Care after Hip Arthroscopy At your preoperative visit, a hip arthroscopy handout will be given to you to explain your surgery. What kind of activity can I do after surgery? You will go home the same day that you have surgery. You should try to rest as much as you can and elevate your legs. This will help reduce any pain and swelling that you are having in your hip. You may notice some swelling in your hip for a few days after surgery. The swelling may go down your leg past your knee. If the swelling worsens, decrease your activities slightly. There may be some bruising in your pelvic area. You may also have some mild to moderate cramping in the thigh muscles for the first few days. This is normal, and will go away. You may feel numb in your thigh or groin. This is usually from the traction, and should also go away in a few days to a few weeks.  You will use crutches after surgery. Even if you are allowed to step and place weight on your leg, you should still use the crutches until you see your physical therapist for the first time; they can determine if your balance has normalized enough to come off of them. Some procedures may require the use of crutches for up to six weeks.  Your activity will be as you can tolerate.  Physical Therapy will start 5-7 days after surgery. You will be told how to do hip and leg exercises. It is important to do these exercises at home.  You should not drive until you have full use of your right leg. Do not drive until you have been off your narcotic pain medication for 24 hours.  You can go back to work when you and your doctor feel you are ready. Most people can step and place as much weight as is comfortable right away, and most will use crutches for 1-2 weeks to prevent a fall, until your coordination is back to normal. However, certain procedures may require patients to be partial or non- weight bearing on crutches for up to four weeks. You will receive specific instructions on how much weight you can put on your leg when you are sent home from the hospital. How do I take care of my incisions after surgery?  Your incisions will be covered with a dressing. You can take the dressing off 48 hours after surgery.  When the dressing is off you can shower. Cover the incisions with plastic wrap, Glad ® Press-n-Seal or waterproof band-aids while showering. This will keep the area dry. If using plastic wrap, tape the edges down. This will keep water from getting under the plastic wrap.  You should not get into a bathtub or swimming pool for at least 2 weeks after surgery.  You should not get into a hot tub, lake, or pond until at least 4 weeks after surgery.  After showering, cover the incisions with clean band-aids or dressings. Do not use any creams or ointments on the incisions.  You can apply ice to your incisions after surgery. Place a towel over your skin, and apply the ice over top. You should ice for no more than 20 minutes at a time, with an hour break in between. Try to ice regularly for at least the first 72 hours, icing is primarily helpful for pain control.  You will be seen for a follow-up visit about two weeks from surgery. Your stitches will be removed at that visit. What kind of medicine will I take after surgery?  A prescription for narcotic pain medicine may be given to you before surgery. If so, please get this filled prior to surgery, but do not use it until after surgery.  The goal of this medicine is to reduce your pain to a tolerable level, not to make you completely pain-free.  You may also be given an anti- inflammatory medicine, such as Celebrex or Meloxican, to help with the pain and swelling. You will take these for six weeks after surgery, if well tolerated.  Do not drive until you have been off of the narcotic pain medicine for at least 24 hours. What are warning signs and when should I call the doctor? Call your doctor or clinic if:  Your incision becomes red, feels warm or has foul smelling drainage.  You have a temperature over 100.5F for 2 readings taken 4 hours apart.  You have a lot of bleeding that is not controlled by direct pressure.  Your foot or leg becomes pale, blue or cool to touch.  You have pain and/or swelling behind the knee or in the calf area. When will I have my follow-up clinic visit? Your doctor will see you at The American Center Orthopedic Clinic 10-14 days after surgery. The American Center Sports Medicine Clinic Monday-Friday 8 am-5pm 608-263-8850 After hours call the clinic number and your call will be forward to the paging operator. Ask for the orthopedic resident on call. Leave your name and phone number. The doctor will call you. 24 Hour Toll Free Number: 1-800-323-8942 Your health care team may have given you this information as part of your care. If so, please use it and call if you have any questions. If this information was not given to you as part of your care, please check with your doctor. This is not medical advice. This is not to be used for diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. Because each person’s health needs are different, you should talk with your doctor or others on your health care team when using this information. If you have an emergency, please call 911. Copyright © 9/2017 University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Authority. All rights reserved. Produced by the Department of Nursing. HF#6031.