sudden increase in pain and weakness 9 months out

[Anita]

Hi,
A quick history them a question.... 38 yr. old female, avg. weight & height...
I am 9 months post-op BHR on left hip due to moderate dysplasia. and near complete detachment of cartilage in acetabular cup.  It took almost two years of severe pain, walking on a cane, not being able to walk at all for days at a time, a few sublexions( partial dislocations) several doctors and tests and a few procedures and arth. surg to try to repair several tears and clean up... finally birmingham hip. By this time though I had lost a lot of muscle and was very weak. I also still have the other hip to do although it is equally dysplastic, not as much pain.

Knowing the poor muscle condition pre-op, ( and the fact that the old hip holds me back to some degree) I was told to expect a lengthy recover, maybe a 18 months until 100%. so it has been slow but steady some weeks really great, some stiff and slow clunking here and there... ya'll know the drill.

Here is the problem, and no, for some unknown reason I haven't called the doctor... afraid of bad news???  :-[ feel studip for waiting three weeks... anyway...

Standing in the shower shaving, all weight on my new leg. I felt something that wasn't quite right. Not painful just a bad clunk if you will and put my foot back down. There was no obvious slip, fall, injury just a weird clunk... standing on one foot shouldn't cause injury right???  ??? anyway, a couple of hours later noticed a some weakness in that leg. all around hip, upper thigh, side of buttock and swelling in the groin area. ( I swell very easily) so I iced it, wore compression shorts, was careful for a few days seemed like getting better.

That lasted until I went dancing a few days later...OK, two weeks later .... still in pain and going down hill, constant ache on front of thigh, pain in groin( right at the bend point and onto lower abdomen) very weak and unstable feeling, constant clunking with any movement. can't lift my leg and limp when I walk. I am assuming I pulled a muscle???? now I am on the cane, icing it, compression shorts, staying off of it and treating it like a sprain. which it what it feels like a bad sprained ankle only in my hip.....

anything like this happen to ya'll or do I really have to bite the bullet and call the docs.

Thanks for any and all advice, Anita

[Pat Walter]

Why sit worrying or taking chances by hurting something even more. 

CALL THE DOCTOR. Find out what is wrong. You could be doing more damage by continuing to dance and be active when it is hurting and swelling.

Something's wrong - find out what it is.

Good Luck.

Pat