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Hip Resurfacing Surgery

Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System

Hip resurfacing surgery is a relatively new procedure that allows young, active patients with hip pain to avoid or postpone total hip replacement. 

Unlike total hip replacement surgery, in which the ball and socket of an arthritic or damaged hip is removed and replaced with a prosthesis, hip resurfacing involves removing only damaged areas of the joint. The surface of the hip is then reshaped and capped with a metal shield, and the corresponding hip socket is resurfaced with a thin metal lining. The resulting metal-on-metal surfaces of the joint allow for a smooth gliding motion—welcome relief from the painful bone-on-bone grinding endured by patients prior to surgery. 

Aurora Health Care surgeons are among the few in Wisconsin who have developed expertise in this metal-on-metal hip resurfacing surgery, also known as Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR). The process involves far less bone removal than traditional surgery, which means if you were to require a total hip replacement in the future, that second "revision" surgery may be easier to perform.

Although the BHR technique is designed to spare bone, resurfacing is not an insignificant surgery. In fact, it’s typically more invasive than total hip replacement and less than 1 in 10 patients is a good candidate for this procedure. 

If you’re going to undergo hip resurfacing surgery you’re first asked to attend the Aurora Joint Academy, where you’ll learn what to expect before, during and after the procedure and can ask questions up front in a friendly environment. After surgery, our physicians and therapists will work closely with you to develop an individualized plan for rehabilitation to help you restore function, reduce pain and get back to daily activities.

BHR success rates are encouraging; a recent study showed an estimated 96 percent of resurfaced hip joints are fully functional nine years after surgery.¹

Learn more about the procedure by viewing a hip resurfacing video.  

¹What is the Midterm Survivorship and Function After Hip Resurfacing? Luthfur Rahman, Sarah K. Muirhead-Allwood and Muhannad Alkinj. Retrieved on 11-10-2010 from http://www.springerlink.com/content/p133140jw5138u04/