This site is brought to you by Dr. Herbert D. Huddleston, a Board Certified Orthopaedic Surgeon in the Los Angeles area who specializes in Hip and Knee Replacement. Dr. Huddleston has performed more than six thousand hip replacements, and four thousand knee replacements. More About Dr. Huddleston

HIP ARTHRITIS INFO Anatomy of the Hip Introduction to Hip Disease Total Hip Replacement Mini-Incision Hip Replacement Implant Materials Ceramic on Ceramic Metal on Metal Post-Operative Care Revision Hip Surgery More Hip Topics

The hip joint is a “ball and socket” joint. The upper end of the femur is formed into a round ball (the “head” of the femur). A cavity in the pelvic bone forms the socket (acetabulum). The head of the femur and the socket are covered with a layer of smooth cartilage which cushions the joint, and allows the bones to move on each other with very little friction. An x-ray of the hip joint usually shows a “space” between the ball and the socket because the cartilage does not show up on x-rays. In the normal hip this “joint space” is approximately 1/4 inch wide and fairly even in outline.

The knee is a "hinge" joint which is formed by the femur (thigh bone) and the tibia (shin bone). The knee cap (patella) also forms part of the knee joint. The moving parts of a normal knee are covered with a layer of articular cartilage. The term “arthritis” literally means inflammation of a joint, but is generally used to describe any condition in which there is damage to the cartilage. In a total knee replacement, this damage cartilage is removed and replaced with metal and plastic prostheses.

KNEE ARTHRITIS INFO Anatomy of the Knee Introduction to Knee Disease Non-Operative Treatment Total Knee Replacement Implant Materials Blood Transfusion The Hospital Stay Post-Operative Care Revision Knee Surgery More Knee Topics

Please feel free to browse the hip and knee information topics contained on this site. If you require detailed information, Dr. Huddleston has entire manuals online, both Arthritis of the Knee Joint and Arthritis of the Hip Joint, which you can browse page by page. Also, you may download the manuals as Adobe Acrobat (PDF) files to peruse offline. Additionally, Dr. Huddleston is preparing Joint Replacement Newsletters and will post Testimonials to provide feedback from patients who have been through the process. If you require information beyond what is available on this site, please feel free to contact Dr. Huddleston.