Is special equipment needed to perform anterior hip replacement surgery?
The procedure can be done without any special equipment, but it is very difficult to do it that way. We are using a special table called the Hana table. We are the only ones south of Gainesville who have this table. This table was specifically designed to allow orthopedic surgeons to perform anterior hip replacement surgery with greater ease. Patient’s feet are placed in boots that look like ski boots for the operation – they are then positioned on the table on their back and then during the operation we are able to position the leg in almost any position to allow access to either the ball or socket of the hip joint. The table also comes with a special hook retractor that we use to elevate the thigh bone during the operation that allows us to prepare the thigh bone or upper part of the hip for the stem portion of the replacement. We also use a fluoroscopy machine during the operation. This is an x-ray machine that gives immediate information during the operation. As I mentioned earlier
