Medical marvel: 94-year-old undergoes hip replacement surgery!

(Picture for representational purposes only)

A 94-year-old man has successfully undergone a hip replacement surgery at a hospital in the capital, a doctor said. Nasiruddin suffered a fall during his morning walk June 22 and was injured in his right hip. He was operated upon at the Apollo Hospital here June 24. Rajeev Sharma, orthopaedic and joint replacement surgeon who performed the surgery, said the patient underwent total hip replacement in which the hip joint is replaced by a prosthetic implant. 'When he came, he was unable to walk. It was a case of fracture in the neck of femur along with osteoporosis. We performed unilateral total hip replacement,' he said. The cost of treatment was Rs 3 lakh. (Read: Can stem cell therapy replace hip joint replacement surgery?)

Here are some important questions related hip replacement surgery

Question 1: What is involved in a hip replacement surgery ?

A hip replacement surgery can be of many types. It can be half the hip replacement where only the femoral side (the front part of your hip) is replaced. This type of surgery is done in the case of fractures in old people.

A half hip replacement again has two types

• Monopolar hemiarthroplasty: In this only the top of the thigh bone or femur is replaced with a prosthesis and the rest of the bone is left intact.
• Bipolar hemiarthroplasty: This is a procedure where the end or head of the thigh bone (femur) and a portion of the hip is replaced. Giving the patient a new joint.

Then there is a total hip replacement which is done for primary osteoarthritis or secondary osteoarthritis. Primary osteoarthritis is rare in India, but is rampant in other countries. In the case of secondary oseteoarthitis, the head of the thigh bone is destroyed since it does not get enough blood supply (avascular necrosis). In this case a total hip replacement is essential.

In the case of a hip replacement surgery the material used are extremely high grade and do not get affected by the body. These days there are different materials that can be including chromium cobalt metal, ceramic and ultra high density polyethylene.

Question #2: What should a patient necessarily tell his/her doctor?

The first and foremost thing every patient should remember is that things they may deem irrelevant may be of utmost importance to the doctor.

You must inform your doctor about any general allergies to medication, metals like nickel, plaster, sticky tapes and certain foods. Also it is essential that you tell him/her about any medication you are on, including Ayurvedic or homeopathic medication. Few of these can contain steroids and this can cause avascular necrosis of the femoral head.

Moreover, since the leading reason for degradation of the hip bone is secondary osteoarthritis; which has multiple causes including sickle cell anemia, steroid use for conditions like asthma, chronic alcoholism, history of having a fall etc. any of these conditions that you might suffer from must be informed to your doctor. These details play an essential role in deciding the method of treatment your doctor will give you.

Question #3: How painful is the recovery after the procedure?

With advances in medicine, pain is well taken care of after any surgery. Usually for hip replacement surgeries an epidural catheter (small tube placed near spinal cord) is placed and you will be administered pain killers constantly. Alternatively there are analgesic patches that are used for pain control. Read more about Hip replacement surgery 8 questions you should ask your surgeon before the procedure

With inputs from IANS

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