Spinals have their place, especially during Covid, they are limited in that they are a 'one shot' block so if the procedure takes longer than expected they start to wear off and can't be topped up so are often converted to a GA.
Most elective hips are safe although we are doing a lot of revisions when they become lose or infected, one of the issues with any kind of joint replacement is the use of the cement, it's vile and because of the chemicals used which can be carcinogenic before it goes hard, the most dangerous part of the replacement is when the cement goes in as it can cause massive drops in blood pressure, combine this with a spinal which also can have the side effect of dropping your BP and often a GA is safer even for the older patient.
I've had numerous GAs over the years, some for major ops and you can't beat a good dose of morphine!
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