hip surgery anyone??

Infection of prosthetics is so common.

Within 3 months of a hip replacement about 50% of hip revisions occur due to infection.

Joint replacement surgery can be life-changing – when it works. When something goes wrong, it’s a whole different story..

“Arthroplasty or joint replacement is a life-changing surgery for millions of people with end-stage arthritis. Successful joint replacement provides pain relief and restores function and independence, significantly improving the patient’s quality of life.

With the increasingly aged population, longer life expectancy and lifestyle factors, the demand for joint replacement is increasing exponentially.”

However, if something DOES go wrong, joint replacement therapy has some really serious downsides.

1-5% of hip and knee replacements develop Prosthetic Joint Infections and this figure is gradually rising. Those infections are the cause of up to 50% of revisions for hips and 24% of revisions for knees in Australia currently. AND have a survival rate worse than many cancers (79% after revision surgery).

So if you – or a loved one – are facing the need for joint replacement surgery, it’s well worth doing everything you can to maximise the success of that surgery.

And if you’re one of the “unlucky 5%” facing corrective surgery for a joint replacement gone wrong, then seek ways to support your immune and healing systems to give you the best chance for recovery.

A surprisingly powerful strategy (at least – it’s surprising to mainstream medicos) is to maximise your gut health – both BEFORE and AFTER surgery.

There’s a growing body of evidence on the importance of gut health in reducing infection – so making some straightforward changes – before and after surgery – can improve your chances of success.

BEFORE surgery – because good gut health reduces the risk of infection. Your body is primed with lots of beneficial bacteria and other organisms that maintain the integrity of your gut lining to keep the ‘baddies’ out. Balanced gut bacteria also send signals to the rest of your body to keep inflammation and infection ‘in check’.

AFTER surgery – because you’re going to be pumped full of antibiotics and pain killers that will reduce your gut function – so it’s a good idea to compensate and help your gut microbiome recover.

https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12937-024-01034-z

(The effect of prebiotic fibre on the gut microbiome and surgical outcomes in patients with prosthetic joint infection, published 2024 )

Preparation BEFORE surgery:

Nutritional supplements for bone and soft tissue healing like zinc, Vit C, gut health, support immune system – echinacea, garlic, gotu cola and ginkgo, fibre to feed a balanced microbiome.

AFTER surgery:

boost recovery from the stress both physical and mental with agents like B vitamins, siberian ginseng, rhodiola, withania.

Continue high fibre foods like plenty of veggies plus fermented foods like plain yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, whole grains, legumes and nuts.

Consult your friendly Naturopath to suggest ways to help you an individual.