Read Danny’s Hip Resurfacing Story Part 2 here

January 24, 2011 I’m 28 and was diagnosed with degenerative labral tearing and OA in my left hip in august last year. I had an arthroscopy by Mr. Conroy in October, after the op he informed me that my joint was in much worse state than the mri’s and X-ray’s had shown. He said it was highly likely to be due to an old injury I sustained while in training with the military. I have always been so so active and competed in muay Thai at an international level and have been competing in mma for a couple of years now.

I initially recovered from the arthroscopy very well and have more range of movement than I Did prior to the op(I couldn’t even put my socks on or tie my shoe laces!) but I am now starting to have serious problems even walking short distances. I am really starting to get me down as I am unable to do the things I love and live for, I have put on a lot of weight as I can’t train. It is effecting my work as I work in security. I am looking at getting it resurfaced I appreciate that I will probably have to modify my sports but would like to carry.

June 22, 2011 After having several “debates” with my GP I was referred by him to a orthopedic surgeon (he refused to send me to any of my list of specialist resurfacing doctors as he has never herd of them)! so anyway he sent me to this “general” ortho who is qualified to do so but mainly does spine work. So anyway I attended the the appointment and was struck straight away by the mans arrogance! Which straight away mad me mad. He then angered me even more by saying that I was far too young at 28 to have a rs and that my rs needs to be earned by pain and I haven’t earned it yet! (bear in mind I have a report from my arthroscopy saying I have grade 4 OA and it only goes up to grade 5). He then carried on to say that my only option as I am too young to have rs is to have continual cortisone injections until I can take the pain no longer. I asked him about the link between cortisone and AVN and he replied there is ZERO chance of getting AVN from Cortisone. Oh and also he said when I am eventually allowed a rs I will never be active again in ANY sport I will never have a NORMAL life again and I had just better get used to the idea!!! Well I was so angry the first thing I did was to phone Mr. Treacy in Birmingham. I spoke to his sectary and she was able to give me a private appointment with out having to be referred by my troublesome GP!!! So I am seeing MR. Treacy on Monday and Hope and Prey that he is more positive about my options!!!

November 10, 2011 Back on ward now. Op took Mr. Treacy 25 mins. Still got spinal block on. I believe I’ve got a 60mm cup and 54mm cap. But will check this with the man.

November 11, 2011 I’ve had some kind of attack. Was brought on by the physio moving my leg. Was really scary I was unable to breath properly, I’ve had 3 ecg’s as imp slightly taciocardic and had a chest x-ray.

November 12, 2011 Since my taciocardic episode they have filled my full of drugs. Which was fine. But I’ve still not seen any of the surgical team and my telling nurses the fact my operated hit WILL NOT move at all has fallen on deaf ears! Well I was dosed last night with my oral painkillers that don’t work having had my pca taken away from me for some reason! Well after not sleeping for 3 days I quickly fell asleep only to be woken at 0300 in absolute agony! I was screaming the ward down I pressed my buzzer and eventually a nurse turned up Saying I’d refused an earlier dose of pain relief. Which was bull she just couldn’t be bothered to wake me up! This made no difference what so ever and I continued to literally scream the place down for an hour and a half. This doctor really didn’t understand but eventually put me on a magnesium drip at the request of an anesthetist. She then turned up and I spent another 10 mins explaining that I had been totally unable to move my leg since the op. I can feel it but god knows I cannot move it! I was asked why I hadn’t told a doctor sooner and I curtly replied I had only seen one jr doc who I had told but obviously didn’t listen. It’s now Saturday I had the op on Thursday at 1200 and I cannot move my leg at all.

Right well after the worst night of my life I’ve finally spoken to someone who has set the wheels in motion. I’m having a battery of tests today but the theory at the moment it a severe internal bleed which could be irritating the nerves of my leg. Mr. Treacy told the registrar on the phone that the op went perfectly so all my dramas are likely to be because of my rather muscular 28″ thighs. But the registrar I saw was gob smacked that no one from the surgical side had seen me or examined me. And it’s certainly no excuse for me being in absolute agony for 2 hours waiting for uninformed docs to tern up.

Had some x-rays today and the theory at the moment is that because of my rather large 28″ quads there’s obviously significant tissue damage. So the doc thinks I may have a blood clot or hematoma which is pressing on my nerves. They have given me morphine back which is working well. The doc who saw me this morning spoke to Mr. Treacy on the phone and he said the op went perfectly so there should be no device issues. There are a few other things that could be causing my problems but the clot/swelling thing is apparently most likely.

November 13, 2011  The issues are SLOWLY subsiding. I think the anti inflammatory are now working(although why I wasn’t on them from the start I don’t know!). I am gaining movement slowly I now have a few inches of movement in the leg and the physio managed to get me to stand up this morning with a zimmet. She thinks I’ll be walking tomorrow but being realistic there’s NO chance of that! I couldn’t even put 5% weight on my op leg! But I’m improving. There seem to be certain nurses who don’t like myself or others being on strong pain killers for some reason! I have had to get quite nasty with some of them which is very unlike me but as far as I’m aware my drug regime is written by the anesthesiologist not the bloody nurses! Hopefully tomorrow I’ll be moving the leg slightly more and will be able to do slightly more pt.

November 14, 2011 today is I think day 4 post op. And I managed to “walk” on crutches with the physio. They are now regularly checking my pain and altering my pain script accordingly. The physio reiterated what Mr. treacy had eluded to Treacy young people with strong legs have very painful recoveries. I think any clot/fluid build up is now delt with as my movement is improving and my general swelling has “normalized”. Hopefully I’ll be making big progress in the next two days and will then be aloud back to my parents.

November 17, 2011 Right time for my 7 day update! Well the infection I picked up in hospital has got worse the antibiotics I was given clearly weren’t up to the job so I’ve had an emergency appointment with my mums local gp. I have been having hot and cold flushes and my temp was raised and my throat is really really sore! So anyway the gp changed my antibiotic and adjusted my pain meds upward as my pain has been really bad due to all the soft tissue Mr. Treacy had to cut through to get the job done! I’m able to “walk” short distances although I’d hardly call it walking. The swelling is still horrendous so I think this is one of the limiting factors in my progress. I have noticed the “clunking” to me though it feels more like just loose stuff and air escaping! It’s really hard to describe. I’m doing my own leg strengthening stuff Ie trying to lift my knee forwards sideways and rearwards when ever I can just so I’m doing something!? I start physio next week so I’m hoping the swelling has gone down and I can really start to make gains. Oh I’ve started my bone supplements today calcium collagen magnesium and I’m starting a high growth matrix and GABA tonight.

November 25, 2011 I’m 2 weeks post op now. And I have made improvement but not as much as id like!(showing my impatience!) I think this is down to the huge amount of soft tissue damage I was warned about due to my large quads. Imp still in some pain but far far less then before and what remains is muscular pain. I’m getting more aches in various muscles the must have been yanked and pulled about in the op. No real bruising has come out yet but then it would be so deep I suppose it may not come out. One thing I am really aware of is when I do over do it I pay! Not with pain but I’m TOTALLY wiped out for the rest of the day. I started physio this week (I think our physio is some what different over here to yours in the US! Ours is very very remedial!)

December 5, 2011  I think imp slowly improving. Its so hard to see improvement yourself!! But my mum and dad say I’m getting better! I am defiantly getting slightly stronger but some days I make no improvement or very little but that’s to be expected. I have my post op check up with Mr. Treacy on Wednesday in Birmingham, not particularly looking forward to 4 hours in the car each way but what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger! I’m hoping to find out some more details on Wednesday like confirming my component size, inclination angle anteversion angle etc. Vie got shed loads of scar tissue in the leg I can feel it but I’m going to wait until at least 6 weeks to allow full soft tissue healing before I let my mate who’s just qualified as a sports therapist get into it!

December 7, 2011 Had my first post op check with Mr. Treacy today. I had to bring it forward due to being in quite significant pain(muscular). He assessed me and said I was around 2-3 weeks behind where he thought I would be. He thinks this is a combination of the sheer amount of muscle on my leg he had to cut through/separate and the muscular spasms I had post op. He also felt that my physio had retarded my progress further by doing the assisted stretches way too early!!! But on the bright side the device is PERFECTLY placed and he thinks I will make a full recovery it will just take a little longer than expected. My mind is at ease a little more now as I have now seen my x rays my self and now know that he did a really good surgery so that gives me the best chance of regaining my life! He said my op was very routine the only minor complication being my shallow acetabulum in a anterior aspect. As I said to him I really don’t care if I’m 2 weeks behind expected at the min so long as I make a full recovery in time and he assured me in his experience and opinion I would so I cannot ask for much more!

December 22, 2011 I’m 6 weeks post op today and I haven’t has a clunk for a few weeks now. I had them extensively for the first 2weeks or so then they seem to have subsided.

December 26, 2011 CLUNK CLUNK CLUNK POP. That’s been the theme for the last few days. I saw Mr. Treacy on Friday and had a really good chat with him for about 20 mins(man he knows his shit!!!) he said that my issues that I’m now having are all soft tissue related and I really need to walk walk swim and really just use my legs as much as I can bear. So I’ve taken the man at his word and really up’d my activity. And to be fair I’m getting stronger, but the flip side is I’m getting more pain and shed loads of clunking!!!! But I know its only natural and its for the greater good! A little suffering is good for the sole! But once again he reiterated that my device was in a perfect position and told me that thanks to my rather large bones I got one of the largest devices and he said that the bigger devices really are linked to the absolute best out comes which really made me happy! I asked what my bone quality was like and he replied that it was like iron and he put that down to my former occupation and my martial arts training for the last 16 years. In all although I am still behind where he thought I would be in the recovery curve he says he KNOWS ill have a great outcome and that everyone reacts differently so that’s set my mind at ease a lot ,more.

January 5, 2012 Today I am exactly 8 weeks post op and now my recovery has really taken off!! My leg is a lot stronger now and ROM is improving daily today I put my socks on in a normal way for the first time in 2 years wahoooooo!!! I am now able to walk about half a mile with no stick until my leg tires and my gait gets funny at which point I just start using my telescopic trekking pole. Last time I saw Mr. Traecy he said he thought that very soon my recovery curve would just go vertical and its definitely happening now!! I cant believe I actually doubted that he was right:-) What would he know he’s only done about 7000+bhr’s!:-))

January 17, 2012 I feel like my left leg is longer at the mo I’m nearly 10 weeks. I think it’s a combination of things. I think one of the main factors is the fact that pre op we loose cartilage so leg length will shrink, our body’s will adapt to this over time. When we have the joint resurfaced I think it restores everything to where it should be so your body has to re adapt. January 18, 2012 I’m now 9 weeks 6 days post op and am really doing well. My ROM is a lot better and my leg strength is now returning. Now I do occasionally have a down day or moment but the highs by far out weigh the lows!! I’m now doing some Gym work and exercise at home pretty much everyday now. For example on my “home” training days ill do 30-45mins in several sets on my spinning bike and some floor hip strengthening stuff. And on my Gym days ill generally walk to and from the gym a round trip of about 2-2,5 miles. At the gym ill do for example, 10 mins walking on the treadmill,10 mins on the xtrainer,10 mins on the seated bike then 10 mins on the regular bike. Then some light hip strengthening weights. Now I m having no adverse reactions to any of this and if I do ever feel like I’m tired or need a rest then I do so.

November 19, 2012 Well 10 weeks today! And wow how things have moved along! As some of you might be aware from my posts in other parts of the site I’m now having the problem where I am having to think hang on I’m still only 10 weeks post op should I be doing that? I’m now able to put my own socks on and tie my own shoes and there’s still loads more ROM left to return I can feel it! I’m also back to doing stuff in the gym, I’m doing up to an hour of light cardio in the gym and some light hip strengthening weights. On alternate days I’m doing 30-45mins on my spinning bike at home. As I say I feel pretty good at this point. I’m still no where near 100% yet but I can now see that I should make a full recovery in the coming months.

February 2, 2012 12 weeks today! Well I have to say I have come on leaps and bounds in the last 12 weeks. At the moment I am doing fairly well. My walking is fairly normal most of the time but the last few days I have to say I have had a fair bit of muscular aches and pains. I think that the main thing that I need to work on to further my recovery is to strengthen all the really small stabilizer muscles back up. I think this is my main issue at the moment. I still as I’ve said get stiff and aches and pains but I imagine that this is fairly normal? My ROM is really coming on. I can bring my knees nearly all the way to my chest but in some planes of movement there is still some discomfort but I think this is also to be expected. I have recently altered my rehab regimen. I have moved away from the cv at the gym and focused on trying to strengthen my leg back up so I’ve been doing remedial exercises at home and some light stretching. I feel that this has really made a difference to my recovery.

February 13, 2012  I’m now into my 15th week of being a bionic man. Well there have been many times over the last 15 weeks when I have thought to myself that my op had gone wrong or I would just never get my old self back. Well all I can say now is that at this point all those feeling seem misfounded. I am now feeling way way better all the time. My leg strength is increasing and my gait I think is pretty much normal or at least 85% of the way there! I am currently still taking it fairly easy just trying to do enough to make progress but not enough to set me back. Its a fine balancing act! My foam roller gets used every few days and is less painful than when I first started using it. Hope the progress continues and I’m gagging to get back on the mats and into the boxing gym. But all good things to those who wait!

March 15, 2012 today is now 18 weeks since I went under the knife. And thus far I think I’m doing pretty well. I am able to walk pretty long distances without any real issues. I have had the odd issue like yesterday I was getting some stabby and sharp pain around the hip but I decided that it wasn’t anything major as it was accompanied by some lower back spasms. I think I’ve been slacking off my leg strengthening a little too much but due to the ridiculous hours I’ve been working I have not had the time!

March 22, 2012 19 weeks today think recovery has slowed down now. Still got some niggles to get rid of but things are better than they are worse. I managed to walk about 3.5 miles the other day over rough farm ground and was fine. Paid for it slightly after but that was the first time I’ve been able to do that since 2010

April 6, 2012 21 weeks 1 day. This week I’ve managed to get to the gym several times. Each time walking the mile plus there and back and doing anything from 30-45 mins cv and then some light rehab type strength stuff. I feel good for it. My hip and muscles still are not 100% but I think that they are better for the exercise. I think I may possibly have a touch of bursitis around the throcanter but have used the roller on it and it seems to have helped.

May 3, 2012 today is 25 weeks. Since my symptoms just over a week ago I’ve been fine. I am still however having some ”pressure” feelings in the area. But I am still going to see Mr. Treacy next Friday just to be on the safe side! I am back trying to do some light cv on my spinning bike as well as some strengthening stuff

May 11, 2012  I’m now back home. The consult with Mr. Treacy and Christine went really well! But was a bit weird as I was saying that I didn’t think I was doing well because of zyx……And he couldn’t of been happier! He showed me on my X-rays that in fact in terms of Bone healing and ingrowth I’m well ahead of where he expects to see patients @6months! .No sign of any movement or femoral neck thinning etc. Also he said that my ROM (although less than it has been thanks to the bursitis) was better than most patients at 12 months and I should expect to see improvements for the next 12 months or so in that department.

He couldn’t explain the crunching grinding episodes that I had but did say he has seen a handful of patients with the same and it had never been linked to anything detrimental. He did say that I had a bit of bursitis and that my soft tissues were still ”angry” and that some soft tissue issues were very common and transitory. He did also remark that because I had significantly more soft tissue than most that said soft tissue problems would be more likely and more symptomatic in me. But he did say that on the balance of the x-ray and my ROM that he thought that my BHR was one of his best ones!! Coming from him that means a hell of a lot!!!!!!!!! He told me to remain patient and great things were in my future! He also said that because my Bone had healed far faster than normal I could start introducing impact to my work outs as I saw fit! He said he normally like people to wait 12 months but since my bone was fully grown into the cup that only mega high impact stuff IE road running were off limits and that I could start that in another 12 weeks or so!(Looks like my calcium supplements are paying off!)

May 28, 2012 Today is 28 weeks. I’m slowly starting to increase my activity levels. I’m hitting the gym most days and using my bike a lot more. I did 10miles on the bike on Tuesday on my way to the gym. My only little niggle right now is my ROM laterally(moving my legs apart) hopefully the ROM in that plain will improve in the future. From what I’ve read rom improves for a long time so touch wood.

May 31, 2012 Today I’m 29 weeks. I’ve been down the gym for my daily workout. I did 30 moms walking on the treadmill with walking backwards and side stepping as a warm up/down. Did 25 mins on the hike and 15 mins on the cross trainer. Then some weights. I normally do a bit more cv but my hip is a bit stiff today possibly from the walking on uneven ground last night but hay ho small victories

June 7, 2012 Just celebrated my 30 weeks by hitting the bag for the first time in probably over a year! The hip did think what the hell is going on at first as I have a unique style where by I close the distance rapidly by switch hitting and do a lot of skipping and lateral movement but after 2-3 rounds the hip was fine. I’d say my power is down maybe 10-15% and I put this down to the lack of bounce in my hips and let’s but I’m sure that will return!

June 21, 2012 32 weeks today. And I still feel like I’m recovering. I have noticed that my ROM has definitely got better this week. I have been doing some very light stretching for this though. But also possibly as a result I have noticed some more start up ache/stiffness. I went along to another Judo class last Friday and if I’m honest for some reason when we started the uchi comi(standing throw practice) my hip just didn’t feel right and so I had to quit the class early. I thin that it was a ROM and a muscular weakness thing so I have started doing some very light but deep squats and some light dead lifts as these seem to strengthen up the muscles really well. I have decided to leave the judo a few months now as it really depressed me as the class id been to before id done really well. But I am still healing and so I have to still take it easy.

July 12, 2012 35 weeks today! this week I have been away from home with the dog. I’ve spent the week at my parents. So I have not been going to the gym everyday or cycling. I have however been walking several miles each day with the dog and do you know what I feel way better for it! I think I have neglected walking in favor of the gym and bike. It has been mitigable that I have been less and less aware if the hip this week! With the walking it seems stronger and the distances I can now walk without scar tissue issues is now around 2-3 miles of steady walking. Not monumental by any means but the tortoise wins the race;) my fitness was really bad at the time of my op thanks to over a year of inactivity thanks to the OA but I am now loosing fat I feel fitter and am looking forward to the new year as I will then release the beast!!

August 18, 2012  I’m 40+ weeks now. I’m still pretty fed up. This has now probably cost me a good percentage of my income. I was at work last night in a response type role for a large concert I had a lot of walking to do and I mean ALOT! well again at the end of the night a incident erupted and my call sign along with others had to respond on foot. Well I physically couldn’t do it. I’m now in the sad position of having to say no to work that I need but can’t honestly be counted on as I’m not physically able to do.

August 26, 2012 it was 41 weeks on Thursday! Since morph suggested having my glutes checked out I saw my mate who indeed confirmed that my left glute was significantly atrophied and was not firing at all. My hamstrings were doing all the work that normally the glutes would do. So I have been doing some glute work. It’s very very early days(my mate says it can take a long time to regain muscle tone and get the muscle firing properly) but I “think” there’s some improvement. I’ve personally found this to be a real mental battle! Far harder mentally than physically.

September 19, 2012 it’s 45 weeks tomorrow! 7 more till 1 year!!! Just done a really easy kettle bell, static bike and shadow boxing session at home.

September 27, 2012 46 weeks today! Well I celebrated with a tough gym session(still non impact) mostly kettlebells and some light bag work. Really looking forward to being able to push the boundaries in the new year!

August 2, 2013
Just looked at my diary and realised that yesterday was 90 weeks since my bhr! I can honestly say I’m now not aware 95% of the time that I had the op done. The only limiting factor now is time thanks to my job but I’m looking to rectify that so I can get back to my old fitness level. Anyone reading this who is in need of a resurfacing don’t put it off. Find a top surgeon(this is the most important factor of all!!!!) and get them to use a proven device and you’ll get your life back!