Elevated 1 year blood levels

[ricol]

Hi everyone,

I’m a 42yo male, I just got the results of my 1-year cobalt and chromium levels and I am nervous.
Cobalt 16ppb
Chromium 7.8ppb

I am otherwise very happy with my recovery at 1 year. Dr. Su, at HSS, is my surgeon and he said my strength and range of motion are well ahead of the curve. I skied this winter at 6 and 7 months post op. This bloodwork was disappointing news that I received just today.

I’m not taking any supplements, I haven’t been doing anything strenuous that could be related to this (eg weightlifting, deep squats). There is a possibility that I was slightly dehydrated when they drew blood, but I was not experiencing any signs.

They are looking for cobalt levels of 5ppb or below. Dr. Su’s office said this is not an alarming level and that it can happen that 1 year levels are high and then drop. They will follow it though. They will repeat blood draw in 3 months, and if they are still high, proceed to an MRI. I’m having no symptoms at the joint, that I can tell.

I also know that Dr. Su has 99% joint survival at 15 years follow up and that less than 1% of joint failures in his cohort are due to elevated metal levels.

I don’t know how much of an outlier my levels are, and how likely, how far, and how fast they may drop.

Has anybody else experienced this?

I really don’t like this feeling. Esp after putting so much thought into HRA vs THR, consulting w Dr. Su, Brooks, and Marwin, as well as an HRA critic, Dr. Kwon at Mass Gen.

I’m so happy with the hip, and I’m struggling with the prospect of metal problems.

Thanks
Eric

[Pat Walter]

ricol
I am sure you are in good hands with Dr. Su. I have hear of people with higher levels in their recovery.  1 year seems like a long time, but it takes almost a full year for the hip to completely heal.  Many surgeons won't let you do running until them.
As long as they are concerned and watching them, I would feel OK about that. If you are not having pain or any problems, I would think that is a good sign too.
I wish you the best. You are in good hands with Dr. Su.

[ricol]

Thank you Pat. I am telling myself the same thing.

[einreb]

I am telling myself the same thing.

Yup... you're in good hands and elevated numbers at this point are not that unusual. 

[ricol]

thanks Einreb! Wondering, are you a Dr. Su patient as well? Did you encounter anything similar yourself?