Total Hip Replacement Advancements [Video]

About the video: Surgical advancements in total hip replacements

Hip and arthritis specialists Dane Hansen, D.O. and Kris Breien, M.D. explain the drastic advancements in total hip replacement surgery from the 1960’s to today.

Meet Dr. Dane Hansen

Dr. Hansen’s approach: “Arthritis patients have high expectations for their activity level. With advanced training in minimally invasive surgical techniques and quick-recovery joint replacement, I strive to help my patients return to their fully active lifestyle as quickly as possible.”

Dr. Hansen’s education: Dr. Hansen received his undergraduate degree from Bethel University in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He went to medical school at Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Des Moines, Iowa. his residencywas at Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine / Doctors Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He has a fellowship in Adult Joint Reconstruction from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. A fellowship is the highest level of formal training for a surgeon.

Meet Dr. Kristoffer Breien

Dr. Breien’s approach: “I tend to be more conservative in my approach, reserving surgery as a last option. In essence, I strive to care for patients and their problems in the same manner my family and I expect to be treated when we seek medical attention.”

Dr. Breien’s education: Dr. Breien received his undergraduate degree at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. He went to Creighton University for medical school and his residency at Creighton-Nebraska University Health Foundation in Omaha, Nebraska.

When to seek treatment for your arthritis

Arthritis doesn’t have to spell the end of an active life. If you are experiencing worrisome symptoms or persistent pain, the renowned arthritis specialists at Summit Orthopedics can help. We work with you to confirm a diagnosis and develop an appropriate conservative treatment plan. If nonsurgical treatments fail to support your lifestyle goals, fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons will consult with you and discuss appropriate surgical options. Summit is home to innovative joint replacement options. Start your journey to healthier joints. Find your arthritis expert, request an appointment online, or call us at (651) 968–5201 to schedule a consultation.

Video Transcription

The advancements have been pretty great over the lifetime of hip replacement. They originally started back in the ’50s and ’60s, and have progressed pretty drastically. In the ’80s and the early ’90s is when this really became a very common procedure. And the implants were very good. But the bearing surface, or the plastic surface – that’s really the main kind of functional cartilage, if you will, in the hip replacement – did not have as good of longevity. There’ve been some big advancements since that time, so the plastics had a big change in the structure of them. As we’ve seen over the course of the first 15 to 20 years of those being used, there’s really no signs of wear and tear. So we expect, with the new implant designs, that you should at least see 30 years, if not more, of lifespan. Which has been a really huge advancement because it allows us to potentially treat patients at a younger age without as much worry about repeat surgery or wearing out the components. Surgical technique standpoint, there’s multiple different ways to get at the hip, and many people prefer one technique versus another. There was a hip method that was used very early on – was brought back – going at the hip from the front, where you go between two muscles. It was a little bit more technically demanding at first. It’s a little bit of a difficult skill to learn, but that’s become more of a popular approach to the hip, potentially leading to a little bit quicker recovery. Another big advancement is two pieces of the surgery process: the anesthetic and pain control, and then also the recovery process. So yes, we’ve drastically sped up the recovery process, and that’s for a couple of reasons. One, we’ve learned very much over the course of history that placing patients in bed doesn’t do much for them. In the distant past, in the original kind of process, patients lay in bed for several days; they were in the hospital for a couple of weeks. And now we’re at a point where we’re doing hip replacements in an outpatient setting, where patients are up walking in a few hours after the procedure. They’re putting full weight on the hip, and we really allow them to progress at activity as quickly as they can. And it’s been pretty dramatic to see that. A second reason why that’s so possible is how we’re now managing the pain of the surgery. The vast majority of patients have a spinal anesthetic now for hip replacement, instead of general anesthetic. And what that does is it controls the pain very well, but it also allows us to use less sedative medicine and less anesthetics during the actual procedure. So they’re much less groggy, much less tired and fatigued after the surgery, which allows us to be able to get them up and moving as quickly as we do.

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