Total hip replacement is a surgical option to treat hip pain caused by arthritis. If pain cannot be controlled by conservative treatment measures and it is very difficult to walk and perform usual daily activities. Joint replacement was one of the most important orthopedic surgical advances of the 20th century. The first total hip replacement was devised in 1962 by Sir John Charnley of England. The first FDA-approved total hip replacement was implanted in 1969.

• Who needs a hip replacement?
• Are you prepared for hip replacement surgery?
• How is an individual patient evaluated for hip replacement?
• Are your expectations about hip replacement realistic?
• What are possible complications of hip replacement?

Every year in the United States alone, more than 285,000 hip replacements are performed, and the number is expected to double to about 573,000 by the year 2030. The decision to have hip replacement surgery should be carefully made with your family, primary care physician, and orthopedic surgeon. Read more in Total Hip Replacement: What You Need to Know.

Related Resources:

• Hip Osteoarthritis: What You Need to Know
• Are You Too Young for Joint Replacement?
• Joint Replacement: When Is the Right Time?
• How to Recover From Hip Replacement Surgery
• Hip Replacements That Go Squeak, Squeak, SQUEAK

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