Post Hip Surgery Precautions
Hip precautions are important guidelines for those who have recently had hip surgery to replace their hip joint and stop joint pain. Hip precautions are ways of moving around that help prevent hip dislocation or separation of the new joint until the joint has time to heal.
While you’re in the hospital, your health care team will remind you often about following these precautions. Once you get home, you’ll have to remember to follow them on your own. You might want to make a couple of “follow hip precautions” signs and put them by your bed, your favorite place to sit, and in the bathroom.
Hip dislocation can be very serious so it’s important to follow your hip precautions until your doctor says it’s OK not to. The common time for following hip precautions is about 6 weeks but varies based on how quickly you heal.
It’s very important that you take care of yourself by following hip precautions after a joint replacement for as long as your doctor tells you to. Ignoring hip precautions after hip surgery increases your risk of hip dislocation. Hip dislocation can go undetected.
Hip or joint pain is not always associated with a dislocation. Following hip precautions is the best way to make sure a dislocation doesn’t happen and possibly go unnoticed.
