Patient education › Rehab after surgery · Hip

After hip replacement: discharge and outpatient guide

Hee Seung Nam, MD, Orthopedic Surgeon · November 2, 2026

This is guidance for people leaving the hospital after hip replacement. The key is to be careful about posture and steadily increase walking until the new joint settles firmly into the surrounding muscles and joint capsule, especially for 3 months after surgery.

Pelvis X-ray before surgery. The joint space of the left hip is narrowed and deformed — Before surgery. The cartilage of the hip joint on the right side of the image (the patient's left) is worn and the joint space is almost closed.

Pelvis X-ray after surgery. A replacement is in the left hip — After surgery. A cup on the pelvic side, and a metal stem and round head on the thighbone side, form the new joint.

After discharge at a glance

Discharge
Come to the outpatient clinic regularly for X-rays and examinations. Take the medicine given at discharge until the next visit.
Day 14
The stitches are removed. You can shower under running water from the next day.
1 month
Activities that involve long immersion in water, like saunas and swimming pools, become possible. Once you can march in place without a walker, try walking without a walker together with a caregiver.
4–6 weeks
If the right hip was operated on, you can begin to try driving slowly from this point.
3 months
The period of dislocation precautions ends. Long drives are also recommended from this point.

Medication and wound care

You can take the medicine given at discharge until the date of your next outpatient visit. If side effects occur or are suspected, please call the main number of the hospital where you had surgery.
Stitches are removed on day 14 after surgery, and you can shower under running water from the next day.
Activities with long immersion in water, such as saunas, swimming pools and bathhouses, should be done, if possible, after 1 month following surgery.

For 3 months after surgery: positions that prevent dislocation

When the head of the artificial joint comes out of the cup, it is called a dislocation. Until 3 months after surgery, the tissues around the joint are still healing, so there is a risk it can come out in certain positions. The basic rule is to keep your legs as far apart as possible.

Positions to avoid

Squatting

Sitting with legs crossed

Sitting down on the floor in a W shape

Do this instead

Sit on a chair (with the hips higher than the knees)

Put a pillow between your legs when turning over

Spread your legs when lying down

Change how you live at floor level. If you were used to living on the floor, it is best to change your habits to sit on a chair and sleep in a bed.
Put a pillow between your legs when you roll over. So that your legs do not cross when you turn from lying on your back to your side, always change position with a pillow or similar object between your legs.

Small tips for daily life

Avoid chairs and sofas that are too low, and if the toilet is low, a raised toilet seat makes it easier.
So as not to bend deeply at the waist when putting on socks or shoes, a long shoehorn or a sock aid is helpful.
When getting into a car, sit on the seat first and then swing both legs in together.
Depending on the surgical method, the positions to be especially careful about may differ a little, so if your doctor has given you separate instructions, follow those first.

Walking is the best rehab

The best rehab after surgery is to walk steadily and increase a little at a time.
Put your weight on the healthy leg, and gradually increase the weight on the operated leg.
Increase the amount of exercise little by little within what you can do. Increasing suddenly causes pain and swelling, so it is best not to overdo it.
Keep increasing the amount you walk during the first month after surgery, and when you can march in place without a walker, try walking without a walker with the help of a caregiver.
On stairs it is easier to step up with the healthy leg first and down with the operated leg first.
Please avoid, as far as possible, sports that put heavy impact on the joint, such as hiking, marathons, basketball and soccer.

Driving

If the right hip was operated on, try driving slowly from 4–6 weeks after surgery, and it is best to drive for long periods only after 3 months, once you have recovered fully. If the left side was operated on, please discuss when to drive at your outpatient visit.

Contact the hospital right away if:

When the operated leg suddenly looks shorter or is turned outward or inward with severe pain and you cannot put weight on it (suspected dislocation)
When you have a fever of 38 °C or higher, or the wound is red and swollen with discharge or pus
Your calf is swollen and painful to the touch, or you are short of breath with tightness in the chest
When the operated hip hurts after a fall

This guidance is general information for people who have had hip replacement. It can differ with the surgical method and the patient's condition, so please give priority to the instructions of the doctor at the hospital where you had surgery.