Hello everyone. I have been lurking here for quite a while now and wanted to finally share my story. I am 38 and have been active my whole life. I used to run and play basketball several times a week and took part in many other sports and martial arts when younger. About five years ago I developed pain in my right leg, which grew worse over time and eventually started to limit my range of motion. A year or so after the pain starting on my right side it developed on my left side and caused the same problems.
Within the two years or so it got to the point where it is difficult to put on my shoes and bending over to pick things up off the floor is not easy to do anymore. I also had to give up riding my motorcycle because I was not able to put my leg over the bike or spread my legs wide enough to sit on it. My mother had arthritis in her hips and had them both replaced a year apart when she was 58 and 59.
Thanks to this site I learned about hip resurfacing. This past summer we were back in SoCal visiting family and I made an appointment with Dr. Schmalzried. My x-rays showed severe osteoarthritis in my right hip and moderate arthritis in my left hip. Dr. Schmalzried recommended resurfacing for both hips. Later in the summer I sent my x-rays to Dr. Gross and had him evaluate me. Dr Gross made the same recommendation.
I guess I went through the same things in my head that everyone here has thought about: Why me at 38? I am way too young for this to be happening to me. Is this worth the risk? Are my hips bad enough for me to have surgery? I can still walk relatively pain free and can do most daily tasks without too much trouble. I no longer run or play basketball and my physical activity is limited to walking these days. As a result of my hip problems I have put on about 25lbs and miss doing the things I used to. After considering everything I decided to go forward with the surgery. I chose Dr. Gross since he is much closer to where I now live in New York and he is willing to do both hips together. I had the choice of having my right hip done first since it was worse and doing my left down the road, or doing them together. I want to have both hips fixed at the same time because I will use up most of my sick leave during my recovery and will not be able to take an extended amount of time off work again in the near future. Also, it sounds much better to go through this process once instead of twice.
Dr. Gross will resurface my right hip on December 13th and my left hip on December 15th. I leave on Wednesday and have a pre-op meeting with Dr. Gross on the 9th. As the date approaches I find myself getting very nervous. I know I will be in very capable hands though. I will provide an update after my surgery if anyone is interested.
Thank you to this site for everything it has taught me over the past year and giving me the information necessary to make an informed decision.
Quote from: BrianROC on December 05, 2010, 02:25:34 AM
Why me at 38?
You are lucky. People without arthritis have to keep their hips made out of bone, cartilage and gristle. You get the chance of ultra hard high tech alloy bearings. And you don't even have to wait till you are old.
Brian,
You're in really good hands with Dr. Gross I would not worry whatsoever. Being so young just means that you will probably get the most value from your devices. When I get up in the morning I have nothing to remind me of my hip surgery as my operated him is better feeling than my non operated one.
Lee and Dr. Gross are awesome and their hospital is great, if you have family coming with you they can stay withing a very short walk accross shared parking lots to the hospital and you won't get lost in that hospital either.
Either doctor you would have chosen would have been a good choice IMHO.
Good luck
Chuck
Brian,
I'm sure things will work out for you and you'll be very happy to did this. BTW, you should check into your company's provisions/requirements regarding short-term disability. Because of the length of time I was out of the office when my BHR's were done (about 5 weeks each), I was required to go on STD (with full pay) in lieu of sick leave. My company is part of a large corporation, so it may be subject to different laws and regulations than yours. Best of luck.
Jim
Brian, good luck with the Bilateral HR. I know you can't get back to no pain. It will be soon. Let us know how you do.
Good luck Brian. If you feel up to it, why don't you keep us up-to-date on your recovery. From what I've read about Dr. Gross and his staff, most of their patients have a pretty reasonable recovery.
Mac
Brian -
Good luck with your upcoming resurfacings. I had bilateral resurfacings done on Oct 22nd by Dr. Su in New York, and our stories are similar in that I gave up riding the bike and many activities because of my range of motion. I'm now 6 weeks post op, and getting them done at the same time was the best thing in MHO. One surgery, one anesthesia, and one recovery period. Your first two weeks will be a challenge, but it gets much better fast if you do the PT faithfully. If you have any questions let me know, I just went through it...........
Ewald
Good luck Brian, I had both done at the same time and never regretted it. Don't be nervous, in a short time you'll
be telling us how good you feel!
moe
Brian,
You beat me one month with Dr.Gross and Co. I am getting both of mine done Jan. 10 and 12. I share some of the same experiences as you. I won't even try to sit on a motorcycle anymore (I don't have one but friends do). I can't spread my legs apart to sit! I'll bet you have a problem stepping into a picnic table also. It's weird. Good for you if you can go for walks. I can go for short ones but that's it. I went for a one hour hike in the woods this past October. What a mistake. I payed for that one for about a week. The pain affects people differently.
I too am getting very nervous as the days get closer to surgery. When Dr. Gross called me on the phone, I was going to ask him what he thought of getting both done at once. I heard of people doing that, but it sounded kind of masochistic, but I wanted to get his input. It turned out that he suggested he do them both the same week before I got the chance to ask him. I didn't know that they were done on separate days. It sounds like they have the procedure down really well. He assured me that all steps are taken to keep pain at a minimum. Sounds like we are in good hands. I'm glad now that one trip there will do it all.
I have the same condition as you. One hip was diagnosed with advanced arthritis, the other with moderate. That diagnosis was in September of 2009 by a local orthopedic surgeon. Now they are both really bad, I can't remember which is which now. That surgeon told me that there is nothing he can do for me and I will be back within a couple of years to have total hip done. Thank God I found this website! I'm 55 years old but the idea of THR did not sound appealing to me at all. I do (did) very physical activities up to about 2 1/2 years ago. The last question I asked Dr.Gross was, "If you did not have any information about me other than my x-rays lying in front of you, what would you think?" His answer, and I'll never forget the way he said it was, "Oh, your hips are terrible. Don't worry, you're not rushing into this." I guess that's why he suggested doing them both before I had the chance to ask.
Good luck and I will be thinking of you the 13th and 15th. You will be O.K. It sounds tough to have them both done, but everyone I read about on this site are glad they did it that way. I know Dr. Gross would not do it that way if it was a problem. Time flies, it will be over before you know it. Just think, you'll have a month in when I'm getting done. I'm jealous! LOL!
Steve
Brian,
I'll be getting bi-lateral BHR's in less than 48 hrs. I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't a little anxious about what lies ahead. I've done everything on my end to ensure a good outcome. I've got a great doc( DR. Marchand) who I feel confident will do a good job. My surgery will be done at an award winning hospital. I've done my pre-op exercises, maintained a good diet and kept my weight down. I've banked a couple of units of blood just in case and have visited the physical therapy facility I'll be using during my recovery. I have a recliner, an ice machine, I have raised the height of my bed and toilet and have a bar to safely take a shower. I wouldn't have known to do any of these things had it not been for this fantasic website and the wonderful folks that have shared their stories.
Best of luck. You've got a great doc and I'm sure you'll have no regrets. Just keep a positive attitude and listen to your body. You're young so you'll probaly recover a bit faster than us old timers.lol Please keep us up to date with your progress.
Steve
Good luck Steve, you have covered all the bases and you'll be fine. Enjoy the ride!
moe
Steve,
It's been 6 weeks since my LBHR with Dr. Marchand. You're in really good hands with him and his staff in a top notch hospital. Let me know if you need any info. Good luck to you. Maybe I'll stop by the hospital after the 15th to see how you are doing.
Thank you everyone for the encouragement. I leave for SC on Wednesday, with my pre-op appointment on Thursday. I will try to provide an update while I am down there.
Stevejco- Good luck with your surgery. All the best for a quick recovery. Let us know how it goes.
Newdog- Best of luck to you as well. Since I will only be a few weeks before you I would be happy to answer any questions you have once I am on the other side.
I'm in almost the exact same position as you Brian and Steve. The dreaded picnic table. Never thought I'd be hesitant to sit down at a picnic table. You should have seen me flop in the snow this weekend trying to pull my gimpy legs out of deep snow. I'd crawl out of the postholes on my knees , crawl a little more, then gently get up without bending the bad hip. Then being an idiot, I'd step into some more deep snow and sink and do it all over again. The important part is that I got my christmas tree. Shouldn't have rented snow shoes. Anyway, I'm thinking by next Christmas, I'll have new hips.
So the more I read about bilateral surgery, I'm thinking I may try to go with it. My Dr. suggested not, but sure sounds like there are a few docs and hospitals that can crank this stuff out and do a great job of it.
Enough of that, I wish the best for the three of you guys and I'm looking forward to hearing how you guys do.
Hi Moe and jgenese,
Not sure how long I'll be in the hospital. With one hip done on a Tuesday your discharged on the following Friday. Having bi-lats might get me an extra day or so in the hospital. How much time did Dr Marchand allow for you guys? I suspect your Ins prob has something to do with the length of time allowed.
Tin Soldier lol the dam picnic tables. I've fallen on my but a few times getting in and out of those things. Best of luck to all the folks on deck it's my turn at bat.
Steve
Brian - Good Luck with your upcoming surgery. Dr. Gross is a fantastic surgeon. I look forward to hearing about your experince. Keep us updated when you can.
Pat
Steve
Good Luck with your upcoming surgery. I look forward to reading about your recovery. I hope things go well for you.
Pat
stevejco,
You will do O.K. Sounds like you are ready and you have things under control.
BrianROC,
I'll take you up on the questions after you are done. I'll email you. We all want to hear how you are doing.
Steve (Newdog)
Steve,
I had my surgery with Dr.Marchand on Friday and went home on Monday but that was only my left side.
Brian & Steve - I just had my second hip done last monday, the first about three months ago. All I can tell you is that the procedure is smooth and my recovery has proceeded well. The important thing to remember for me is that you're going from a degenerative condition, where your world was getting more and more limited to an expansive and for me, a really positive situation.
I had the dread of picnic tables, stairs and one particularly large step on a dais at a wedding that I was part of. I hated showers with tubs and small taxis in South America (those were horrible). My range of movement with the rehabilitated hip (left) is now amazing to me after three months. Strength is back, no pain and I am starting to forget the built - in limitations that I had developed over the years.
I'm on crutches right now (first week on the second hip), but having gone through this one time, I have the confidence in the whole process that maybe I lacked the first. This will be a great summer coming up and I plan to take full advantage.
So, I understand the nervousness, I got it the second time around as well as the first, but I am rooting for you to have great results and getting the pain and small world behind you guys.
hernanu,
Sounds great! You're done and can now look ahead like you said. You know, that made me think about showers with tubs. A couple of years ago I noticed that when I stepped into my shower (it has a tub), I started to stub my toes on the side of the tub. That is because my range of motion was decreasing. I couldn't figure out then what the heck was going on. Now I hate the idea of stepping in and out. Just another observation of mine. Anyway, good for you, have fun!
Steve (newdog)
Right, Steve, I still get a kick out of clearing that tub wall by a good sx inches now... you know, before this surgery. Good luck, I know things'll go well for you.
Good luck with your recovery hernanu. I'm glad to hear it is going well.
I am in Columbia, SC now. I met with Dr. Gross this past Thursday. Everyone was very friendly and Dr Gross was was more than willing to take the time to answer all my questions. He told me I have De Cam FAI in both my hips which caused them to wear out. He said this condition usually causes hips to break down in the late 40's or early 50's in active individuals. I was just lucky to wear out my hips at 38. Damn you sports, lol.
I have to be at the hospital tomorrow morning at 6:30. Surgery on my right hip will take place at 9:00am. My left hip will be done on Wednesday at 9:00. Getting nervous now for sure. Wish me luck. I will update tomorrow after surgery if I feel up to it. Thank you everyone.
Brian
Brian,
I know I will be nervous too. I was hoping to hear how the meeting was with Dr. Gross. I can't wait to meet him.
Just think, in a few days you will be done. Then things go the other way, the good way. I'll be thinking of you tomorrow, hang in there. 38, heck you're a kid! LOL! I'm 55. You should heal a lot faster than me. Good luck.
Steve (newdog)
Good luck, you're in really good hands. Don't worry, that what Dr. Gross and Lee are there for, to worry about making you perfect again.
Chuck
Quote from: BrianROC on December 12, 2010, 05:53:14 PM
Good luck with your recovery hernanu. I'm glad to hear it is going well.
I am in Columbia, SC now. I met with Dr. Gross this past Thursday. Everyone was very friendly and Dr Gross was was more than willing to take the time to answer all my questions. He told me I have De Cam FAI in both my hips which caused them to wear out. He said this condition usually causes hips to break down in the late 40's or early 50's in active individuals. I was just lucky to wear out my hips at 38. Damn you sports, lol.
I have to be at the hospital tomorrow morning at 6:30. Surgery on my right hip will take place at 9:00am. My left hip will be done on Wednesday at 9:00. Getting nervous now for sure. Wish me luck. I will update tomorrow after surgery if I feel up to it. Thank you everyone.
Brian
Quote from: BrianROC on December 12, 2010, 05:53:14 PM
Good luck with your recovery hernanu. I'm glad to hear it is going well.
I am in Columbia, SC now. I met with Dr. Gross this past Thursday. Everyone was very friendly and Dr Gross was was more than willing to take the time to answer all my questions. He told me I have De Cam FAI in both my hips which caused them to wear out. He said this condition usually causes hips to break down in the late 40's or early 50's in active individuals. I was just lucky to wear out my hips at 38. Damn you sports, lol.
I have to be at the hospital tomorrow morning at 6:30. Surgery on my right hip will take place at 9:00am. My left hip will be done on Wednesday at 9:00. Getting nervous now for sure. Wish me luck. I will update tomorrow after surgery if I feel up to it. Thank you everyone.
Brian
Good luck and keep us posted.
Thank you everyone. See you on the other side.
Steve, if you would like I can send you a PM or email with more information about the meeting with Dr. Gross and what to expect.
Quote from: newdog on December 12, 2010, 09:16:12 PM
I was hoping to hear how the meeting was with Dr. Gross. I can't wait to meet him.
Good luck.
Steve (newdog)
I'm happy to report that my right hip surgery is now in the books. The staff at the hospital has been great. They are all very friendly and willing to help out with anything I need.
My surgery was at 9:00 this morning. I was Dr. Gross's second surgery of the day. I like the idea of being second. It gives the doctor a chance to get warmed up and in the zone, but not too tired as if I was number five.
When they were preparing me for surgery the put something in my IV to relax me. It really worked well, lol. When they brought me to the surgery room they the gave me a second drug though my IV to prepare me for the epidural. The next thing I remember is waking up in the recovery room around 12:15.
I was told that everything went well. I am in very little pain. I feel a dull ache my right hip, maybe like having a Charlie horse from being punched in the leg. I'm sure that will change went the drugs wear off though.
PT met with me this afternoon and went over some daily exercises. After that, they got me up and I walked down to the end of the hall and back with a walker. They said it was great. I had a limp but it seemed easier than I thought it would be and not too much pain.
I was even given a copy of my x-ray showing my fancy new hip. That is the short and sweet update on my day. If anyone wants more details or has questions I would be happy to answer them.
Brian,
Do us a favor, keep a log on your pain levels if you think of it. If you do it as it happens you won't let time change your memory.
I never had any pain till the next day and it was that dull pain.
Chuck
Brian,
It's really good news from you. I have been wondering all day when you would post after your surgery.
I have one question for you for now. That was hip number one. How do you feel now about going back in on Wednesday to have the other one done? Maybe it's too early to answer. That's O. K. if you're not sure what to say. Are you drowsy or anything from the stuff they give you? I'm all for that stuff they put in the I.V. LOL!
I'll get your email address and email you. If you zonk out and don't answer, that's O.K., I understand.
Way to go, it seems only yesterday I read your first post. This week will fly by, I'm sure.
Steve (newdog)
Good news, Brian! Thanks for keeping us clued in. Good luck on the second. Sounds like the first one went great.
One down, one to go Brian. Did you have any problems getting online with your computer when you got to your room? Are you pretty clear headed after the medication? Like Chuck, I'm kind of curious how your pain levels fluctuate after your surgery. Since i'm scheduled for March, I'd like all the information I can get before hand.
Mac
Brian
Great to hear everything is going well for you. Good Luck with your recovery.
Pat
Hello everyone. I was really quite nervous going in for the first surgery. As of right now, I am not nervous about the second surgery. If it goes as well as this one has so far it will not be anything to worry about. As far a pain goes, I would say my pain level has been about a one so far. I'm sure that will change at some point, but it has been almost pain free to this point. Being stuck in bed all day long has been the bigger pain. I have been taking the pain meds they having been offering me though. I remember someone on this site saying it was best to stay in front of the pain issue rather than playing catchup, so I have tried to do that.
When I woke up in recovery I did not feel as out of it as I expected to be. I was drowsy and dozed off a few times before I work up, but I did not feel like I was in a fog. Even once I got to my room I dozed off one or twice. I felt fine and then suddenly I couldn't keep my eyes open.
There were no problems getting connected to the internet in my room. The only surprise is that the hospital seems to have Skype blocked. I even tried to access it from some proxy sites, but they were blocked too. I was able to video chat with my wife and kids through Yahoo Messenger though.
Let me know if anyone has more questions that I did not answer.
Hope you were able to get some sleep last night. Will you be checking out of the hospital on Friday or will you have to stay longer after having two hips done?
Mac
Brian,
Get up as much as your body will allow, if you can sit in the chair for a while, keep up the foot pumps, you will be doing your PT again today. As I said before, you're in really good hands.
Bone pain from surgery can be very severe if you don't have a surgeon like Dr. Gross who has adopted modern pain protocols. There is no reason anyone should be in agony post op, yes you might have a little throbbing later today but it should not be agony at all.
Pain was one of my first concerns I had and Dr. Gross told me not to worry and I myself would not have a problem having my left done by Dr. Gross.
Chuck
Quote from: BrianROC on December 14, 2010, 12:36:02 AM
Hello everyone. I was really quite nervous going in for the first surgery. As of right now, I am not nervous about the second surgery. If it goes as well as this one has so far it will not be anything to worry about. As far a pain goes, I would say my pain level has been about a one so far. I'm sure that will change at some point, but it has been almost pain free to this point. Being stuck in bed all day long has been the bigger pain. I have been taking the pain meds they having been offering me though. I remember someone on this site saying it was best to stay in front of the pain issue rather than playing catchup, so I have tried to do that.
When I woke up in recovery I did not feel as out of it as I expected to be. I was drowsy and dozed off a few times before I work up, but I did not feel like I was in a fog. Even once I got to my room I dozed off one or twice. I felt fine and then suddenly I couldn't keep my eyes open.
There were no problems getting connected to the internet in my room. The only surprise is that the hospital seems to have Skype blocked. I even tried to access it from some proxy sites, but they were blocked too. I was able to video chat with my wife and kids through Yahoo Messenger though.
Let me know if anyone has more questions that I did not answer.
Hi guys. Just a quick update. Yesterday was mostly a good day. I did two PT sessions. The first was just going over the daily exercises and walking to the end of the hall and back on crutches and a walker. The second session was with the other four guys here who joined the surface hippy club this week. One other guy here is also joining the very select bilateral club. In the group we talked about our restrictions for the next six weeks and practiced going up and down stairs.
When they got me up to take a shower yesterday I was very much looking forward to it. By the time I walked to the bathroom I was pale and very lightheaded. My blood pressure had dropped quite a bit and that was the end of my shower before it started. I am happy to say that in the afternoon I was able to take a shower without any problems.
I had my left hip surgery this morning. I went from recovery back to my room. Lunch was waiting for me when I got here. I am not in any pain at the moment. My left leg is still pretty numb from the spinal. I will update when I have more to report. Thank you everyone.
Dayton96, I am going to be released on Friday and will fly home on Sunday.
Glad you're through! Congrats on joining the bi-hippy club.
Brian,
That's really good news! Just think, you're done! In four weeks I'll be a member.
Steve
Hello everyone. I just wanted to provide an update on my recovery. I am four weeks post op on my left hip today and four weeks and two days on my right hip. My left hip surgery was December 15th. After my surgery I was on two crutches until about December 29th. I remember thinking that it felt like I would never be able to move to one crutch and the next day I felt like I took a big step forward in my recovery. I started using one crutch around the house and kept to two when I went out. By December 31 I felt pretty comfortable using one crutch, but still used two when outside my house due to the ice and snow. Boy to I miss living in SoCal.
The first week of January I started going to the mall or Target to walk around some each day. I tried to go a little farther each day. On January 7th I went out for the first time without crutches. I was able to go into a store, buy something and come out on my own. I was pretty excited about that. At that point I still kind of waddled when I walked without crutches, especially when I was tired or first get up. Today, January 12th I feel like I made another big step forward walking on my own. Today I feel like I am able to walk much more normal. I still waddle some when I get tired, but I feel like I am improving more each day. My incisions have pretty much healed and my scabs are gone. I still have pain when I try to stand up, but it is much better than it was. I have my follow up appointment with Dr. Gross on January 20th. I'm hoping I continue to improve each day through then and get good news from Dr. Gross.
For anyone interested, I just wanted to provide a quick update. I had my six week follow up with Dr. Gross this past Thursday. Nancy, Lee and Dr. Gross were terrific. Everyone there is so friendly and helpful. Dr. Gross said my x-rays look great and he was very happy with how things looked. I am now into phase 2 of my recovery. I feel like the PT exercises are much more challenging but will really help with my strength and flexibility. I still kind of waddle when I walk. Lee and Dr. Gross said this is normal and I many patients walk with a limp for three months, especially bi-lateral patients.
I drove for the first time since my surgery this weekend without issue. It was no more difficult than driving was prior to surgery. The biggest restrictions in place now are no extreme stretching or bending until six months, no routinely lifting more than 50 pounds and no impact loading such as jumping or jogging.
Best of luck to everyone with their recovery.
Great news, Brian - the PT exercises are definitely challenging for me, but I also saw how they paid of for my first leg which is very strong now, so keep it up, it sounds like you're doing great. Just thing how great it will be to be painless and strong when the summer comes.
Brian,
Sounds like you are doing really well and right on target. Are you walking with a crutch or cane still? Do you need it at all? I'll bet being back in SC was a lot more pleasant this time.
Steve
I have not used a crutch or cane in at least two weeks now. I brought a cane with me on the trip to SC just in case. I didn't know how I would do going through all the airport terminals, but I was fine.
I also forgot to add, I did five minutes on my elliptical machine today. It was a slow pace just to test things out, but it went great. No pain at all. I am looking forward to working back up to a good running pace. By the time I hit the six month mark, I hope to be in good enough shape to switch to the street without missing a beat. Thanks everyone.