Hi everyone! I just registered on the board after spending a lot of time here as a guest over the past several months. First off, a big thank you to Pat for creating and maintaining this valuable resource. I honestly don't know if I would have the confidence to move forward with HR without all the information and testimonials available here.
A short summary of my situation (although it's pretty similar to a lot of others) - 47 y/o male who was diagnosed with "moderate to severe" OA of the left hip just over two years ago following a soccer injury in early '12. Prior to the diagnosis I had been an active recreational athlete (running, soccer, biking, basketball, adventure racing). I consulted with two orthopedists and got the same recommendation - stop all the impact activities, stick with things like biking and swimming, and hopefully we can avoid a major surgery for some time. So my athletic endeavors since then have been limited to biking and elliptical workouts. These are fine workouts and all but they just don't give me the same level of satisfaction as the higher intensity things. And over time my hip was slowly getting worse even with the reduced activities. So I started looking at my options. This past summer, after doing a ton of research (much of it here on the site) I sent my info packet to Dr. Gross' office and his consultation came back positive. I am now scheduled for surgery mid-February.
Thanks to everyone here for sharing your experience, advice, and knowledge - it has been very helpful to me.
-Chris
Welcome Chris! As I'm sure you've noticed, many of us are patients of Dr Gross -- you're in good hands.
Hi Chris
Sounds like we are in virtually the same situation, mine was diagnosed after a soccer injury as well all be it 5 years ago. I have been surviving on cortisone injections into the joint ever since but enough is enough.
Good luck, you've done the hard bit by taking the decision to get on with now, I'm less than two weeks out now so I'll let you know how it all goes!
Paul
You have might have read this but my story is similar. THR surgeon said I'd have to give up soccer, Dr. Gross said I could get back after 6 months. 2+ years later and the only limiting factor is my age (61 next month) which is I think slowing me down, though yesterday one of the guys called me a "goal-scoring machine"!
Quote from: oldsoccerplayer on November 02, 2015, 06:30:13 AM
You have might have read this but my story is similar. THR surgeon said I'd have to give up soccer, Dr. Gross said I could get back after 6 months. 2+ years later and the only limiting factor is my age (61 next month) which is I think slowing me down, though yesterday one of the guys called me a "goal-scoring machine"!
Well, there are worse things to be called.
Congratulations for coming to what I think is a good decision, Chris... !
Thanks for the replies and support!
Paul - Do you know what kind of injury you sustained? My doctors never told me what I actually did to mine but it was a moot point anyway since the OA precluded any surgical repairs by that time. My second orthopedist suggested cortisone for me too but I held off because I knew that the cortisone itself would be hard on the joint (like it could be worse, right??) and I just didn't know how I was going to proceed back then. You are pretty close to surgery - I wish you the best and definitely let me know how it goes.
Oldsoccerplayer - That's great! I've personally never been accused of being a goal scoring machine. I started playing inter-murals in college and hit the local leagues here the past several years. It's a blast to play even though I'm not that good!
hernanu - Thanks for the comment. It was kind of a long process in finally getting to the decision but I'm pretty comfortable with it at this point (ask me the week before surgery!). Ultimately, I can't imagine spending the next few decades with my hip in its present condition and not being able to do so many things. I'm already looking forward to 6 months after surgery when restrictions are lifted!
Thanks for the kind words about the website. Glad it was/is helpful to you.
Good Luck with your surgery next year. There are a lof of very happy Dr. Gross patients on this group.
Pat
Hi Chris, it was a torn labrum in my case which was picked up on an MRI however the scan also highlighted at the time that I only had 2mm of cartledge at the thickest point in my joint. I managed to go 5 years though with cortisone injections to get to where I am now.
Now just over a week out before d-day and to be honest any last minute jitters are being outweighed by the amount of pain I'm getting at the moment!
When my doctor diagnosed OA in my hips a couple of years ago he recommended that I wait 10 years then have THR. I gave it a year then went back and told him I couldn't wait any longer. I'm in my early 50's and need to be active, I didn't want be sitting on the couch getting fat.
He referred me to a surgeon who recommended resurfacing both hips, which I did. I've had a shiny new pair of hips for 9 months now and it's one of the best things I've ever done for myself. I can stand up straight again, and I'm not in pain after being on my feet for 20 minutes. I'm back to playing hockey, I've been playing squash and looking forward to skiing this season.