoarthritis.

• Minimizing activities that aggravate the condition, such as climbing stairs.
• Switching from high-impact activities (like jogging or tennis) to lower impact activities (like swimming or cycling) will put less stress on your hip.

Losing weight can reduce stress on the hip joint, resulting in less pain and increased function.

Specific exercises can help increase range of motion and flexibility, as well as strengthen the muscles in your hip and leg. Your doctor or physical therapist can help develop an individualized exercise program that meets your needs and lifestyle.

Using walking supports like a cane, crutches, or a walker can improve mobility and independence. Using assistive aids like a long-handled grasper to pick up low-lying things will help you avoid movements that may cause pain.

Panadol and anti-inflammatories are commonly used in conjunction with other treatments to control the pain and inflammation of arthritis.  When these are failing to control your pain adequately, it may be an indication that surgery may be required.

Mr Slattery may recommend surgery if your pain from arthritis causes disability and is not relieved with nonsurgical treatment.

In this hip replacement procedure, the damaged bone and cartilage in the acetabulum (hip socket) is removed and replaced with a metal shell. The head of the femur, however, is not removed, but instead capped with a smooth metal covering.

Using walking supports like a cane, crutches, or a walker can improve mobility and independence. Using assistive aids like a long-handled grasper to pick up low-lying things will help you avoid movements that may cause pain.

Both the damaged acetabulum(socket) and femoral head(ball) are removed, and then position new metal, plastic or ceramic joint surfaces to restore the function of your hip. Mr Slattery only uses implants with an excellent long term record and survivorship.

Although complications are possible with any surgery, the most common complications of hip replacement surgery include:

• Infection
• Excessive bleeding
• Blood clots
• Hip dislocation
• Limb length inequality

Prosthesis wear

After any type of surgery for osteoarthritis of the hip, there is a period of recovery.  Mr Slattery utilises minimally invasive techniques which may reduce the recovery time and get you going quicker.