Well, the more people I meet, the more I hear about becoming bionic – with all types of body parts being replaced…it’s pretty surreal, especially when you go through it yourself.
A HIP New World
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Category Archives: Baby Boomer
Be Your Own Advocate in the Hospital
It is important to be your own advocate and know WHAT TO ASK FOR IN THE HOSPITAL! WATCH THIS VIDEO….
AND have a HIP BUDDY!
Questions To Ask Before Hip Surgery
Questions To Ask Before Hip Surgery by Zimmer
Here’s a list of questions that may be helpful to ask your doctor before your hip surgery. We suggest you print this list and take it with you on your appointment.
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What complications may occur with this kind of surgery?
- What is the expected recovery time?
- How many days will I be in the hospital after surgery?
- Will I have physical therapy? If so, how often and for how long?
- Will I need full-time or part-time care? If so, for how long?
- Will I need a hospital bed at home?
- When can I lie on the operative side?
- How soon will I be able to walk after surgery?
- Will I need crutches or a walker? If so, for how long?
- How soon will I be able to climb stairs after surgery?
- How soon will I be able to drive a car after surgery?
- When can I shower after surgery?
- How soon will I be able to resume normal lifestyle activities besides walking (e.g., work, sports, housework, gardening, etc.)?
- Which sports may I participate in?
- What are lifting limits?
- When is sexual intercourse feasible after surgery?
- Will I set off the metal detectors at the airport?
- Will I need antibiotics for dental care?
- What is the implant made of? Which biomaterials will be used?
- In your estimate, how long will my joint replacement last?
- What can I do to help keep my joint replacement functioning as long as possible?
- What activities or other factors could make my joint replacement wear out more quickly, and what can I do to avoid them?
Common Materials Used in Implants
Common Materials Used in Orthopaedic ImplantsGenerally, the most common materials used in orthopaedic implants are metals and a type of plastic called polyethylene. These two material types are combined in most joint implants, that is, one component is made from metal, and one from polyethylene. When properly designed and implanted, the two components can rub together smoothly while minimizing wear. While some pure metals have excellent characteristics for use as implants, most metal implants are made from a mixture of two or more metals. These mixed metals are called alloys. By combining metals, a new material can be created that has a good balance of the desired characteristics. The most common metal alloys used in orthopaedic implants are stainless steels, cobalt-chromium alloys, and titanium alloys.
Welcome to Being More HIP
You’re NOT Alone!
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If you’ve landed on this site – you have either been initiated into the Club with a hip replacement or two, OR you are researching that path. Within the pages of this community, you are able to sign up for HIP tele-classes and support groups; and we are establishing HIP Happy Hours state-wide.
It’s here you’ll find the latest research, articles, testimonials and most importantly you’ll meet other hipsters of all ages who have joined the ranks of bionic.
Hip Hip Hurray – you’ve found a home — people who KNOW what you’ve gone through or ARE going through. We’ll support you and hold you hand along the way!
For more information, please email me at Jodiseidler@hipsterclub.com.
Pioneering news: stem cell hip replacements
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The prosthetic implants are being developed by scientists at Glasgow University in collaboration with orthopaedic surgeons at the city’s Southern General Hospital and they hope to have a prototype ready within 10 years.
The move follows a breakthrough last year by a team at the university’s Institute of Molecular, Cell and Systems Biology when they succeeded in creating a special plastic surface capable of controlling what stem cells become – a technique that was previously impossible.
The plastic is covered in tiny pits 120 nanometres across which, when stem cells are placed on the surface, encourages them to grow and spread across the pits in a way which ensures they differentiate into therapeutically useful cells.
While the implant itself will be made of an advanced polymer, already commonly used in spinal and other orthopaedic procedures, it will be coated for the first time in the university’s unique plastic. As a result, once inserted into a patient’s bone marrow – a rich source of mesenchymal stem cells – these can be made to divide and differentiate into fresh bone cells, creating a much stronger and more durable implant.
Anterior Hip Replacement
The anterior approach surgery procedure is a technique that minimizes the pain and time from surgery to recovery. The anterior approach allows the surgeon to reach the hip joint from the front of the hip as opposed to the lateral (side), or the posterior (back) approach, both of which can cause significant muscular damage. With the anterior approach the hip can be replaced without detachment of muscle from the pelvis or femur during surgery. By way of this anterior approach the surgeon can simply work through the natural interval between the muscles, rather than detaching them. In this way the gluteal muscles that attach to the pelvis and femur are left undisturbed in the anterior approach. Therefore, these muscles do not require a healing process after the surgery.
Tantalum Coated Implants – Strong and Durable
Tantalum Coated Implants – Strong, Compatible and Durable
Tantalum is a hard, grayish blue metal. Its importance in the field of orthopedics comes from the fact that tantalum coated implants have several properties that can be used to enhance the quality of the implants used in hip replacement.
Implants used in joint replacements are prone for rejection by the body. Artificial replacement implants such as those used in hip replacements are so designed that the material used in these implants are compatible with the body tissues. This property of an implant is called biocompatibility. A tantalum coated implant has a pinhole free surface, which increases the biocompatibility of the implant. Tantalum can be used in coating the implant surface of most of the materials used in hip implants such as stainless steel, ceramic, cobalt chromium and titanium alloys.
via Tantalum Coated Implants – Strong, Compatible and Durable.
Hip Replacement vs. Hip Resurfacing
Jane Brody, the Times’s Personal Health columnist, recently reported on less invasive techniques for hip replacement that reduce complications and speed recovery. Dr. Patrick A. Meere, an orthopedic surgeon at New York University who specializes in hip and knee arthritis surgery, joined the Consults blog to answer reader questions. Here, Dr. Meere responds to several readers who asked about hip replacement versus hip resurfacing. In addition, see Dr. Meere’s many responses in the Comments section of “Improving on the Hip Replacement”; additional responses will be posted in the coming days, so check back for updates.
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