Getting a THR at age 27

[TPage]

Hi Everyone,
I am living with severe osteo arthritis and am facing a hip replacement this May at age 27. I looked at resurfacing but because I was born with dysplasia I am not a candidate. I am still quite active despite the chronic pain I live with and I have a lot of concerns about maintaining the activity with the restrictions that come with THR. At the same time the amount of pain I am in on a day to day basis is really starting to take it's toll. I have a lot of questions about people's own experiences with THR and the recovery so I thought I would introduce myself. Also, I am writing a blog about my experience with my hip so please check it out if you are interested
www. limitlesslemon. com . looking forward to chatting with you!
Tasha

[Dannywayoflife]

Hi and welcome tasha! I was 28 when I had my BHR installed so kinda know what your going through. If I can help at all please just drop me a pm.
Danny

[trgcfrg]

Welcome, Tasha, and good luck. I'm 38 and will be getting both hips resurfaced in April and May, so our recovery will overlap.

Out of curiosity, who did you talk to about resurfacing not being an option due to dysplasia? I have dysplasia in both hips and had concerns about whether resurfacing would be an option. My doctor, Dr. Pritchett in Seattle, is one of the best resurfacing docs and told me he didn't think my dysplasia would adversely affect the outcome of resurfacing. He has done over 3K resurfacing surgeries and said approx. 70% had dysplasia. Depending on who you talked to it might be good to get a second opinion just to be sure resurfacing won't work for you. 

[Dannywayoflife]

Trgcfrg is right that a second third and forth opinion would be a good idea. The thing with dysplasia is it depends on how severe it is. The anteversion on the femour and shallow sockets can make HR not an option. But if you've only had 1 opinion personally I would be seeking others.

[hernanu]

Hey Tasha, welcome.

Danny and Trgcfrg have given great advice. I would go to an experienced HR surgeon and get another opinion. I know the pain is hard, we've all been through it, but you want to get the best possible solution for now and the future.

If there's no one nearby or local that has a lot of experience, there are several highly skilled surgeons on this site who will take your XRays and other information and give you an opinion for no charge.

You want to have the best information possible when making this decision. In my opinion, at a young age or for people who are highly active, an HR is the favored solution if you can get a very skilled surgeon to work with you.

Good luck - as Danny says, get more than one opinion, you may be pleasantly surprised.

[Pat Walter]

Hi Tasha

 Welcome to Hip Talk.  I am sorry to hear you have hip problems so early in life. 

I know many patients with  displasia have had hip resurfacing.  Normally a surgeon that only does THRs will not normally suggest a hip resurfacing or a surgeon that does not do many.

I would suggest you try to get several free opinions about your resurfacing option.  You can email Dr. Gross of SC, Dr. Rogerson of WI, Dr. Bose of INdia or Dr. De Smet of Belgium to get free consultations.  Send them an email and attach a copy of your x-rays in a digital format as a .jpg   Size them to about 600 pixels wide or high.  Here is a link on how to convert digital x-rays http://www.surfacehippy.info/xrayconversion.php

Dr. Gross will actually call you in a few weeks.  Dr. Pritchett would also be a good resource.

Even if you are getting a THR, it would be good to have several opinons so you get the best device to allow you to be active.  All of the surgeons on my list also do THRs.  They are excellent surgeons because hip resurfacing is a much more diffiuclt surgery than a THR. So they are a good resource for either resurfacing or THR.  Here is the list where you can get their contact info  http://www.surfacehippy.info/listofdoctors.php

Good Luck.

Pat

[Spanielsal]

Hi Tasha

I had dysplasia and have ended up with one Resurfacing and one MiniHip (a short stem THR).  if you are interested I'd be happy to chat with you.  I am really happy with my new found mobility and hardly ever come on here anymore as I'm busy being normal and getting on with life.  I really appreciate the support and advice I found here though, it got me through a really tough time and now I actually have my life back.  I am not sure where you are, but if you PM me I'll get it on my email even if I don't look on the site. 

 it may be that your Dysplasia is too severe or you have added complications such as Anteversion or retroversion which may not help - or it may be that you haven't spoken with the surgeon who COULD help you.  whatever you decide to do, the odds are stacked in a favourable position - MOST people have a great swift recovery.  there are some that don't and i feel incredibly sorry for them.

 I had my operations in Cambridge with the lovely Mr Richard Villar, he listened to me not just my Xray. 

I wish you the very best of luck, you are doing the right thing by researching all your options, seeing or talking to the very best surgeons and making your own decisions.

cheers,
Sal