Scheduled for HR x2. Thoughts?

trgcfrg · January 16, 2013, 06:29:44 PM

I'm 38 years old and was first diagnosed with arthritis and dysplasia in both hips by Dr. Pritchett in Seattle in January, 2012. Two weeks ago, I met with Dr. Pritchett and he said based on my x-rays it's clear that my condition is worsening (consistent with my worsening symptoms) and the pain is coming from the arthritis. He says I'm a candidate for HR and can schedule when I'm ready.

I want to move ahead relatively quickly with the surgery, and get both hips out of the way. I have scheduled surgery for both hips - right side on 4/1 and left side on 5/20 (7 weeks out - Dr. Pritchett's minimum between hips is 6 weeks). I know this is aggressive, but I really want to get into the recovery phase across the board. Both hips are equally bad, so I don't see value in waiting a significant time to get HR #2.

Has anyone gotten both hips done in quick succession like this? Any feedback on what I should expect / how realistic / crazy this schedule is?

P.S. - I really appreciate everyone's feedback and stories. This site has been a huge help and encouragement to me. Thank you!

hernanu · January 16, 2013, 07:13:11 PM

It is aggressive in some respects (I had mine done with 12 weeks between surgeries), but not too bad. At 7 weeks, you should be getting stronger on the first, able to walk without assistance and drive. I went back to work at 5 weeks, so you will have a stronger leg.

Several of our hippies have had both done simultaneously, so it's not as aggressive as that. I think you should be ok.

trgcfrg · January 17, 2013, 08:30:59 PM

Thanks for the encouraging feedback :)

tedroberts · January 19, 2013, 03:32:20 PM

I had both mine done at once. I'm sure it was a little harder than one but I had half the combined recovery time. I was able to go to work after a week and drive after two. If you
are in pretty good shape your planned schedule should be OK. Good luck. Ted

Tin Soldier · January 23, 2013, 05:26:02 PM

Sorry for being a little behind here. This is a very common question and I've gone back and forth on the topic. My surgeries were 6 months apart so I had time to recovery and pretty much rely on the first hip during recovery of the second. I think it was really good that way. I was very happy to have a strong hip/leg during recovery of the second. Although, after seeing other posts and discussing with others, I think it wouldn't be all that bad to just get them done as quick as possible.

Oddly I was scheduled for my second hip 6 weeks out when I secheduled my first. I don't know if it was my nerves or the first few days of recovery, or what, but after a week or so, I decided to hold off for the second surgery. I remember Pritchett coming into my room the day I was leaving and I was already second-guessing my decision to come back in 6 weeks. In his dry but humble way, he totally understood my questioning and was pretty empathetic about the whole deal, knowing all too well how someone feels right after surgery.

I'd offer that you shouldn't put a lot of strain on yourself if you are second-guessing the short time-frame. Either way you do it, the 6 weeks between or 6 months betweeen will seem rather short when you look back at it.

Good luck!

trgcfrg · January 23, 2013, 06:18:37 PM

Great advice - thanks, Tin Soldier. By the way, I really appreciated reading your blog on your experiences with Dr. Pritchett - this has really helped give me a better idea of what I'm in for. That being said, I'm sure I'll get a whole different perspective once I've gone through it :)

Dan L · January 23, 2013, 06:31:32 PM

I did mine about 4.5 months after the first one, based on the doc's preference on interval between. For me, although it was 2 recoveries versus simultaneous bilat and one bigger recovery, it worked out great, I was strong enough on the other side and felt pretty good hauling myself around and the second recovery was also way easier (he did the worst hip first).

I can certainly understand your logic to get through both as soon as you can, you'll be that much closer to no restrictions sooner, which now 15 months since my first one, and 11 since #2, I still have about one month of restrictions on the one side due to the 4.5 month lag.

Best regards,

Dan