Overview of Traditional Hip Replacement Surgery

Every year, it is estimated that over 200,000 hip replacement surgeries are performed by orthopedic surgeons in the United States. This procedure is one of the most successful orthopedic surgeries and for the most part, the majority of patients have had successful outcomes and have been able to return to their active lifestyles post operatively.

Yet even with that success, there have been some drawbacks to the traditional hip replacement approach:

1. Implant wear and eventual loosening of the implant;
2. The operation has always involved some cutting of the major muscle groups around the hip to get access to the joint;
3. The division of these muscles and underlying capsule and ligaments has resulted in a rate of post-operative dislocation rate of around 3%; and
4. Implant positioning and sizing may be imprecise because anatomic variances make accurate placement challenging and error-prone.

While the issue of implant wear has been largely addressed with technological improvements and most surgeons can confidently state that one implant should last a lifetime for all but the youngest patients, the other drawbacks to a traditional hip replacement approach still remain.

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