Hi Chris. I have had a TRHR nearly 2 years ago, the pain was so bad when I came out of theatre I was sedated again. My consultant, after the 6 week check said, I don't know why you are in so much pain and looked at my x-ray and said "look my jobs done, you best make an appointment at the pain clinic and that took a waiting list of 6 months. So to cut a very long story short, I have just come out of hospital after spending 2 weeks, for them to sort out another infection in my right hip, I have a 14cm x 4cm open wound on my hip which is being put on a vac machine and to re-dressed every day. I am now on a total of 59 drugs a day, plus oramorph.
I am sick to death of this pain and all the drugs I'm on. My gp has no idea what to do, or my new consultant. So I feel I'm just left to suffer and get more depressed every day, I can't go out on my own, I have no worked for 2 years and registered disabled. I have got a wheelchair which I cant accept that this is now my life.
So like you Chris I'm sorry I can't give you a bit of advice, but at least your not on your own.
Thankyou for comments and you are right I have realised im not alone in this and ths forum and all the comments have helped me greatly,and I am very appreciative of everyones comments and in fact they are heart warming. What becomes obvious is that otal hip replacement rarely goes wrong but when it does they seem reluctant to admit it so we are all in the same boat with very little help offered to us. I think surgeons need to realise sometimes hip replacements go wrong .
Like all of you im constantly living in pain not discomfort put agonising pain. But as in previous posts ive been told by my surgon he doesnt make mistakes ,physios telling me again this surgeon doesnt make mistakes,nursing staff telling me that everyone has different pain tolerences, then to be told by my surgeon I have nerve damage but the surgery didnt cause it so I cant help you does not help anybody. I dont blame my surgeon or nursing staff they didnt mean to cause me harm but it has happened so please kets acknowledge sometimes things do go wrong and you need to help us instead of brushing us under the carpet.
Hi everyone i've just had my legs measured and my hip replacement leg is an inch longer than my non operated leg. I was just wondering has anybody else whose experiencing severe pain in this discussion
Had problems with leg length. Chris
Hi Chris.b
I had both hips done just before Xmas, was warned that there may be a length difference & there is. No
dreadful problems with pain (fingers x). In terms of potential leg length difference in the long term I'm not sure what if any impact it might have.
Ps you'll need to go a long way before you will get any medic etc to freely admit "potential" errors !
Hi all, HELP
I am trying to get some information on having my hip prosthesis totally removed. I was told this by my district nurse who comes to treat me every day.
I am sick of the pain every day and night 7 days a week with no relief and I take 59 drugs a day.
Hi Chris, was reading your post & I had my fourth hip replacement on the 18/11/13 as my first two were the
Depuy that we're faulty from America so I had to have them revised, first one I had revised went well but since having the fourth one revised in November, I have been in severe pain with these spasms when I told my doctor he told me this would go in a few day, but 6 weeks on and am still getting them & they are getting worse. I feel as well as if something has gone wrong would appreciate if you could let me no how you have got on.
As I feel as if my consultant is not listening to me saying it must be something else but this only started after I had my operation. Kind Regards
Hi thanks for your post. I really take my hat off to you having four hip surgeries that cant of been easy. You therefore know what it should feel like after the operation and most importantly how it feels when things go wrong.
My GP said in the letter my consultant sent him, my surgeon admitted I have nerve damage but blamed pre existing problems for the damage.
I am like you though I didn't have any pain before operation due to nerve pain.
My hip consultant did recommend my GP refer me on to a back specialist but feels he like your consultant is unable to help me further.
If any hip consultants or surgeons are monitoring these blogs I implore them to realise sometimes things do go wrong and there should be a support system for us when they do.
My friend had a hip replacement operation last Thursday, and no dis respect to him he has a very very low pain threshold and was very very worried pre op. He however text me yesterday saying he is sore but feels hardly any pain at all yet the weeks following my operation I was in agony in fact I was crying like a baby and morphine was in effective yet I was told it was normal. If any hip surgeons are monitoring this blog please realise sometimes things go wrong, and have some sort of after care set up for us instead of telling us what we are experiencing is normal and brushing us under the carpet.
Yes if there are medical professionals reading theses, ok we all make cock-ups, BUT I NEED FIXING. Pain 24,7 no relief. I am with my consultant on Friday this week, but what will he do has he got a magic wand to fix me ?, he will just feel sorry for me.
There must be something out there to fix us, its 2014 and the technology in the medical field there must be something ?
If anyone can advise or help, I will listern.
Hi Chris update on seeing surgeon. My surgeon was surprised that I had the nerve pains and numbness. He has done over 1000 hipreplacement and only had one with same. However he was sympathetic and said it is femoral nerve damage which is what I thought. He explained how the nerve works the leg and why I can't lift it. He said the nerve is either cut stretched or caught up in scar tissue. Because I have electric shock type of pain it would count out cut. He is puzzled as he says he did not need to touch the femoral nerve. He can't work out why my knee is numb as the nerve is not involved. He has referred me to a nerve specialist for testing and written to my gp to give me nerve tablets. He would have written a prescription but as it was private it would be expensive. I am NHS patient referred to private. (Government is slowly privatising NHS under our noses but that is another story) He also said to carry on with physio which he said if there is a limit I would be referred back to NHS for physio but meanwhile they are still giving me physio. I have an appointment with him in six weeks to see results of tests. He is confident that I will get feeling back as his previous patient did after 9 months. Fingers crossed. At least he acknowledged it and is helping me unlike your bad treatment. Will keep you posted . Are things progressing with you?
Hi Debbie I was wondering how you got on Im really glad your surgeon is sympathetic I was told I had nerve damage before the op and the hip replacement did not cause it .I was also told explicitly there is no such thing as a nerve specialist but you and others have proved that wrong. Im glad about the news that feeling should return within 9 months I really hope thats the case for all off us that have nerve damage . The tablets are helping me a lot but still in pain. Im in limbo thp im not getting help off my surgeon or physio so I just have to wait till I see back specialist. My suspusion is they hope my pain will go away like you say within 9 months then they dont need to treat me. Anyway im glad again your surgeon has acknowledged it and thanks for keeping me updated. Chris
Hi Chris perhaps you should go back to your gp and insist you can see a nerve specialist/neurologist as well as back specialist. I dont know what part of country you live but I have a friend with severe back nerve problems who sees specialist in John Radcliffe Oxford. I am being referred to nerve unit in Northampton hospital. Surely your gp must realise you need tests to see which nerves are affected and future prognosis. My surgeon said he was 100 per cent sure my nerves will recover. I am hoping true but have read not all recover. I hope not postcode lottery how we are treated. You know what your body was like pre op so insist that despite what the surgeon has said you want answers and treatment for something that has happened because of surgery.
Chris just a thought but if you had epidural these can sometimes cause problems look up on net. I have lot of pain walking with crutches and more physio I do more knee pain I get. Strange that top of my knee is numb inside is painful. Surgeon showed xray of my new hip. Looks like that part of op was successful.
Following my THR I have numbness over the outside of my thigh. I realise this is because nerves have been cut during my op When I do my quads in sitting I have a click on extension. I am assuming this is because the pull on the muscles is in another direction.
I had a total hip replacement last February 2013 after breaking my hip in a fall. I had been very active before this happened. After the operation I was in a lot of pain and my foot was very numb the surgeon told me I had nerve damage and it had caused foot drop. I was in a lot of pain for the first 6 months this has now improved but i still get stabbing pain and electric shocks in my foot every now and again and the numbness is still there i am still unable to lift my foot. I have to wear a brace that fits in my shoe to walk and I need to use a stick when I go out. This as totally ruined my life the surgeon sent me for a conductor test but no one will say if the feeling in my foot will return all they say is it can take 2 years to come back. I feel for anyone who has this condition
Hi everyone this forum is really helping me but I am appalled that so many of us are suffering when the hip replacement is promoted as an answer to our hip pain. We all seem to be worse than before the op. Its not supposed to be like that is it? I know the surgeons are there to help us and their intentions are not to put us in a worse position. I actually felt embarrassed telling my surgeon that my op has left me with more problems! I don't know about anyone else but I did'nt say yes to the hip replacement straight away as I was traumatised by my accident 22 years ago which took me years to feel happy again despite my walking disability and pain. I told him I was scared but finally decided not to wait until I was a lot older and less fit to cope with it. I am 56 at end of month. Before I signed the consent form he went through a list of things that could go wrong but did not go into any detail. He did mention nerve damage but not what sort of damage and I had no idea until now what it meant. However I suppose I would have still signed as there is only 1 in 100 that it happens to, I suppose someone has to be the one and it seems it is us! Pauline I have read a lot on nerve damage since it has happened to me and you seem to have sciatic nerve damage. Apparently it can repair itself if the nerve is not cut so we both have to be optimistic that time will heal and we get the feeling back and the pain goes away. As i have lived with my disability since 1992 I have had time to come to terms with it and my restictions but now I have more physical restrictions because of my leg giving way. I will not let it get me down and will keep positive, yes we wiil all have our bad days. We have to appreciate the good things in our lives like family. One thing I do know is that people should never take health for granted and realise if we have good health physical or mental then we are able to overcome outside problems a lot easier as really they can be solved. Sorry if I have rambled on, I feel better now!
Don't lose heart Debbie. You have been coping with disability a long while . If you think about it your muscles will be weak and that in itself will put your recovery at a disadvantage. Yes it is very disheartening, but you have spunk, and you are showing great courage. Even those of of us who were relatively fit before the op feel as if we are worse off. How must it be for you. But if you focus, and do a diary, you will find you are making baby steps. Things will improve, but in your case probably more slowly, but they will improve.
Thanks Judi for your encouragement , kind of you when you are recovering yourself. Areyou in USA? Just wondering as one of your words means something else in UK and it made me laugh. I was fit before the op not super fit, health wise no other problems. I was swimming twice a week as that was the easiest exercise for me. Iam hoping to start again in a few weeks to build up the muscles again .I also keep my weight down as I know that is the worst thing to pressure the joints. S o I have always tried to help myself and stop wallowing in self ppity. I think if I had carried on being miserable about pain like I was in the early years I would have lost my husband and friends I'm sure. This is just a set back.
Hi there
I am a 55 yo man and have had 2 thr's (L & R) and 1 revision. I have the exact same symptoms and I think I can point you in the right direction
The first replacement (right hip) occurred @5 years ago and was performed laterally and I've had few issues w it.
The left hip was first done in Jan 13 and needed to be redone (revision) in Jan of 2014.
You may have experienced what I did in that you may have multiple issues simultaneously
I also have arthritis, stenosis and bulging discs in L3, L4 and L5. This is putting pressure on the nerve root eminating from the back. When the L hip was first done it was anterior.
Immediately after surgery I had a burning, tingling, red hot electric shock feeling on the top of the quad from the groin to the knee. It felt like broken glass and razor blade under the skin
Prior to the hip revision done 1 week ago I began seeing a pain management specialist for my back AND the nerve pain which started 12 hours after the first surgery on the left hip.
It sounds like mine. It has been described as radiculapathy of femoral nerve. Like you I had an arrogant surgeon who finally admitted that during the L hip replacement in Jan '13 after diocating the joint my leg was exended beyond the normal range if motion. That hyper extension if you will resulted I the femoral nerve being stretched beyond the tolerable and acceptaable range of motion.
That resulted in an aggravation of the femoral nerve that has continued to this day. I wanted the pain mgmt doc to coordordinate w the orthopedic surgeon to do two separate but neccesary procedures.
For the past year the nerve pan has been dealt with a treatment called Medial Branch Block AKA a Nerve Block. It is a direct injection into the nerve root in my spine. I lay on my stomach and it is a local and also moderate sedation but not anesthesia. It has helped to relieve the pain in my back AND the femoral nerve aggravation. The drawback it typically lasts 3,maybe 4 months. An advsvsnced procedure was discussed called Radial Frequency Abliteraton (RFA) which is similar to the MBB. the difference is in the RFA it is an identical procedure but instead of injecting steroids cortisone anti inflammatories and pain killers a needle is placed directly ON the nerve heated to 200 degrees and the nerve us burnt a d should provide relief for up to one year.
Suffice it to say it was to have been a back to back back procedure first then the hip.
But the hip revision went on anyway.
The nerve is redhot and burning again even as I write. The hip reacement neccesitates a lot of lying in bed which is causing the nerve to flare up
For you I would say you need at least 2 or 3 docs. Chck the surgical procedure used and if your leg was potentially moved in such a way to aggravate the nerve. Then you should see a back specialist and describe your exact symptoms. The orthopedic that did the hip MUST disclose his procedure. Then see a pain mgmnt doc for the ongoing nerve pain. I am furious that I must deal with this nerve pain in addition to the 3d THR
For now I am prescribed neurotin (Gabapentin) to dea w the nerve pain. As long as I must lay it will continue oto cause random episodes of intense pain. I am also on OxyContin Celebrex to deal w the pain. The sad part is I won't be physically capable of going thru surgery on my back until I am we'll enough to tolerate lying face down without causing a hip dislocation. In retrospect I should have ALL the scheduling myself.
You should as well.
My hip follow up is Friday. I also fully intend to see the pain mgmnt doc and if need be schedule w a back specialist.
I hope this helps and you get not only answers but relief. Good Luck!
MJF