Find a LocationTreating Hip Pain from Orthoarthritis Without Surgery
Can Hip Pain From Osteoarthritis Be Treated Without Surgery?
Pain is one of the most common symptoms of hip osteoarthritis, occurring much more frequently than stiffness or disability.1 If your physician has told you your hip pain is due to osteoarthritis and that hip replacement surgery is the only solution, we suggest you evaluate all of your options.
Hip osteoarthritis results from degenerative changes on the articulating surfaces of the hip joint. Interventional orthopedic procedures have been shown to reduce pain and help the body use its own abilities to heal without surgery, resulting in shorter recovery times and fewer potential complications than invasive surgical procedures.
| Regenexx-SD | Surgery | |
|---|---|---|
| Return to Daily Routine | 2 to 5 days | 6+ weeks |
| Return to Sports | 3 to 6 months | 1 year |
| Recovery | Brace, up to 6 weeks PT | Crutches, brace, extensive, no driving, 3 to 6 months PT |
| Pain Management | Mostly over-the-counter pain medication (days) | Prescription pain medication for weeks (weeks) |
| General Anesthesia | No | Yes |
| Keep Your Hip Joint | Yes | No |
How Does Regenexx Work?
At Regenexx, we invented a new approach to orthopedic care we call Interventional Orthopedics. This minimally invasive alternative to hip surgery involves the use of image guidance technology to precisely inject your own bone marrow concentrate — which contains stems cells — directly where it’s needed to repair damaged tissue in the hip joint structure.2-3
The cells in your bone marrow concentrate work at the site of your injury to promote the growth of new, healthy tissue that aids in the stabilization of your hip joint for better function and mobility.4
Am I a candidate?What Are the Risks of Hip Replacement Surgery and Other Treatments?
Unfortunately, hip replacement and hip resurfacing are often traumatic procedures that are generally followed by months of physical therapy and pain and discomfort while the joint rebuilds strength and mobility.
Other risks include anesthesia-related stroke or heart attack, infection, blood clots, pseudotumors, prosthetic part failure, and metal allergies to joint hardware. Additionally, for many, joint replacements need to be repeated.5-6
Many people are willing to undergo complex surgery and lengthy recovery because they’re under the impression they’ll return to their previous, more active lifestyle, but that often doesn’t happen. A 2016 meta-analysis of 17 clinical trials revealed no statistically significant improvement in physical activity for up to one year after unilateral primary total hip replacement. Additionally, pain management strategies involving nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) raise the risk of stroke and heart attack, while opioid pain medications have a high risk for abuse, so neither are ideal long-term solutions. Steroid injections also have significant downsides.7-10
See how Regenexx helped Todd avoid a second hip replacement surgery for hip arthritis.
Am I a candidate?Note: Like all medical procedures, Regenexx procedures have success and failure rates. Not all patients will experience the same results.
Regenexx Procedures for Hip Injuries
During appointments, Regenexx physicians examine your body in motion and may use ultrasound to observe the inner workings of the hip in real time. This gives them a more accurate picture of what’s contributing to your pain, how function is affected, and the root cause of the problem.
Once you’ve been evaluated, your physician will customize a treatment plan based on your specific needs. Our treatments include:
Regenexx-SD: a patented protocol using bone marrow concentrate that contains stem cells
Regenexx-SCP: a proprietary formulation of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) that’s more concentrated than what a basic bedside centrifuge can produce
Regenexx-PL: platelet lysate, which is a highly specialized derivative of platelet-rich plasma (PRP)
Results
We maintain an active national registry to track patients’ progress and/or side effects after procedures. Regenexx hip injury patients report:
FAQs
Osteoarthritis of the hip is characterized by fast-progressing degeneration of hip tissue that causes impairment of function. Arthritis may result from inflammatory disorders, genetic predisposition, infections, hip injuries, or simple wear and tear.
Hip arthritis usually occurs in people in their 60s and 70s, but onset can vary depending on activity level, body weight, and the structure of your hip joint.
No. In some people, especially in the early stages, hip arthritis presents as joint stiffness or limited range of motion. Over time, however, as the degeneration in the joint worsens, it usually becomes painful.
Yes, most degenerative changes in the hip can be identified with an MRI. In the following video Chris Centeno, MD, identifies the top three arthritis changes to look for on a hip MRI.
At first glance, a hip resurfacing sounds less invasive, which most people assume translates to fewer complications. But that’s not necessarily true. During a conventional hip replacement surgery, the entire ball and socket of the hip joint are replaced with artificial implants made of either metal or ceramic or a combination of the two. The stemmed component of the implant is placed in the marrow cavity of the femur (thighbone).
In hip resurfacing, the ball on the top of the femur is not removed — it’s shaved so that a metal ball can be placed around it. With this procedure, the thighbone is preserved, so it’s considered less invasive. However, research illustrates the downsides of this procedure are increased chance of thigh fracture, larger incision and scar, pseudotumors, earlier failure of the prosthesis, and metal-only prosthetic materials that can shed particles into the bloodstream.11-12
Get started to see if you are a Regenexx candidate
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We will provide information to help you decide whether you want to schedule an evaluation with a Regenexx Physician.
Insurance typically covers evaluations and diagnostic testing (if recommended). Most insurance plans currently do not cover Regenexx Procedures.
References
1. Trouvin AP, Perrot S. Pain in osteoarthritis. Implications for optimal management. Joint Bone Spine. 2018 Jul;85(4):429-434. doi: 10.1016/j.jbspin.2017.08.002. Epub 2017 Sep 6. PMID: 28889010. Sep 6. PMID: 28889010.
2. Centeno CJ. Efficacy and Safety of Bone Marrow Concentrate for Osteoarthritis of the Hip; Treatment Registry Results for 196 Patients. J Stem Cell Res Ther 2014;04(10). doi:10.4172/2157-7633.1000242.
3. Friedlis MF, Centeno CJ. Performing a Better Bone Marrow Aspiration. Phys Med Rehabil Clin N Am. 2016 Nov;27(4):919-939. doi: 10.1016/j.pmr.2016.06.009. PMID: 27788908.
4. Centeno CJ, Kisiday J, Freeman M, Schultz JR. Partial regeneration of the human hip via autologous bone marrow nucleated cell transfer: A case study. Pain Physician. 2006 Jul;9(3):253-6.
5. Lalmohamed A, Vestergaard P, Cooper C, de Boer A, Leufkens HG, van Staa TP, de Vries F. Timing of stroke in patients undergoing total hip replacement and matched controls: a nationwide cohort study. Stroke. 2012 Dec;43(12):3225-9. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.112.668509. Epub 2012 Nov 6. PMID: 23132782.
6. Harding P, Holland AE, Delany C, Hinman RS. Do activity levels increase after total hip and knee arthroplasty? Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2014 May;472(5):1502-11. doi: 10.1007/s11999-013-3427-3. Epub 2013 Dec 19. PMID: 24353051; PMCID: PMC3971219.
7. How long does a hip replacement last? A systematic review and meta-analysis of case series and national registry reports with more than 15 years of follow-up Evans JT, Evans JP, Walker RW, Blom AW, Whitehouse MR, Sayers A. How long does a hip replacement last? A systematic review and meta-analysis of case series and national registry reports with more than 15 years of follow-up. Lancet. 2019;393(10172):647-654. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31665-9
8. Withers TM, Lister S, Sackley C, Clark A, Smith TO. Is there a difference in physical activity levels in patients before and up to one year after unilateral total hip replacement? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clin Rehabil. 2017;31(5):639-650. doi:10.1177/0269215516673884
9. Sakaguchi M, Tanaka T, Fukushima W, Kubo T, Hirota Y; Idiopathic ONF Multicenter Case-Control Study Group. Impact of oral corticosteroid use for idiopathic osteonecrosis of the femoral head: a nationwide multicenter case-control study in Japan. J Orthop Sci. 2010;15(2):185-191. doi:10.1007/s00776-009-1439-3
10. Ravi B, Escott BG, Wasserstein D, et al. Intraarticular hip injection and early revision surgery following total hip arthroplasty: a retrospective cohort study. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2015;67(1):162-168. doi:10.1002/art.38886
11. Hjorth MH, Mechlenburg I, Soballe K, et al. Higher prevalence of mixed or solid pseudotumors in metal-on-polyethylene total hip arthroplasty compared with metal-on-metal total hip arthroplasty and resurfacing hip arthroplasty. J Arthroplasty, 2018;33:2279–2286. doi:10.1016/j.arth.2018.02.011.
12. Oxblom A, Hedlund H, Nemes S, et al. Patient-reported outcomes in hip resurfacing versus conventional total hip arthroplasty: a register-based matched cohort study of 726 patients. Acta Orthop. 2019;90:318-323. doi:10.1080/17453674.2019.1604343.
