If you have hip pain or a history of osteoarthritis of the hip, you don’t necessarily need to have hip replacement surgery. Initially, your hip pain will be managed by physical therapy, heat, ice, rest, and over-the-counter anti-inflammatories such as Ibuprofen and Naprosyn. If however your hip pain continues and is severe enough to affect your activities of daily living, you may benefit from hip replacement surgery.

Hip replacement surgery has come a long way in the last ten years. The incisions have gotten smaller, and the recovery has gotten faster. It can actually be done as an outpatient procedure in a surgery center or a short overnight stay at the hospital. You will expect to attend physical therapy three times a week following your surgery. Most recoveries are somewhere around four to six weeks. You should be off your walker by two weeks and to a cane at the most. You should be able to resume driving somewhere around four to six weeks and return to work around the same time.