Surgical Hip Dislocation

Surgical hip dislocation is a technique that is sometimes used during an orthopedic surgery to correct a hip impingement or other condition that causes hip pain. It should not to be confused with a dislocated hip, in which an injury or deformity causes an accidental dislocation.

In surgical dislocation of the hip, the head of the femur (thighbone) is moved out from its normal resting place in the socket of the pelvis. This orthopedic surgical technique as two key benefits:

1. It gives a surgeon a full view of the hip joint and makes it accessible for physical for range-of-motion testing and other diagnostics.
2. It does not require the surgeon to detach muscles or blood vessels from the femur. (A bone whose blood supply is cut off for too long will die. This is a condition known as avascular necrosis.) Instead, the section of the femur connected to important blood vessels is cut and retracted away. This allows blood to continue flowing to the bone during the procedure. When the surgeon finishes correcting the problem causing hip pain, this section of the femur is secured back into place with screws.

This is an excellent method to help doctors understand exactly what is causing hip pain in a patient. It is a difficult procedure, but extremely safe when performed by an expert. The Center for Hip Preservation at HSS is one of the few places in the United States that performs this surgery on a regular basis. Learn more about surgical hip dislocation from the article below.