what is the recovery time of a hip replacement?

Question

My 85 year old grandmother had a hip replacement today.  My mother said she seemed fine after but she still had the drugs in her system.  I think she is getting morphine(Not sure...I havent gone to see her yer)  so how much pain will she be in in the next few days.  I know they will make her walk tomorrow. but thats about it. I want to know what to expect.  not sure if i should take my kids5 and7 to see her.  she would love to see them but..not if she is in pain.

Alex · Accepted Answer

I would wait a few more days, maybe a week for them to see her.  My father had a hip replacement surgery when he was a little older than your grandmother and the drugs make it extremely difficult to have conversations.  I think for everyone it's different, especially when people get older . Recovery time/pain varies a lot.  I'd see your grandmother before you let your little kids hang out.  Just in case she's not ready.

Kraftee · Answer

I've had both hips replaced.  My pain meds consisted of a PCA pump.  This is hooked up to the patient's IV and dispenses a preset amount of pain meds plus the patient can push a button if they feel that they need more (with a governor on it, of course, to prevent overdose!)  After 2 days on that I was switched to oral pain meds (oxycontin).  
The difference here may be that I was 59 yrs old, not 85.  Still, she should be able to enjoy brief visits after the first day.  Also not sure about such young children.  If you take them, make it short and sweet.  I was pretty groggy but not in any real pain except when they got me out of bed, into bed or turned me over on my side.  Those pains were very sharp but fleeting.  
Mostly I just wanted to veg out and stare at TV the first couple of days, not be a good hostess.
I felt a lot better and was out of bed a lot on days 3-4.  Went home on day 4.

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what is the recovery time of a hip replacement?

2 Answers