Advanced OA: Am I Too Young for a Hip Replacement?

When it comes to walking and most lower-body functions, your hips are among the most critical joints in the body. One of the largest weight-bearing ball and socket joints, your hips endure as much as five times your body weight when moving on your feet, and the connecting tendons, ligaments, and muscles keep everything in place while you’re in motion.

Conditions like osteoarthritis can severely affect hip movement, limiting quality of life, and typically occur with age and lead to hip replacement surgery. However, younger people do struggle with hip problems, so is there a cutoff age where this surgery is safe to perform? Since May is also Arthritis Awareness Month, this is a great time to learn more about the effects of osteoarthritis in the hips, how surgery can help, and which age groups are considered suitable for the procedure.

Residents in the Fort Worth, Texas area who need hip replacement or other treatments to manage hip pain can find help with Dr. Joseph Daniels and the staff at Southwest Orthopedic Associates.

The effect of osteoarthritis on your hips

Arthritis leads to the deterioration of musculoskeletal tissue and bones in joints. Despite over 100 types of this condition, osteoarthritis is the most common. When this disease develops in your hips, the joint tissue gets gradually worn down to the point where the bones are rubbing together, causing pain and damage that can lead to surgery. 

Primary and secondary are the two forms of this disease, with the primary type being the most common, resulting from wear and tear on the hip joint. The secondary type occurs when a severe injury causes damage similar to that of the primary type.

How a hip replacement works

This procedure replaces the damaged parts of the hip with a prosthesis, and depending on the extent of the damage to your hip, you may receive either a partial or a total hip replacement. Once we’ve performed medical imaging to confirm the extent of the work needed to replace the joint, we apply regional anesthesia before making an incision and removing any damaged bone and tissue. 

Next, we insert the prosthetic, typically made of ceramic, metal, or plastic, and then close the incision. The recovery room is the next place you’ll go for observation, and while some surgeries may require an overnight stay, most people go home the same day.

Issues related to age

Although more people in their 50s and older get the treatment, younger patients are undergoing it more frequently in recent years. It is challenging to determine what is considered too young for patients who require a hip replacement. Still, the benefits of undergoing surgery are significant, as it can lead to an improved quality of life, reduced pain, and the ability to stay active. The main challenge in younger patients is the longevity of the artificial joint: the more active they are, the joint will wear out sooner, making it more necessary to exercise caution when using them.

Being younger when undergoing a hip replacement can present unique challenges, but it is both safe and practical for restoring function and improving your quality of life. If you need this or other joint treatments to manage pain and other problems, make an appointment with Dr. Daniels and Southwest Orthopedic Associates today.