Anyone have numbness after surgery?

[Woodstock Hippy]

So I had the surgery on my left shoulder two weeks ago and all is going well on it.  I'm in PT three times a week and yesterday at the end of my workout I was icing with a guy who had a total hip replacement and I asked him how it was going.  He said that he has numbness down his leg and that that is a common problem with hip replacements.  Does anyone ever have this problem with HR?

Since I have been sitting home for two weeks my hips are feeling pretty good.  But, as soon as I try to do anything even walking, the pain returns and I'm glad that my surgery is scheduled and I'll be back to being myself by next summer.

[jjmclain]

Woodstock,

I had numbness down my leg prior to surgery and am quite happy to see that all disappeared with my BHR surgery.

June

[John C]

I don't believe that it is common to have numbness down the leg with resurfacing, and I am a little skeptical of that statement regarding total hips as well. With a posterior approach, this would seem to indicate surgical error.
With the direct anterior approach, there can sometimes be some numbness on the surface of the front of the thigh, that often improves with time. This issue with the direct anterior approach would be equally true with resurfacing or THR.

[FlbrkMike]

The only numbness I have is a small amount right around the incision site.

[Vicky]

Numbness can happen with both THR's as well as hip resurfacing since the surgery is so close to the sciatic nerve.  If the doc accidentally puts too much pressure on the sciatica or nicks it by accident it can cause some serious problems.  Most problems are what they call drop foot and usually disappear within a year, it can be accompanied with a burning sensation and if it does not go away after two years, then unfortunately your nerve damage is permanent.  This is another reason to pick an extremely skilled resurfacing surgeon.  I know of one surgeon in the Boston area that has has quite a few patients with drop foot and several that ended up with permanent nerve damage, even though he will tell each one that they are the first. 

Some numbness by the incision site is common and I believe most people will experience that and there is no worries or concerns about that, it eventually goes away, but the numbness that goes all the way down the leg is the kind where a nerve was somehow involved and is a risk you take having any type of hip surgery.  Just again, make sure you pick a skilled surgeon and your risks of it go down.

Vicky

[Tin Soldier]

I had numbness before, but none afterward, other than the first 2 days of recovery, but that doesn't count and it was only around the hip. 
 

[Anniee]

I had have no numbness in my leg after the surgery (once the effects of the spinal wore off).  I think Vicky is probably right about the causes of it.  I don't remember who you picked as a surgeon - hopefully one of the most experienced ones!

[JMS]

I still have a small numb strip on the downward  side of my incision.  Been there since the first resurf 2 years ago - not helped by having a second revision surgery via the same site.

[Jimt]

I am 14 days post op and have numbness on the top of my foot on the side that was operated on.  I have no pain and no foot drop.  Has anyone else experienced this?

[PistolPete]

No numbness here and no nerve issues and I went to that one doctor in Boston and had zero problems.  In fact he was awesome and his staff was amazing.  The post care I received was so much higher than another that had his surgery with one of the "good" surgeons.