Hip Hip Hooray
More than 300,000 Americans will undergo hip replacement surgery this year.
Most patients who underwent typical hip replacement surgery experienced lengthy hospital stays, eight-inch scars, and a prolonged disruption of lifestyles. Thanks to a new surgical approach, patients look forward to a quicker recovery with less pain and no restrictions.
The procedure is Anterior Hip Replacement Surgery. It allows the surgeon to approach the hip from the front as opposed to the side or the back. This enables the surgeon to work between the muscles. The muscles surrounding the pelvis and femur remain intact and the gluteus muscles stay untouched. What this means for the patient is these muscles do not require a healing process, there is less pain, the hospital stay is shorter, minimal scarring, and a quick return to normal activities.
They use live X-ray in the operating room, which assures excellent position of the implants, and give a better long-term result. The procedure, developed in the 1940s, first started in the US a decade ago. North Broward Medical Center is the only south Florida hospital with the Hana Table, a special OP table that facilitates this procedure. The surgeons who perform this procedure find it incredibly rewarding to see their patients recover so rapidly and resume normal activities in such a short period.