by AceMedEd

Teach card · keep it in your scrub pocket

Total hip arthroplasty

Ask during the case

  1. Positioning and exposure: "Which interval are we in today, what supplies the muscle on each side, and which nerve is closest to my retractor?"
  2. Cup in: "On the AP pelvis, which two lines give you cup inclination, and what range is commonly taught?"
  3. Stem in and closing: "How do we judge leg length and offset on the film, and which layers are we repairing as we close?"

Point at: the capsule as it's opened, and the retractor closest to a named nerve or vessel, while they name it.

End of day: "Redraw the hip cross-section with today's approach, then draw the AP pelvis lines on a blank pelvis." Two minutes each, no notes.

Where this kit and your technique differ, yours wins.

Send this to your students

The night before. They prep alone, redraw at turnover, and get a cold check tomorrow morning. They won't see these questions.

Open the student page

Reviewed by Mehdi “AC” Talle, D.O., November 2026. Sources: Netter, Gray's Anatomy and Hoppenfeld's surgical exposures. Teaching schematic, not to scale; anatomy and technique vary. Management and indications are left to you on purpose.