Patient Education: Hip Replacement

Your Home Recovery After Hip Replacement

Before hip replacement surgery, the patient’s problem hip probably kept them from doing many activities. The decision to replace a painful hip is the first step toward regaining control of your life. The next step is to strengthen the replacement hip so one can return to an independent and active lifestyle. Every patient will have a different recovery program and your doctor can give you a list of home exercises that will concentrate on your range of motion and increase your flexibility by keeping your thigh muscles stretched and your new hip joint flexed. 

Once you are out of the hospital and in your own familiar setting, it is easy to return to old habits. You must continue to follow your doctor’s instructions and keep up with the recommended exercises. It is also important that you use handrails on stairs and wear low -heeled shoes. At your home, you may be used to bending or standing up from a chair quickly. But because of your new hip, you won’t be able to move as spontaneously as you used to be. To avoid injuries always think before you move and become more aware of hazards in your home.

Even though your home setting is different from the hospital, use the same technique and precautions that you learned at the hospital. Your bed in your home, for example, may be lower than the hospital bed. Get in and out of the bed the same way you did in the hospital, adjusting your movements to accommodate the height. You may also want to have your living space rearranged and / or cleared to avoid falls and to make it easier to get around.

During the first few months following surgery, it is possible to dislocates your new hip, unless you follow the following precautions:

1) Avoid crossing or turning your operated leg outward whether sitting, standing, or lying.

2) Avoid bending the hip forward less than a 90-degree angle.

3) Avoid excessive bending over at the waist. If necessary use a long-handled shoehorn and sock aid to help you put on and take off shoes and socks. A reacher can help you grab objects that are too high or too low for you to reach. 

The key to a full recovery and becoming independent is to stick with your recovery program and work at is consistently. Whatever your goals are, you can reach them by mastering one step at a time. Make a commitment to going a little further with each new step you take!

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