Hip condition blamed on alcohol
Dear Dr. Roach: My youngest son has to have both of his hips replaced. He is only 37, but is in a very strenuous job of being a boilermaker in an oil refinery. This is the hardest job in a heavy industry. His doctors are telling me that his hips deteriorated due to alcohol consumption — is this even possible? Even if he can get through this ordeal, he is still locked into this physical type of work.
The doctors say he will need another hip replacement in 10 to 15 years if he stays in this line of work. Do you agree?
Answer: The most common cause of hip disease requiring hip replacement is osteoarthritis of the hips, but it is quite unusual to see someone of your son’s age require a hip replacement. Alcohol is not a recognized risk factor for osteoarthritis of the hips, but alcohol is a known underlying cause of a much less-common condition: osteonecrosis of the hips, also called avascular necrosis.
The more a person drinks, the more likely they are to get this rare condition, even though most heavy drinkers will never get this condition. Not every person with osteonecrosis of the hip will require a hip replacement. It is frequent to have both sides of the hip with disease.
Untreated congenital hip dysplasia may also lead to severe hip damage requiring a total hip replacement, and it is also one cause I see in a person of your son’s age.
Prognosis after a modern hip replacement is very good. More than 90% of people are doing well, pain-free and without complications 15 years after surgery. Of course, some kinds of activities, such as heavy lifting and high-impact movements, could make the surgical prosthetics wear out faster, but regular activities such as walking, stair climbing, and most sports that are not high-intensity or high-impact can be done without damage to the prosthetic.
Although further alcohol use will not affect the prosthetic hips or other bones, many other body systems are very much affected by alcohol. So, if he has been a heavy drinker, it is time to stop.