ChondroFiller aftercare after a hip injection
No brace, no crutches. Here is what the weeks after your injection look like.
- No brace, no crutches
- Home the same hour
- Free 6-week phone review
- 12-month MRI review
Gentle for a fortnight, then a steady return
ChondroFiller is given as an ultrasound-guided injection in clinic, so aftercare is about looking after the hip while the gel settles, not about rehabilitation from an operation. Most people are walking normally within days, and the main job is to pace yourself for the first two weeks.
Instructions in your own clinic letter always take priority over this page. The full guide and printable leaflet are on the London Cartilage Clinic recovery guide.
Your recovery, stage by stage
Day of the injection
Walk out on your own feet
There is no brace and no crutches or other walking aid unless your medical team specifies otherwise, and you leave the clinic within the hour. The local anaesthetic wears off after about six hours. Mild soreness, swelling or stiffness in the hip after that is normal.
The next day
Dressing off, site kept dry
Take the dressing off the following day and keep the injection site dry for 48 hours. Do not use massage or deep heat on the hip for a week.
Days 1 to 3
Keep things quiet
Do only what you need to. Ice the hip for 10 to 15 minutes at a time, always through a cloth, never directly on the skin.
Weeks 1 and 2
About half your usual hip activity
The gel is integrating into the defect. Short, light walks are fine. Avoid long walks, impact and targeted exercises for the hip.
Weeks 3 to 6
Build back in stages
Increase distance, duration and intensity gradually and add gentle strengthening. Your free telephone review at six weeks is the point to check progress and agree next steps.
Months onward
Repair tissue builds
The new tissue forms over months, not days, which is why improvement is gradual. An MRI at 12 months is reviewed with Professor Lee.
Some flare in soreness or stiffness as activity rises is common. Ease back for a day or two, then build up again more slowly.
Why the surgical timelines online do not apply
The same product name covers two different procedures. Most pages that rank for “ChondroFiller recovery” describe the keyhole operation to implant it, with:
- A 48-hour brace after the operation
- Weight-bearing restored in stages over six to eight weeks
- Return to sport at around six months
Your treatment is an injection under local anaesthetic with no incision, which is why none of that applies to you.
When to contact the clinic
Get in touch if you notice
- Pain that becomes severely limiting
- Swelling or redness around the hip or injection site
- Bleeding or discharge from the injection site that does not stop
- A fever
Quick answers
Will I need crutches after a ChondroFiller hip injection?
No, unless your medical team specifies otherwise. You will not need a brace, crutches or any walking aid, and you walk out of the clinic the same hour.
Why does Google show a six to eight week recovery?
Those timelines describe keyhole surgery to implant ChondroFiller. The injection at our clinic is an outpatient procedure under local anaesthetic, so that rehabilitation does not apply.
When will I feel the benefit?
Gradually. The gel integrates in the first two weeks, then repair tissue builds over months, so expect improvement to unfold over that time rather than straight away.
Not treated yet?
Talk it through with us
A free discovery call is the easiest way to ask about ChondroFiller and what recovery would mean for your routine.