If you are having pain in your hip that will not resolve, maybe it is time to meet with a physician that specializes in orthopedic surgery. You may have a serious form of arthritis that causes pain when you walk and you need a remedy for it. There are remedies that do not include a complete hip replacement.
There are non-orthopedic alternatives to a complete surgical procedure and if you can function with a little pain, you can avoid it if you desire. These include physical therapy, aids that will help you walk better, various medications that help relieve the pain, steroid injections into the joint itself, and supplements that help relieve the affects of the arthritis. If done properly and you can live with it, any combination of these can help you avoid having more invasive procedures done.
If none of the above treatments work, you can take a more radical approach and try hip resurfacing. During this orthopedic procedure, a smaller amount of the hip joint, than in a complete replacement surgery, is removed and a small metal cap is inserted on top of that ball joint. Then a socket is manufactured and inserted into the pelvis, but more bone is left behind than would be in a replacement surgery. This is popular among younger people who suffer from arthritis.
Another method to avoid orthopedic surgery is called hip fusion. During this procedure, the hip bone and the femur are surgically fused together so that you can eliminate all motion, therefore, getting rid of the pain, and held together by a metal plate and several screws. With the introduction of the more popular of hip replacement surgery, it is nor performed very often now, but was usually done on people who work hard on a job daily. The plate will not wear out, but patients will limp permanently and may one day need to get the full replacement surgery.
You could also try resection anthroplasty, where the surgeon will remove a portion of the bone that surrounds the hip, thus allowing it to be filled up with scar tissue over time. This is rarely done, but is performed on those who’s infection is out of control making normal walking and performing daily tasks nearly impossible. Even though the procedure is performed, you will still need help walking, so a walker or crutches are still necessary.
Finally, you have the hip osteotomy option, which is usually the procedure of choice when a person has been diagnosed with hip dysplasia, usually from infancy. This osteopathic procedure realigns the hip joint bones and is usually done on those patients whose arthritis is caused by some another condition.
The orthopedic procedure you need depends on the problem that you have. With the right procedure you can live a happy, productive, and comfortable life without orthopedic surgery for years to come.