Hip Resurfacing in Extremely Active Guy

[Eitan]

Hi Guys,

I am going to have to get my hip done.  Pain is 24/7 now.  Here's my question:  I am very active.  I still want to continue to wrestle and do ju jitsu, and this means shooting in on take downs on guys my weight (165 lbs) with my hip flexed to about 120 degrees and then picking them up in the air.  No question but that I will get my hip resurfaced.  I have heard varying stories from people about what activies they were able to get back to after a resurf.  Any surfacehippies out there who are wrestlers, judoka, ju jitsu practitioners??  Please write back and tell me about your experiences post resurf.  Thanks.

Eitan

[Timo]

Hi Eitan,

In my case both hips were resurfaced in October 2009 with BHR. 3 months after that I started to move a little (senior basket ball) because I felt  so good. Now I can run quite good, better than before the operation. I am planning to start soccer again, even exercised already a little. My doctor says that he cannot recommend that, but also that it depends on how I play it. Does anybody know what kind of situations may be most dangerous for the hips I should try to avoid?? Now I feel excellent. Age is 65 years.
 
Best regards
Timo

[Eitan]

Thanks for your reply.  I am surprised that no "younger" patients have replied yet.  After all the resurf was designed for the extremely young active patient.  So once again:  Any young surfacehippies who are doing any of the following:  wrestling, ju jitsu, competetive kick boxing, board surfing  etc.  Please let me know.  Any risks of dislocation? Metal wear etc.

Eitan

[dmather]

Eitan,

Check out the athletes wiht HR section of Pat's main website, there are several stories there. I know of similiar stories of high caliber athletes and HR's on other HR support sites as well.

Dale
RBHR Dr. Clarke 3/17/2010
**LBHR Dr. Clarke 5/5/2010

[jwtoto]

I'll give you some practical advice, Eitan, that may save you some head scratching. Before you do any soul searching about which type of artificial hip joint to get, first find out if you qualify as a good candidate to get a hip resurfacing. Once you get that information from a top notch surgeon, I think your decision will be easy.

                                   Jerry RBHR Dr. Su 4/15/10

[NewTurn]

Hi Eitan,

I have done BJJ for a few years and had to stop because of the arthritis pain.  I am now 6mo post-op and the hip really feels strong.  I started back my BJJ about 4 weeks ago.  At first it felt strange, but I got right back to the swing of things and was rolling at about 75%.  I had to stop for 2yrs, which was really frustrating.  I did x-train several months before to keep my fitness.  I can tell you now it really feels great to do the moves I used to do, now with no pain.  My flexibility still is no 100%, but it is way better than before surgery.  Mind you I am starting at ground level, no take downs yet, but I would like to start my stand up soon.  I do still get small minor pains here and there, but nothing compared to pre-op.

Also key is, make sure you are comfortable w/ the surgeons experience.

Good luck..

[Eitan]

Hey, thanks for your replies guys.  Just for your info: I am definitely a candidate for a resurf.  Trust me.  I have already seen a surgeon and have a date for surgery in August.  This is not an easy decision for me.  I know that once I get operated I cannot get unoperated, and that scares the hell out of me.  I have almost 24/7 pain, but I walk without a limp, I could sprint 400 meters if I wanted to, I still have excellent flexibility (except for internal rotation), and if you met me you wouldn't know that I was in pain.  I have hours and rarely sometimes even days where I have no pain.  As soon as my pain goes away, even for a few seconds, I will turn to my wife and tell her I am cancelling my surgery.  Then usually a few minutes after I make that statement it's like God has heard me and says to himself "This idiot never learns", and the pain returns but with double the intensity.  The last few weeks it has been 1/10 pain, but in the last few days it's about 7/10.  It feels like someone is sticking my thigh into a blender.  Sometimes the pain get's so bad it nauseates me.  I take no narcotics, only tyelenol and advil.  (I can't tolerate anything stronger.)  When I have pain this bad I don't want to be around anyone, not my wife or children, and that bothers me.  I am also worried that the surgery will have a complication, and then I won't be able to work etc.  Of course I can't train either so I don't have my usual venue to take out my frustrations, which makes me an even more unpleasant guy to be around.  I have been getting cortisone shots into my hip since 2007, and they were working miracles.  I was able to train high intensity up until March 2010.  But since then it's been quickly downhill, the last cortisone shot was no help.  Anyway, thanks for your support during what is probably the most difficult challenge I have ever faced.

[Brian]

Hey Eitan:

I know how you are feeling.  I haven't made the final decision yet either whether to have the surgery - Some days I feel moderately OK, some days I have good workouts and then other days I can't walk much less grapple.  I am bummed about the whole recovery time period but I am encouraged by everyone's success stories and it would be great not to be in pain so often.  Not quite ready to start tai chi as my main form of exercise!  Brian

[ginnie]

Well,,, I have only had 1 done ,, (52 year old female),, I have been skiing,, walking long distances but am now hampered because my other hip is so bad i too have 24/7 pain and take pain meds at night just to sleep. that being said I have a 3rd degree brn blt in jiu-jitsu I recieved when I was 18,, I havnt practiced in years .. and although I fell in the street on concrete just 4 months after my resurfacing running after a high school marching band (chaperoning ,, attacked by a traffic cone   ) ,, there were no repercussions ,, would I recommend pounding it on a regular basis as is done in your martial arts ..  acutally NO .. perhaps Karate , Tai Chi or Kung Fu is the way to go,, just my 2 cents

[jxb]

I have been studying and teaching Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for many years.

I just had my hip resurfaced. I know of at least one other Black Belt who has
had it done. You can listen to his story here at the fightworks podcast.

http://thefightworkspodcast.com/index.php?s=Danny+Dring