Please consider:

• reducing/stopping alcohol drinking
• stopping smoking
• losing weight and improving your diet and eating habits.

Did you know that stopping alcohol for just a month…

• Improves your sleep
• Improves the hydration of your body
• Reduces the risk of stroke and heart problems
• Improves the kidney and liver function
• Improves the blood pressure and heart rate
• Reduces the cholesterol levels.

All of the above benefits will positively contribute to the recovery of your surgery and therefore, allow you to achieve better outcomes. You can download a worksheet on The benefits of ditching the booze for a month

Did you know that stopping smoking…

• Reduces the risk of coronary heart disease
• Improves lung function
• Reduces the risk of lung, throat, oesophagus and bladder cancer
• Improves breathing, coughing and wheezing.

All of the above benefits will positively contribute to the recovery of your surgery and therefore, allow you to achieve better outcomes. You can download a worksheet about the benefits of quitting smoking

Did you know that losing 5% of your body weight

• Improves quality of sleep
• Gives you more energy
• Can bring your blood pressure down five points
• Can lower your cholesterol
• Reduces pressure on your joints
• Reduces the chance of sudden death related to stroke or heart disease.

All of the above benefits will positively contribute to the recovery of your surgery and therefore, allow you to achieve better outcomes. You can download a worksheet about the benefits of losing 5 percent body weight

Referral details

For further support for stopping smoking, drinking alcohol, or losing weight please visit the One You Lincolnshire website or call 01522 705162. They offer support with:

• drinking less
• stopping smoking
• weight loss
• eating well
• moving more

• Spinal anaesthetic
• General anaesthetic
• Other procedures:
  • Nerve block
  • Local anaesthetic infiltration
  • Occasionally, an epidural

Spinal anaesthetic

• A dose of local anaesthetic is injected into your lower back near the nerves in your spine.
• You go numb from the waist downwards.
• You feel no pain during the operation, but you remain conscious.
• If you prefer, you can also have drugs that make you feel sleepy and relaxed (sedation).

General anaesthetic

• A general anaesthetic produces a state of controlled unconsciousness during which you feel nothing. You will receive:
• Anaesthetic drugs (an injection and/or a gas to breathe).
• Oxygen to breathe.
• Sometimes, a drug to relax your muscles.
• You will need a breathing tube in your throat while you are anaesthetised, to make sure that oxygen and anaesthetic gases can move easily into your lungs.
• If you have been given drugs that relax your muscles, you will not be able to breathe for yourself and a breathing machine (ventilator) will be used.
• When the operation is finished, the anaesthetic is stopped and you regain consciousness.

Advantages – spinal vs general anaesthetic

• You are likely to have less sickness and drowsiness after the operation. You will usually eat and drink sooner. This means you will be ready to get up and start using your new joint sooner.
• You do not need so much strong pain relief medicine in the first few hours. This keeps you feeling well, and ready to be active with your new joint.
• You remain in full control of your breathing. You breathe better in the first few hours after the operation.
• There is some evidence that less bleeding may occur during surgery, which would reduce your risk of needing a blood transfusion.

You will have an opportunity to discuss this further in pre-assessment with the anaesthetist. For further information go to  https://patient.info/treatment-medication/anaesthesia/anaesthetic-for-hip-or-knee-replacement

You will have post op pain and swelling, this is different to your arthritic pain you have now and will improve with time. Your pain will be managed by taking regular pain relief and use of cold compression therapy and by doing regular exercises. Some level of pain and swelling is expected for a couple of months.

Many people experience moderate to severe swelling in the first few days or weeks after surgery and mild to moderate swelling for 3 to 6 months after surgery. How you experience pain is very individual depending on your post op recovery, pain threshold and general wellbeing.

Morning of operation

• Paracetamol
• Morphine based medication

After your operation

• Regular Paracetamol
• Co-codamol
• Anti-inflammatory medication
• Oramorph if needed

Following your individual assessment, the occupational therapist will identify and discuss your recommended equipment needs prior to your surgery.

The following equipment may be provided to you:

• long handled shoe horn
• helping hand
• toileting support
• raised furniture

Please make sure you bring the long handled aids (shoe horn and easy reach grabber) to the hospital with you, as you will need them after the surgery.

• Practice exercises (you will be issued an exercise leaflet or you can download it from our website: total hip replacement exercises)
• Standing exercises will be demonstrated. You will be expected to start them one week after your procedure.
• Be taught your hip precautions.
• Transfers on and off the bed.
• You will mobilise with physiotherapy staff using a walking frame and then two walking sticks as appropriate.
• If required, you will practice climbing up and down the stairs/step. However, if you are not able to complete that, the downstairs living may be recommended – please consider this when preparing for your surgery.
• Wash yourself and dress in own clothes, ready for going home.

Your independence will be encouraged throughout the whole stay in the hospital.

Here are the step by step instructions for going up the stairs  following your surgery

• Stick stays down
• Step up with non-operated leg
• Step up with operated leg
• Bring stick to same step
• Repeat process

Here are the step by step instructions for going down the stairs  following your surgery

• Stick down on lower step
• Operated leg down
• Then non-operated leg steps down
• Repeat process