It takes most surgeons between 1 and 2 hours to per-form a routine total hip replacement. Not all of the time spent in the operating room, however, is taken up by the surgery itself.
You will first be brought to the operating room in a bed or on a stretcher, then transfer to the operating table. The anesthesiologist will start an intravenous line and attach monitors for an electrocardiogram, for blood pressure, and for the amount of oxygen in your blood.
The anesthesiologist will check to make sure that your initial readings are stable before he begins anesthesia. It may take several minutes to put you to sleep, or longer if you are having a spinal or epidural anesthetic.
The operating team will check to make sure that the correct side has been identified, note any allergies, metal implants, or other relevant information. Once you are asleep, it takes additional time to position you on the operating table. The anesthesiologist, surgeon, and operating team will check to make sure that you are properly secured and all potential pressure areas are padded.
Your leg, hip, and thigh will then be scrubbed and prepped with an antiseptic solution. This is typically iodine based, but other solutions may be used if you have an allergy to iodine. When this has been done, sterile drapes will be placed to isolate this surgical field.
It may be 15 to 30 minutes from the time you come to the operating room till the time the procedure actually starts.
When surgery is completed, a sterile dressing will be applied over the wound. If a drain has been placed in the wound, it will be connected to an outside pump or container. Additional time is needed to come out of anesthesia.
Once anesthesia is finished you will be transferred to a bed. An abduction pillow or skin traction may be placed on your leg to prevent dislocation. At the end of the procedure, you will be taken to a post-anesthesia or recovery room area.
All told your time in the operating room may last from 1 to 3 hours for a routine total hip.