When we talk about hip prostheses in young patients, we refer to people under 55 years of age. In these cases, the surgeon is looking for longer implant survival, while the patients expect to continue their physical activity.
Hip replacements are somewhat complicated in young patients, since their pace of life is not the same as that of adult patients.
In the case of women, for example, in addition to the usual discomforts, such as pain or stiffness, there is also the limitation of a family life, such as natural childbirth.
Age is a significant factor in the survival of the hip prosthesis, an alternative that for many people means the possibility of maintaining their usual rhythm of life. To this fact must be added the improvement and development of new designs. In countries such as Finland, Australia and Canada, there has been an increase in the performance of hip arthroplasty in young adults, and it now accounts for 15% of the total.
Duration of hip replacement in young adults
Young patients are interested in knowing how long their hip prosthesis will last.
The truth is that there are models for which no exact date can be given, while there are others that have demonstrated results at 10, 25 and even 30 years.
According to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), the criterion of excellence is based on a revision rate of less than 10% at 10 years.
Surely, this NICE criterion, in young patients, should be more demanding. For example, hip prostheses should not have to be replaced before 20 years.
The young hip implant patient seeks to live his or her life with as few limitations as possible and that the hip prosthesis lasts for many, many years, never having to be replaced, or at most once in his or her lifetime.
In this sense, it is important that the specialist in orthopedic hip surgery explain to the patient the difference between the latest or newest and the best.
Many new models have had manufacturing and clinical survival problems. Others, given their short time on the market, do not have studies or analyses with which to contrast their real duration.
It is very important that the patient who has to undergo a hip surgery chooses and trusts in his specialist doctor for all the doubts that can arise on the duration of the hip prosthesis and that it is this one who guides him with clinically contrasted models.
Complications in the duration of the hip prosthesis in the young adult.
There are some factors that cause the failure and duration of the hip prosthesis:
- The main one is loosening of the prosthesis. The hip prosthesis is fixed to the patient’s bone with or without cement. The wear of the hip prosthesis caused by the friction of the components of the prosthesis generates an inflammatory reaction that destroys the bone little by little, until the prosthesis becomes disengaged from the bone. In this situation, experts in traumatology know that the objectives in this field are to improve fixation to the bone and reduce friction and wear to limit the inflammatory reaction.
- It should be taken into account that the patient’s age and level of physical activity affect the durability of the hip implant. It is estimated that the risk of stem loosening decreases by 1.8% for each year of age at the time of arthroplasty.
- On the other hand, the degree of wear of hip prostheses is determined by the patient’s type of work or leisure, among other factors.
- Associated diseases.
- Body mass index are also factors to consider.