Cold Therapy Devices

[Dan L]

Beth, Really glad to hear, sounds better for sure.  Hope you are out of the woods, very, very soon,

Dan

[ecchastang]

Finally got the Dr. Gross phone call today.  Really excited to get the ball rolling.  He has done over 100 Legg-Calve-Perthes cases, and feels that mine can definitely be done.  Only negative is that he said that if they couldn't do a resurfacing for some reason they would have to do a THR, and that Biomet pulled the large MOM THR off the market, so it would have to be a metal/poly.  I asked how many times he has ever started a HR and had to switch intra-operatively to a THR and he said twice, very early in his HR experience.  He said both cases could now be done HR with his current experience.  That was encouraging.

Anyway, he said he was booked out for a few months, but Nancy would be contacting me to schedule, in June.  Wish it was sooner, but still excited to be moving forward. 

[Sydney]

Hi all,

Some advice or comments please.
I am now 18 days post op from LBHR in Auckland NZ.
Recovery ok & walking with crutches & just about down to one.
Walking a couple of km comfortably but with some stiffness in the upper thigh & calf muscles which is easily bearable.
Lots of flexibility in my movement & feel I am making good progress.
Just sat on my ride on mower & tidied my place up for half an hour with little discomfort!
My only issues which does not show any sign of improvement is muscle pain at rest or worse still in bed.
Best way to describe the discomfort is certain changes of leg position can induce searing muscle pain  in the front & inside thigh plus calf for several seconds & then settles. Until of course I have to move again.
Sleeping is not easy.
Pain meds for this makes no impact.
I still have some bruising but no swelling & parts of my leg are still tender to the touch.
I understand & have had muscle pain previously (sports injuries etc) but this is certainly different
Can anyone explain what i am experiencing & any suggestions or when it may pass?
Cheers
Syd

[Dannywayoflife]

Syd Id say that's perfectly normal mate. I'm 4 weeks out and still have significant muscle pain. You've had a massive trauma to your body buddy it will take time to get back to normal. I know we all read about these recoveries where people have zero pain from day 2 and by day 7 there back to normal! Well I've yet to actually meet a hippy who has had one of these magical recoveries. Keep icing it plenty and do some gentle exercise. When your allowed get into the pool and just do some basic strength work in the pool that's the best thing I found last time :)

[oldsoccerplayer]

June will come soon enough. Did you ask them to notify you if there are any cancellations?
I'll never forget the moment Dr. Gross said "you can go back to soccer after 6 months."

[HowieF-16]

Hi Hippy's.  I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) in 1999 and the disease went into a full Remission in 2000.  In fact, it has been in remission until late January this year...a remarkable record for anyone with RA.  I also received a BHR in Jan 2014.  I am happy with my recovery and am pleased with the device, however I am curious/worried.  This RA flare is really doing a number on my joints...lots of them are involved and plenty of pain, swelling and ROM limitations.

Are there any other Hippy's out there with RA and have you had flares after the procedure?  I am curious if it was different then before the HR or if your resurfaced hip was involved in the flare?  I am also interested in any other thoughts you could pass on...successful therapies, medicines, etc.?  I am working with my Rheumatologist to find the right medicine to put me back in remission, however I am also worried if the disease activity will impact my HR.  Thanks.

[HowieF-16]

Beth,
What have they decided to do about the Psoas tendonitis?  Are they planning an injection into the sheath or just oral NSAIDs? I am hoping you finally get the relief you are looking for.  Good luck.
Howie

[ecchastang]

June will come soon enough. Did you ask them to notify you if there are any cancellations?
I'll never forget the moment Dr. Gross said "you can go back to soccer after 6 months."

I figured I would wait until Nancy contacts me to actually schedule. 

[shoraztri]

Hi Syd,
Welcome aboard to another Kiwi Hippie. You had the identical Op. to me [ Hugh B. July 2014],and what you are experiencing is normal as . Everyone heals differently , and we all have to adjust accordingly. Dont be phased by others that have bounced back quicker than you . There are so many variables , = your age , condition , fitness, body mass etc.
Dannywayoflife comments are a top guide, for he is ultra experienced and very knowledgeable on recovery etc. I iced plenty in the first 2 weeks , and this helped immensely. You can read my posts and updates under  shoraztri   and from there you can see how I have done . Take it easy , :)and the best advice I received from the Website is  PATIENCE. Thats the hardest part , but once you master that , then the rest is plain sailing. As they say , Time heals .  ;D.
Cheers, Kiwi Boy.
[From the Mighty Naki !!. ] ;)

[Pat Walter]

Hi

I am sorry to hear about the RA.  I had osteoarthritis in 2006 when I had my BHR. Recently, I had my right ring finger fused.  The surgeon then told me I had RA.  Went thru a number of blood tests and indeed I do.  I don't want any more of my joints to go bad so I am working with a rheumatologist.  I sure would not want it to affect my BHR either.  I started on methotrexate, but it has slowed me down so much, I stopped it.  Doctor said he will see me when I get home from Florida.  Am enjoying some warm time down here to help my RA. LOL

I can understand your concern, but don't have an answer.  Just am in the same situation as you - don't want my BHR to become loose from RA.

Pat

[Wytezz]

Hi,

I am wondering if anyone has the Sam issues.  I had my BHR Dec 16 and 4 weeks later succumbed to infection.  Surgeon was excellent immediately treated this aggressively with wash out and antibiotics.  Blood tests are excellent and the hip is strong, I am able to do most things and have no pain.  My only concern is that wound is still leaking exudate and we are 6 weeks post op from the wash out.  There is a small hole yet to close up.  Has anyone else had any similar experiences or offer any thoughts about this.  I really don't need another hit of surgery again so soon.

[MattJersey]

Still wrangling with insurer who for some reason are having trouble giving me the green light. Date still scheduled for end of April.

Had this note (italicised bottom) yesterday via broker explaining why the insurer is wavering. This deflated me a little, and ended up having a crummy night. My right hip was sore, my left too a bit, and I started worrying about negatives, what if I end up as one of the minority, thinking maybe I should just give up golf and "go sedentary" and just walk I mean limp the dog, have disrupted sleep and wait till I am nearer to death before risking a resurfacing.

Yes, that negative. I expect this is not new.

I have responded to broker asking for "the information" referred to. I expect this is the metal on metal complaints, related to ASR or other proven devices poorly implanted. I then read some scare stories (masochistic I know) and was thinking really negative: is there some big "Fugitive" style medical industry cover up here, and there are loads of bad outcomes being hidden? How could I possibly know just by "researching" on the www?

Just scared. Don't really want to go on limping, pain after golf etc. don't really want to give up having an active life either ...

Sorry for having a negative post. Any reassurance welcomed!


"From the information that they have given to me, it is the belief of the clinical team at AXA-PPP that the procedure that is intended to be carried out is not proven to be effective in the long term and is not within NICE guidelines. There appears to be confusion with the codes given against the proposed treatment plan which was given to AXA on the 25th February.  If this is still deemed this case after the call, AXA-PPP are likely to uphold their decision to deny the claim."

[petemeads]

 Hi Matt, sorry to hear of your struggle with AXA-PPP. I am with BUPA and they had no trouble at all with resurfacing as a concept but I think I would probably have had to contribute to McMinn's costs if I had chosen to go to Birmingham. Fortunately my local Spire hospital has a brilliant surgeon who does resurfacing (I don't know if he volunteers it because I went in demanding it if at all possible) and my outcome has been fantastic so far.
I did have to pay a fiver for my take-home aspirins as they were outside my insurance cover!
I understand the negative thoughts, once I was told the operation was available at a couple of weeks notice I had to spend over a month worrying about what could go wrong but I was also limping more in that last month so bit the bullet and committed myself. The op itself was fascinating, a spinal block allows you to chat with the team but feel nothing and there is no nausea afterwards. Thoroughly recommend the whole thing, and almost looking forward to the next one!

[Dannywayoflife]

I would say that AXA are very very mis guided with those statements!

[petemeads]

Hi Matt, AXA-PPP website recognizes MoM hip resurfacing as being well suited to younger patients with strong bones, being less invasive and giving a better range of movement.
Their code for hips is 16.9, resurfacing is W3715 and counts as an xmajor operation. According to their fees schedule the surgeon gets £800 and the anaesthetist £375...  Total hip replacement costs exactly the same.

[MattJersey]

Thanks for replies. Went through the rationale again, and reach same conclusion.

Limping, really sore after golf (hip, and elsewhere compensating), sleep disruption. Shooting pains here and there just cruising in town today. I'm not disabled, but my next ten years are my best ten and I'd like to be active. There is risk, but realistic downside is THR and I can cope with that.

Re Axa PPP, I told them that code, so did the clinic, but they're somehow confused and think it is something else. But it has taken weeks, and until sorted I can't finalise and make travel plans etc. Very annoying. Hopefully sorted tomorrow or early next week.

[Dannywayoflife]

Insurance companies are very easily confused mate. When I had insurance and had my shoulder reconstruction they were really puzzled by some of the procedure codes! Right up to about half an hour before me going into theatre!

[KevinHalicki]

Hello

Has anyone made this trip for resurfacing from Canada to Birmingham or any advice if it is feasible to do? Might be difficult to do after hip surgery.

Thanks

[Torontogirl]

Hi Kevin,
I travelled from Toronto to Brussels and on to Ghent for my  HR surgery with Dr. De Smet, so have some suggestions for you. You might consider perhaps staying overnight or splitting up the trip going home or both through Toronto  (or other) as it's a long flight from Vancouver ( I flew for CP Air and Air Canada for many years). If you can swing it, business class with sleeper seats is the way to go, as you will have more room to elevate your leg. Also a little known fact is that if you have had  surgery  you will need a Medical form, completed by your surgeon (from the airlines) saying you are fit to travel if travelling within 2 weeks of procedure. There is increased chance of blood clot after hip surgery and flying especially if you don't move around for long periods. -I stayed in Belgium for 2 weeks before I travelled home and travelled in business class!Hope this helps.
Regards,
          Angy

[Beth]

Re: Psoas tendonitis. Going to treat for now with NSAIDs for now but we did discuss an injection into the psoas (? bursa) if it continues to be painful. I can now lift my leg-whereas at the time of my appointment it was very difficult. Still having groin pain, but it does seem to be less.
General hip pain less today, also which makes me breath a little easier.
Recent C-reactive protein results came back normal (REALLY elevated on 1/21) which makes me think all the snow shoveling I did in January may have initiated a lot of this. Sed rate slightly elevated which is somewhat nonspecific. Metal ion tests still pending.
Radiologist noted "minimal calcific tendinitis lateral to the greater trochanter". I'm no expert but I'm thinking this is an infammatory reaction??
I am on Dr Brooks/Phil's schedule to talk on Weds 3/18.