What to expect from a hip replacement

  With the limited range of motion of the new joint, patients need to take special care to avoid joint displacement, including: 1. Avoid crossing the legs and knees while sitting, standing, or lying down.  2. Keeping both knees below hip level when sitting. Avoid sitting in chairs that are too short. You can sit with a pillow cushion to keep both knees below hip level.  3.Rise from a sitting position by sliding toward the edge of the chair and then stand up with a walking frame or crutches for support.  4.Keep your feet 6 inches apart in the sitting position.  5.When lying down, put a pillow cushion between the legs to keep the joints in the proper position.  6.Use a special abduction brace or splint to fix the hip joint in the proper position.  7.Avoid bending movements. Patients may consider purchasing long-handled shoe paddles or soft shoes so that they can put on and take off shoes and socks without bending over.  8.Raise the toilet seat so that the knee remains below the hip when toileting.  9.In the patient’s postoperative rehabilitation, three principles of individualization, gradualness and comprehensiveness should be followed. In addition to the exercise of the affected limb, attention should be paid to the active activities of the healthy limb and upper limb, respiratory training and psychological counseling, so that patients can eliminate their worries and enhance their confidence in life. The rehabilitation can promote the patients to recover physical strength, increase muscle strength, increase joint mobility, reduce postoperative complications, and maximize the recovery of patients’ motor and daily living abilities.