Major Hip Replacement Complications
Major complications include, but are not limited to:
- Blood clots in the legs, pelvis, or lungs
- Serious infections, including inside the hip joint
- Fractures, including the thighbone and pelvis
- Non-union, or a failure of the bone to completely heal
- Excessive bone formation around the implant
- Changes in leg length
- Serious bleeding from damage to blood vessels
- Temporary or permanent nerve damage leading to weakness, numbness, or nerve pain
- Dislocation, or the joint coming apart
- Continued pain
- Premature wear or failure of the components
- Stroke
- Heart attack
- Reaction to anesthesia or medication
- Loss of life
- Other rare and improbable events.
Your healthcare team is well trained in detecting and managing the possible risks of
hip replacement surgery. However, it is to your advantage to be in the best health possible prior to surgery. Early physical therapy and activity can help reduce many complications of this procedure.
It may be that in your doctor's practice, few of these complications have happened or have occurred only rarely. However, it is important for you to know and understand the potential complications so that you are fully informed before your
hip replacement surgery.
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