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The anterior hip replacement approach allows the
surgeon to operate on the hip between two muscles,
rather than removing and then reattaching the muscles.
The advantage is that the rehabilitation is quicker because
patients do not have to recover from the additional
trauma of removing and reattaching the muscle.
S P E E D Y H E A L I N G
“They had me out of bed the same day as my surgery,”
Allen said. “My range of motion is much better. I’m
walking on the treadmill and should be able to golf
soon.”
The orthopedic team at Kootenai is there every step of
the way to make sure each patient is on track for their
painmanagement and recovery. Recovering faster doesn’t
just happen on its own, though. Allen has a strict rehab
schedule that involves walking on a treadmill, a lot of
strengthening and stretching exercises, and working on
his range of motion through the hip joint.
“I work on a lot of lateral movements that I wasn’t
ever really able to do before,”Allen said. “I started using
ankle weights to help buildmore strength, and I work on
having a normal walking gait on the treadmill.”
The total joint program at Kootenai Health offers
more than just great patient care while in the facility.
Participants in the program take part in an educational
component, where they learn what to expect during and
after surgery, receive information about rehabilitation
programs, andmuchmore. After the surgery, participants
also have the option of using Kootenai Rehabilitation
Services at the McGrane Center located on the hospital
campus.
“The staff at Kootenai was very concerned about my
well-being and wanted to make sure I was comfortable,”
Allen said. “It couldn’t have gone better—I would defi-
nitely recommend this program to anyone looking into
joint replacement.”
J O I N T V E N T U R E
Interested in the total joint program at Kootenai
Health? Visit
KootenaiHealth.org/TotalJoint
for
more information. See also “Ask the Expert” on page 22.
Back on his legs: Bob Allen, total joint program
participant, walks around the hospital campus.
KOO T E NA I
H E A L T H
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