FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

             This spring, the co-directors of the Orthopaedic Institute at Putnam Hospital Center, Dr. Joel Buchalter and Dr. Douglas Fauser, began performing anterior approach hip replacement procedures, using the Carmel hospital’s newly-acquired Hana® hip and knee arthoplasty table.

             The minimally invasive anterior approach surgery procedure is a technique that minimizes the pain and time from surgery to recovery by allowing the surgeon to reach the hip joint from the front of the hip as opposed to the lateral (side) or the posterior (back) approach. 

             With its unique capability to position the leg, the Hana® table enables the surgeon to replace the hip through a single incision, without detachment of muscle from the pelvis or femur.  The table allows hyperextension, adduction and external rotation of the hip for femoral component placement—a positioning option not possible with conventional tables.  The lack of disturbance to the lateral and posterior soft tissues provides immediate stability of the hip after surgery. 

            This way, the hip can be replaced without detachment of muscle from the pelvis or femur during surgery.  The surgeon can simply work through the natural interval between the muscles.  The most important muscles for hip function, the gluteal muscles that attach to the pelvis and femur, are left undisturbed and therefore do not require a healing process.

             For more information about anterior approach hip replacement surgery, please call the Orthopaedic Institute at Putnam Hospital Center at 1-877-ORTHO-ONE (1-877-678-4666).