Well, December 6th is the date for my BHR.  I've been putting it off for two years now, but Dr. Feldman pointed out that I am now compromising the integrity of my lower back by allowing my hip joint to deteriorate so badly.  I was wondering why my back hurt and why my leg was going numb when I walk.  I assumed it was due to the OA in my hip.  An MRI of the lower back reveled that my spine was being impacted (I forget the actual terminology he used).  That was the kick in the a** I needed.  Does anyone know how long the surgery takes approximately?  I forgot to ask him.   I also assumed that my OA was a chronic, genetic issue.  It was actually caused by a mis-shapened femoral head in both hips.  Dr. Feldman is EXTREMELY thorough.  He has all his BHR & THR patients get a full nuclear stress test prior to surgery.   

I also waited about two years and now I wish I'd done it a lot sooner!! Best wishes to you.

Luanna

Congrats on your date (bring flowers  ;D ). Mine took about five hours from being admitted to the waiting area to waking up in my bed with everything done.

I had the posterier approach, most common, which took about 1.5 hours for surgery.  Like Hernanu, total time from entering hospital to laying in my bed in my hospital room (about 5 hours), there's messing about on the front end with waiting room, pre-op prep, obviously followed by an hour or 2 in the recovery room.  My first surgery, recovery was a little slower, took about 2 hours, but I think an 1 hour is pretty common.

Good job on making the move.  I have none of the leg pain or hip pain I used to have. 

I too had the posterior approach. The surgery is about 1.5 hours. I entered the hospital at 6:30 A.M. My surgery was scheduled for 9:30 A.M. Registration, pre-op, the usual stuff. The 3 hours went fast, didn't seem that long to me. I was in my room after recovery at about 12:00 noon. They brought me my lunch, I ate it all. The physical therapists arrived at my room somewhere around 2:00 or 3:00. They helped me stand up and go for a walk with a walker down the hallway. I was very surprised to learn all the longer the surgery takes.

You won't regret getting it done. The smooth, pain free motion is phenomenal. You'll see.

Wow, thanks all for the feedback!  I had surgery about 15 years ago on my shoulder.  I remember approx. 30 mins before the surgery going into a complete panic; almost passing out due to nerves.  Then they gave me the happy stuff in the IV and all was good!  Did anyone else start getting really anxious before they wheeled you in? 
Dr. Feldman takes a posterior approach also. I was glad to hear that.  From what I read, it seems like the preferred method. 

I was a nervous wreck in pre-op for my first hip before they gave me the "happy stuff".  My blood pressure was way up too.  It turned out that everything was much easier than I thought it would be.  I was much calmer for my second hip :).

I just read the below dialog under the FAQ portion of the site.  My doctor is planning on using radiation therapy post-op, as I recall my surgical coordinator mentioning.  Has anyone else received this?  Should I be concerned?  Should I refuse it?  I don't any additional worries at this point.  Thanks.

Dr. Balasubramanian
The radiation therapy is used by some surgeons to prevent heterotropic bone formation following total hip replacement. In cemented total hip replacement this does not cause much problem. However in Hip Resurfacing (Acetabular side) and uncemented total Hip Replacement the fixation of prosthesis is by the natural bone growing on the prosthesis. When radiation is used this natural bone growth is also affected which may lead to failure of fixation. The inventors of Birmingham hip resurfacing do not advise radiation. We follow this and we never had any heterotropic bone growth following hip resurfacing.

I have not heard of this before.  Dr. Gross prescribes a double dose of Celebrex for 15 days after surgery to prevent heterotopic bone growth.  If it was me, I would be concerned about any treatment that may inhibit natural bone growth.  I think you should at least have a discussion about this with your doctor, before accepting the treatment.

Well, I'm officially a HIPPY!!!!  I had successful BHR on my Rt. hip this past Tuesday 12/6.  I'm currently pain free and walking with one crutch for support only!!!!!  I was up and about the day after surgery bothering the nurses on the floor!  The PT and the Occupational Therapist were quiet amazed.  I stopped the Percocets already and use Tylenol only at night.  I am only 45 and in decent shape.  The BHR is amazing.  Dr. Feldman in Englewood, NJ has got to be one of the top BHR surgeons in the US!  My femoral head was extremely misshapen.  He was able to reshape it and get the leg length perfect.  He is BHR trained and now teaches other Orthopedics the procedure.  He is as good as Dr. Su, I assure you!  I get a bit light-headed when sitting up or standing for too long however.  This is to be expected I'm sure.  I'm an active person, so now I just have to figure out how to get thru the next number of weeks, is all.  I really want to start doing some upper body weight work.  I am only 5 days post op, however.  If anyone has any questions that I could help with, free free to post.  All I got is time!!!!

Congrats mbode!

Here is to speedy and pain free recovery.

Excellent news, mbode - sounds like you're in a good stretch. Remember to take it slow, do the rehab and do your PT. You will have some setbacks, but the improvement makes up for them. Good going!