From Our Lips to Your Birmingham Hips

Written by Ann Jordan under General | No Comments

If your surgeon has decided that you will benefit from hip replacement surgery  to replace the parts of your hip that have been damaged by degenerative joint diseases like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, dysplasia, or avascular necrosis, you might consider  the benefits of the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR)  technique.  This is a relatively new procedure of hip resurfacing rather than total hip replacement and a speciality of Abbey hospitals.

With a total hip replacement, the surgeon covers your hip socket with a cup and replaces the entire femoral head with a metal ball attached to a long metal stem inserted deep into your thighbone. With a hip resurfacing device, such as the BHR, the surgeon covers your hip socket with a similar cup, but only covers or resurfaces your femoral head with a metal cap retained via a small stem that is inserted into the top of your thighbone. The surfaces that rub against each other are made from highly-polished metal and, therefore more robust than plastic or ceramic systems

The BHR technique is particularly suitable for patients of a relatively young age with increased activity levels who otherwise may not be suitable for traditional total hip replacement, partially because of the possibility of requiring future hip joint revision. If that is required, the BHR makes future surgery easier because it leaves your femoral head in place and largely intact without a large metal stem in the thighbone. Revision surgery on a total hip replacement is a far more difficult operation because of the larger stem and the fact that the femoral head has already been removed.  Dislocation of the ball head from the socket is also much less common with the BHR device than with total hip replacement.

BHR will not be suitable for everyone of course, and the variety of other hip replacement systems that use a metal ball with a plastic-lined socket or a ceramic ball with a ceramic-lined socket will also significantly improve hip pain and function, but the BHR procedure can function equally well and can help you regain an active lifestyle.

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