How much does a hip replacement cost in Turkey?
The cost of a hip replacement in Turkey in Istanbul ranges from £5,900 to £14,800 depending on your needs. In the UK, the same procedure costs between £11,000 and £15,000 privately: the price gap is small, or even nil depending on the hospital chosen. Travelling to Turkey is therefore not justified by price alone.
| Procedure | Price in Turkey | Price in the UK |
|---|---|---|
| Hip replacement | £5,900 - £14,800 | £11,000 - £15,000 |
Waiting times on the NHS are long for hip replacement, and private surgery in the UK is expensive. It is worth checking what your NHS care and any private cover provide in your situation.
What is total hip replacement?
Total hip replacement in Turkey in Istanbul is a surgical procedure in which the diseased cartilage and bone of the hip joint are surgically replaced with artificial materials.
Why might you need a hip replacement?
The aims of hip replacement in Istanbul are pain relief and improved hip function. Hip replacement is usually only considered after other treatments, such as painkillers and physiotherapy, have failed.
Which conditions are commonly treated with a hip replacement?
Total hip replacement is commonly used to treat:
- Joint failure caused by osteoarthritis.
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Post-traumatic arthritis
- Hip fractures
- Avascular necrosis
- Benign and malignant bone tumours and other less common conditions
How long will the new hip last?
According to national registries, around 58% of total hip replacements are still in place 25 years after surgery[1]. Hospital series report 78%: the 20-point gap comes from specialist centres and selected implants, and it is the registry figure that counts.
What other types of hip replacement are there?
- Partial hip replacement
The hip is a ball-and-socket joint. It can be damaged by disease or wear. If only part of the joint is damaged, a partial hip replacement may be considered.
In a partial hip replacement, the hip socket is usually left intact. The femoral head is replaced with an artificial component similar to the one used in a total hip replacement. Sometimes a device is placed on the bone, avoiding the need to cut the top of the femur. - Minimally invasive hip replacement
Minimally invasive hip replacement allows the surgeon to perform the replacement through one or two small incisions. Compared with traditional hip replacement surgery, this technique may reduce pain and speed up recovery.
A meta-analysis of 20 studies found no difference from the standard approach in revision, infection, dislocation, fracture or hip function[2]. - Revision hip replacement
Artificial implants wear over time and may need to be replaced. Revision hip surgery is a procedure to replace a worn implant.
Hip revisions are more complicated than first-time replacements and their results are not as good. The risk of complications increases with each revision.
Frequently asked questions about hip replacement
Duration of surgery:
The length of the procedure depends on the surgical approach, the patient’s anatomy and the implant chosen: the surgeon will tell you at your consultation. Preparation, anaesthesia and monitoring in the recovery room add several hours to the day of surgery.
Length of hospital stay:
The length of your hospital stay depends on your health, the hospital’s protocol and how quickly you get back on your feet. In medical tourism in Turkey, it is different from the total time spent abroad, which includes the check-ups before your return flight.
Anaesthesia:
Two options: general anaesthesia or spinal anaesthesia, which numbs the lower half of the body. Out of 409,096 hip replacements performed in England, spinal anaesthesia was associated with lower 90-day mortality, with no proven causal link[3].
Recovery:
Recovery depends on your general health, your age and the outcome of the operation. Physiotherapy is a very important factor in the result of hip replacement surgery, and usually starts as soon as possible after the operation.
Risks of surgery:
The risks are thrombosis, infection, fracture around the implant, dislocation, loosening, wear and a difference in leg length. At 90 days, 1.1% to 1.5% of hip replacements become infected according to an Australian registry[4].
What is the risk of needing the replacement redone?
It depends mainly on your age at the time of surgery: around 5% over a lifetime after the age of 70, rising to 35% for a man operated on in his early fifties, according to a UK cohort[5]. The same effect of age applies to knee replacement.
Can you fly home straight after a hip replacement?
No study measures the risk of a long-haul return flight after a hip replacement. Without prevention, the risk of thrombosis is real: 4.5% symptomatic thromboses in an Asian meta-analysis[6]. The timing should be agreed with your surgeon.
Sources & References
- Evans JT, Evans JP, Walker RW, et al. 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. The Lancet. 2019. Read the source
- Clesham K, Sheridan GA, Greidanus NV, et al. Minimally Invasive Intermuscular Approaches Versus Conventional Approaches in Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. The Journal of Arthroplasty. 2022. Read the source
- Hunt LP, Ben-Shlomo Y, Clark EM, et al. 90-day mortality after 409,096 total hip replacements for osteoarthritis, from the National Joint Registry for England and Wales: a retrospective analysis. The Lancet. 2013. Read the source
- Jin X, Gallego Luxan B, Hanly M, et al. Estimating incidence rates of periprosthetic joint infection after hip and knee arthroplasty for osteoarthritis using linked registry and administrative health data. The Bone & Joint Journal. 2022. Read the source
- Bayliss LE, Culliford D, Monk AP, et al. The effect of patient age at intervention on risk of implant revision after total replacement of the hip or knee: a population-based cohort study. The Lancet. 2017. Read the source
- Kanchanabat B, Stapanavatr W, Meknavin S, et al. Systematic review and meta-analysis on the rate of postoperative venous thromboembolism in orthopaedic surgery in Asian patients without thromboprophylaxis. British Journal of Surgery. 2011. Read the source
