Hip Arthroscopy

You’ll have a hip arthroscopy with a general anaesthetic to put you to sleep during the surgery. Most arthroscopies are day cases, others involve an overnight stay. The surgery itself usually takes around 90 minutes, but the length of your surgery, and your hospital stay, will depend on your unique needs.

Here’s what to expect on the day:

Admission – You’ll be admitted by a nurse in your private room. This will include taking a short medical history, checking your medications, and recording pre-operative observations such as blood pressure, pulse, temperature and oxygen levels. 

Discussion with your surgical team – Your surgeon and anaesthetist will visit you in your room to talk through the procedure, answer any questions and gain your consent.

Monitoring and preparation in theatre – When you’re taken to theatre, monitoring will be attached to check your heart rate, blood pressure and oxygen levels throughout the procedure. A cannula (small plastic tube) will be placed into a vein, usually on the back of your hand or in your arm.

Anaesthetic – You’ll be given a general anaesthetic, either through the cannula or using anaesthetic gas, so you’re fully asleep for the operation.

Nerve block (if used) – Before your operation, your anaesthetist will discuss with you whether a nerve block is appropriate. If agreed, the block is given after you are asleep, under ultrasound guidance. It involves injecting local anaesthetic near the major nerves supplying the hip and leg to provide extra pain relief after surgery. After having a nerve block, your leg may feel numb, weak or heavy for several hours after the operation and you may not be able to put weight on it until normal sensation and strength return. The effects usually wear off within the first day, and pain relief tablets will be started before this to avoid a sudden return of pain.

Surgery – Once the anaesthetic (and block, if used) is in place, your leg is gently positioned in traction to create space in the hip joint. The skin is cleaned with an antiseptic, and small incisions are made to insert the arthroscope (camera) and surgical instruments. Your surgeon will carry out any necessary repairs, such as repairing torn cartilage, smoothing bone surfaces, or removing inflamed tissue or bone spurs. At the end, the instruments are removed, and the incisions are closed and dressed.

Recovery – After surgery, you’ll return to your private room, rather than a separate recovery area. Staff will monitor you as you wake up, including regular checks of your blood pressure, oxygen levels and comfort. If you had a block, your leg may still feel numb or heavy for a time. Before you go home (or stay overnight if needed), the team will give you advice on pain control, wound care and using crutches safely.

Hip arthroscopy is a very safe procedure, and complications are not common.

After-effects will be those of any surgery using a general anaesthetic – such as pain, bruising, swelling and stiffness as you heal, and feeling tired, sick or even hoarse from the general anaesthetic.

In rare situations, there may be a risk of complications, including:

• temporary numbness from traction (this usually resolves quickly)

• scarring

• tissue or nerve damage

• infection

• blood clots 

• new bone formation

• failure to heal

Serious complications are rare, and most people recover well.

Your consultant will answer any questions and make a plan with you ahead of your procedure. You need to tell them if there’s any chance you could be pregnant.

Other things to consider are:

1. If you have time ahead of your surgery, you may be encouraged to stop smoking and lose weight if you need to, as doing these things can reduce the risk of blood clots and speed up recovery.

2. You’ll have a medication review and may need to stop taking some kinds, such as blood thinners.

3. Alcohol also thins the blood, so you may be encouraged to cut back and stop altogether in the 24 hours before.

4. On the day you will need to:

• bring loose, comfortable clothing so you can easily get dressed after the surgery

• bathe or shower before you arrive to make sure the area is clean

• leave jewellery and piercings at home if possible, as these usually need to be removed before surgery

• keep make-up to a minimum

• if you wear nail varnish, please leave at least one nail free of varnish on each hand, as this helps with monitoring during your operation

• fast as advised - don’t have any solid food for 6 hours before your operation, and only clear fluids up to 2 hours before, unless told otherwise by your consultant

• take any agreed regular morning medications with a small sip of water

You’ll be monitored in your room as you wake up from the anaesthetic. You’ll be asked to eat, drink and pass urine before you are discharged.  

You’ll be given information about:

• keeping your wounds clean and taking showers, not baths, until they heal

• wearing compression stockings to help reduce the chance of blood clots

• managing your post-operative pain with painkillers, ice, and particular sleeping positions

• using crutches correctly to keep weight off your hip and stay stable – you’ll start with 2, move to 1 and eventually walk without them

• exercising as directed by your physiotherapist to keep your blood flowing and start mobilising your hip

Key things to note:

• you’ll need someone to take you home – you cannot drive

• avoid putting weight on your hip for 1–2 weeks – you will use crutches

• if you need to change your dressings, wash your hands, remove the old one and don’t touch the stitches when you place the new dressing on

• expect hip pain (sometimes also in the back, buttock, leg, knee or ankle). Use painkillers, ice packs and recommended sleeping positions

• swelling and bruising are normal and should improve over a few weeks

• your physiotherapy programme is crucial to get you mobile and get the most benefits from your surgery

• in the first 8 weeks after surgery, avoid standing on hard surfaces for a long time, walking for too long, heavy lifting, squatting, crouching and sleeping on your side

• tell your consultant if you have any signs of infection, such as redness, heat or fever; or you have redness or tightness in your calf

As this is a significant surgery, and everyone is different, the Welbeck Surgery Centre consultants will always book a first follow-up appointment at around 6 to 8 weeks post-surgery. This is to:

• check how your recovery is going, including physiotherapy, comfortable sleeping and mobility

• answer any questions you have about ongoing pain management, such as reducing or changing medications

• talk through any concerns you may have about getting back to work or exercise

• discuss access to the multi-disciplinary teams at Welbeck, who offer additional support such as physiotherapy

Please contact our Surgery Centre for pricing information.

At Welbeck, our orthopaedic surgeons are experts in their field and are dedicated to providing world-class care to every patient.

With access to colleagues across other specialties, our consultants are also able to refer within the Welbeck ecosystem if required to ensure you receive the treatment you need as quickly as possible, all under one roof.  

All appointments, testing, treatment, and follow-up appointments take place within our state-of-the-art facilities, enabling us to deliver accurate diagnostics and advanced treatments.

To book a hip arthroscopy, you must be referred by either your GP or a specialist treating your specific condition, following a consultation with them. Self-referrals are not accepted for this treatment.

If you would like to schedule a consultation with a Welbeck specialist, please get in touch to make an appointment. Your health is important to us, so we strive to offer same-day appointments whenever possible.

Our consultants are recognised by the major health insurance companies. If you have private health insurance, your treatment at Welbeck can begin once you have obtained authorisation. We also provide care to self-paying patients. Learn more about the different payment options at Welbeck.