Long story........Had my second follow up appointment yesterday and can now 50% weight bear in op leg. (Had hip dysplasia diagnosed as a child and complicated surgery involving plate and pins) was told if need a new hip before I was 30. I'm 45 now and had my thr 10 weeks ago after years of pain and limping. I put it off too long! All that horrible bone grinding pain has now gone and it's fantastic. Originally my surgery was planned with the same recovery as standard, I had always been advised to keep my weight down and had exercised as much as able to up until the op. Following a CT scan to check the structure of the joint following the earlier surgery it was found to be so badly damaged that I needed a bone graft to build a new socket.
The bond graft takes up to 2 years to fully strengthen. However I've been told I can start to fully weight bear in another 3 weeks but to continue using crutches until I'm strong enough to walk straight and without a limp. I feel taller now and looking forward to walking normally! However I asked about the 90 degree rule and was advised I will always have to be mindful of this due to the complex nature of my op. (I've not used my grabber for weeks, but stick my op leg out behind me when I bend down). The average life of a hip after this kind of op is 10 years. This doesn't seem long at all and next time apparently it will be even more complicated. Saying that it could last much longer if I look after it, keep my weight down and stay strong.
Feel better having got that off my chest, it's not life threatening and the pains gone. Would love to hear from anyone else with similar experience.
I feel very humble and promise to do my exercises every day. well done Vicki you are a very brave girl xx
Vicki,
You are so right there - we all need to look after our new hips and the new freedom they give us. Revision is, I am told, harder on the surgeon and patient.
Thinking about it, if they have to remove components that have been well seated for 10-15-20-25 years, there is going to be some rough handling and trauma.
I for one will have to watch my weight closely, I don't want to wear it out, especially as they couldn't remove the components when they tried on Jan 7th.
Best Wishes
Graham
Thankyou Sue, keep up those exercises! X
Hi Vikki, glad you op went well and that you are now recovering. Your story interested me as I had a similar complication as a child wasnt diognosed till I was 5!! After surgery I was left with a permenant limp and limited movement in my left hip. Thnakfully I wasn't in any pain and have lived a relativly normal life untill recently....
Anyways I was wondering how long you had to wait to discuss the op after you had your CT scan as I had mine about 4 weeks ago and have heard nothing back.
I too have had to have previous surgery to remove a plate and screws and have just started to feel somewhat normal again.
Graham what was the outcome of all this? How are you feeling at the moment?
Hi, mine was diagnosed at age 6. I had 3 ops including one to remove plate and pins. I saw my consultant regularly over the last few years but kept putting off a thr. Last May I agreed to go ahead and I had a CT scan in July. Then a follow up 5 weeks later. I was offered the op in October but had a holiday booked so finally had it done in December. How are you feeling at the moment?
Ah right ok so I should be hearing back soon then, hopefully .. To be honest I feel fine and im managing the pain with a few ibuprofen a day. I really want to have the op to give me more movement in my hip and im hoping that they can improve my limp as its pretty bad at the moment.
Hopefully you'll hear soon. Onlooking forward to seeing if I can walk without a limp, my leg length difference has reduced and I now need to strengthen the muscles that were too painful to use properly before. It's a While since I've been able to pain my own toes without almost giving myself a hernia. Also fastening ankle straps on shoes was impossible. I thought this would improve now but I even told not to push it. I was on only ibuprofen pre op as I didn't want to do down the opiate route but it's quite common that when you've had longstanding chronic pain you sort of just get used to it. If you don't mind me asking how old are you now?
I have a leg length discrepancy too which I really hope that will be significantly reduced after the op. Is this likely ? I imagine it would feel weird walking with much less of a limp after having one for so long! It must fee great.
Yeh ankle straps are super annoying for me on my left side, I try to avoid them at all costs lol. Im about to turn 37 - its my birthday this saturday!
Your story sounds very similar to mine Vicki, I had my first hip done at 30, fast forward 5 years and I've had another 2 revisions due to complications. I've also had extensive bone grafts and spent over a year on crutches. It's a hard slog and there are times I've felt it hasn't been worth it. But on March 30th Titanium Timmy the Third will be 2yrs old! Hopefully the worst is over
The limping is awful, mine used to be noticeable only when I was tired but became really significant over the last couple of years to the point I was swinging my hip and leaning over. Once your hip is back were it should be you should gain some length. I'm much straighter now when I stand tall and people have commented I've grown! Happy birthday for Saturday!
Poor you that sounds awful! It's so frustrating being on crutches after a couple of months. Can't imagine a year. Fingers crossed all goes well for you now!
Thanks! dont think im doing much celebrating, the weather is awful just wanna stay in the warm. My limp is pretty noticable all of the time, always has been. I think i'll always have one but I'd like to be able to stand up straight without my right leg taking all the weight for both of them lol.
I'm fine - well actually I think i have the start of a cold. Hip is okay, just needs more exercises. Work contacted me today to make sure I'm OK.
How are you?
Graham
The last thing you need is a cold when your trying to get yourself stronger! Hope your not going back to work too soon. I'm due a visit from my boss & HR next week. Not even walking yet so will be a while before I go back. No pain in the hip at all until I started to put some weight on it yesterday now some groin pain but nothing major. Can't compare to how it was pre op!