Femoral head ostectomy

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Femoral Head Ostectomy (FHO surgery) is a surgical procedure used on animals such as small dogs and cats. The procedure exposes the head section of the femur bone (the ball of the ball and socket joint), and then the head is removed using a small saw. Like all procedures that involve the hips, sometimes both sides are done in one operation, and sometimes one side is done and allowed to heal before the other side is done.

Unlike most other hip surgeries, the head of the femur is not replaced, but is allowed to heal and develop its own fibrous scar tissue so that the joint is no longer bone-to-bone (also called a "false joint"). Another procedure, a femoral head and neck ostectomy, also removes part of the bone below the head if necessary.

FHO surgery is usually done to alleviate hip dysplasia, an extremely painful congenital condition found in many dog breeds and some cats. It is also performed in cases of trauma where the head of the femur is badly broken or severed, or in response to other diseases of the hip bone, such as Perthes' disease. It is sometimes the procedure of last resort when other methods have failed, but it can be indicated when the hip joint is severely affected or if arthritis in the joint is serious enough.

Animals who have had FHO surgery are required to maintain a lower weight throughout their lives to compensate for the loss of skeletal integrity, and generally have less mobility than normal. Small horses and ponies who have a specific type of this surgery should not bear the weight of a rider.