Normally, driving should be avoided for the first 6 weeks and even travelling as a passenger is best avoided for the first three weeks (except for essential journeys), as getting in and out of a car can risk straining the hip and stretching the healing tissues.
Patients are advised to resume driving 4-6 weeks post-surgery if they had the right hip replaced. This recommendation is because the right leg is used for the gas pedal and the brake. Wait time to operate a vehicle is reduced to one week when the replacement was performed on the left hip.
Driving. The Roads & Traffic Authority recommends you should generally not drive for six weeks following a hip replacement.
Current literatures report a minimum of 6-8 weeks period before patients can safely resume driving, however this is based on outdated studies using traditional posterior hip replacement approaches, where 6-8 week waits are recommended for soft tissue recovery.
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons recommends a waiting period of 4–8 weeks post-surgery before recommencing driving in an automatic car.
3-4 weeks post-op
Continue with the above exercises and continue to increase the distance that you walk outside, some patients by this time may be comfortable walking as much as a mile a day.
It can take upto 6-8 weeks for the tissues to heal and hence the prolonged hip precautions before being able to tie shoe laces, bend down and pick up things, crossing the legs, sleeping on the side or even driving.
The second complication we try to avoid is loosening of the implants. This can happen when patients do too much walking and stress the implants prior to the ingrowth process. Generally, I advise patients to walk only a few hundred yards a day total until they get to around six weeks.
It's best to avoid sleeping on your affected side for at least six weeks. After your doctor gives you the go-ahead, listen to your body, and only lie on your operative side when you feel comfortable.
A: Usually you can resume driving after you are off your pain medication and feel strong enough and safe enough to drive.
Instructions after first postop visit (6-8 weeks after surgery): You should now be comfortable in walking with a cane or nothing at all, placing full weight on the operated leg. At this point, if you haven't already done so, you may wean to using 1 crutch or cane in the opposite hand/arm.
Once you reach three months post-operation, the aim should be to increase your endurance. This will give you a better chance at returning to sport without suffering setbacks. Exercises should be done two to three times a week and will include things like calf and toe raises, hip abductions, and glute raises.
It is common for patients to be tired following a total hip replacement, which is due in part to anesthesia, blood loss, pain, and the necessity of prescription pain medications. This fatigue will slowly resolve over the course of the first 6 weeks following surgery.
The Don'ts
Don't cross your legs at the knees for at least 6 to 8 weeks. Don't bring your knee up higher than your hip. Don't lean forward while sitting or as you sit down. Don't try to pick up something on the floor while you are sitting.
Try to sit in a straight back chair (avoid low sofas, recliners, or zero-gravity chairs) for the first 6 weeks.
The best sleeping position for your hip is to lie on your back with a pillow between your legs. This will ensure you won't twist your body during sleep, which could put you at risk of your new hip popping out of its socket.
Total Hip Replacement Rehabilitation
If the prosthesis is not cemented into place, it is necessary to allow four to six weeks (for the femur bone to "grow into" the implant) before the hip joint is able to bear full weight and walking without crutches is possible.
“On average, hip replacement recovery can take around two to four weeks, but everyone is different,” says Thakkar. It depends on a few factors, including how active you were before your surgery, your age, nutrition, preexisting conditions, and other health and lifestyle factors.
Activity. It is important to gradually increase your out-of-home activity during the first few weeks after surgery. If you do too much activity, your hip may become more swollen and painful.
Proper walking is the best way to help your hip recover. At first, you will walk with a walker or crutches. Your surgeon or therapist will tell you how much weight to put on your leg. Early on, walking will help you regain movement in your hip.
You should not bend your hip beyond 60 to 90 degrees for the first six to 12 weeks after surgery. Do not cross your legs or ankles, either. It's best to avoid bending to pick things up during this period.
The surgical procedure involves a small incision in front of the hip, anterior, as opposed to an incision on the side or back of the hip. It is referred to as a muscle sparing surgery because no muscles are cut to access the hip joint enabling a quicker return to normal activity.
When am I allowed to return to daily activities after hip replacement? Again, it's hard to say since it varies case by case, but most patients can return to regular, low-impact activities within three to six weeks after surgery.
You have a window of time immediately after your surgery in which you can restore the range of motion in your new joint. If you don't move and engage in physical therapy, however, scar tissue develops that restricts movement and your muscles weaken.
A crucial part of successful rehabilitation is physiotherapy. The NHS recommends that patients have a minimum of six weeks' physio after a hip or knee replacement but, according to a new study, the amount of physiotherapy people actually receive depends on where they live.