Introducing the Anterior Hip Approach
Fortunately, a relatively new approach to hip replacement surgery, the anterior approach, or “front approach,” has addressed the other three issues of concern. The revolutionary aspect of anterior hip replacement is that it allows full exposure of the hip joint without cutting any muscle at all. Furthermore, the capsule and ligament are cut in the front and repaired during the operation. Because the hip ligaments in the front play almost no role in the stability of the hip, for most activities, the dislocation risk is about 1/10th of a traditional posterior hip replacement.
While the anterior approach to the hip has been used in orthopedic surgery for several decades, hip replacement surgery has only been performed through this approach for about ten years. This technique was first attributed to French surgeons but largely popularized in the U.S. by Dr. Joel Matta. His contribution to this field was the development of a specialized operating room table that significantly improves exposure and access to the hip for better implant insertion. Dr. Fontes has been fortunate enough to attend personal instruction courses with Dr. Matta and three other surgeons who have trained with him.