Find Your Care

Services

Procedures

Conditions

Our Surgeons

Request an Appointment

Hip · Joint Replacement

Hip Fractures

A break of the upper thigh bone at the hip, almost always from a fall in an older adult, treated with urgent surgery to get the patient standing again.

Learn more

Hip · Joint Replacement

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

A hip or knee replacement that has loosened, worn, become unstable or developed an infection, causing pain and loss of function years after a good result.

Learn more

ContactTalk toa real person.

Two clinics, one number to call or text. Same-day appointments for acute injuries whenever we can. The front desk will match you with the right surgeon.

Call801-640-0000

TextSend a text

Provo1055 N 300 W, Ste 104

Orem700 W 800 N, Ste 330

Request an appointment

Find a clinic

Nondiscrimination Accessibility Good Faith Estimate

What it is

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

Replacements can fail in four ways: the implant loosens from bone, the bearing wears, the joint becomes unstable, or bacteria colonize the implant.

Each produces a painful joint that was once fine.Finding the cause comes first. Revising a joint without knowing why it hurts rarely helps.

At a glance

CausesLoosening, wear, infection

Most commonYears after surgery

First stepX-rays, blood tests

Treated by

Jeffrey Wallentine, MD, Joint Replacement surgeon at Ridgeline Orthopedic Specialists

Dr. WallentineJoint Replacement

Request an appointment

or call801-640-0000

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

Symptoms

New pain in a replaced joint, especially with weight bearing or at rest.Swelling, warmth or drainage from the scar. A feeling of instability or a dislocation. Fever or chills.

Drainage from a replacement scar is seen the same day.

Common signs

New pain in a replaced joint

Swelling or warmth

Instability or dislocation

Pain at rest

See us sooner if

Drainage from the scar

Fever or chills

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

Causes

Loosening and wear come with time and activity.Instability follows a fall or a component sitting out of position. Infection can arrive at surgery or years later through the bloodstream from a dental or skin infection.Diabetes, smoking and obesity increase every risk.

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

How We Diagnose It

X-rays compared with earlier films show loosening and wear.Blood tests screen for infection. Joint fluid is drawn and cultured when infection is possible. Bone scan or CT is added when the picture is unclear.The original implant records are retrieved.Bring your original surgical records or tell us where the joint was replaced and we will retrieve them. Dr. Wallentine operates at Utah Valley Hospital and Mountain View Hospital.

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

Treatment Options

Aseptic failures are revised in one operation with revision implants.

Infected joints are usually treated in two stages: removal with an antibiotic spacer and intravenous antibiotics, then a new implant once the infection has cleared.Dr. Wallentine has revised hips and knees for more than three decades.

Your options

Non-surgical

Antibiotics with surgery

Surgical

One-stage revision

Two-stage for infection

Revision Hip Replacement

Revision Knee Replacement

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

Procedures That Address It

Revision Hip Replacement

Revision Knee Replacement

Failed or Infected Joint Replacement

Surgeons Who Treat It

Dr. Wallentine, MD

Thirty-four years in practice. Mako robotic-assisted hip and knee replacement. Stanford sports medicine fellowship. BYU athletics team surgeon.

Request an appointment

or call801-640-0000

ContactTalk toa real person.

Two clinics, one number to call or text. Same-day appointments for acute injuries whenever we can. The front desk will match you with the right surgeon.

Call801-640-0000

TextSend a text

Provo1055 N 300 W, Ste 104

Orem700 W 800 N, Ste 330

Request an appointment

Find a clinic

Nondiscrimination Accessibility Good Faith Estimate