22 Year Update  November 17, 2021

About a week ago my right hip celebrated its 22nd anniversary. Still behaving impeccably (and putting my knees to shame). Left managed a mere eight earlier in the year.

Managing a couple of tennis matches each week.

Still very grateful for this terrific procedure and the surgeon’s skill.

 

20 Year Update

Mr McMinn replaced my right hip with a BHR twenty years ago (followed by another on the left over six years ago).

It has felt exactly like a natural, healthy hip throughout all that time and I am still as active as I want to be, including tennis a couple of times a week, cycling, motorcycling etc.

I regard myself as very fortunate that this surgery came along just when I needed it.

Best wishes to all,
David
Rt BHR Nov 1999
Lt BHR Oct 2013
Mr D McMinn

18 Year Update

November 11, 2017  –  It is the eighteenth anniversary of my right side BHR being implanted. It has been well used, is still playing tennis several times a week and has improved my quality of life beyond measure.

The left side one was four years last month – also doing fine.

I post this because I guess it is one of the oldest that are mentioned here and I hope it will encourage people that their hip resurfacing really can last. I remember hoping to get fifteen years or so out of it. Now hoping it will last as long as I do!

---

David’s Hip Resurfacing with Mr. McMinn 1999/ Second Hip 2013

August 15, 2013

My right hip was resurfaced (BHR) almost fourteen years ago. It has been a huge success – it allowed me to make the most of my fifties and early sixties. The left hip has now gone bad and I had an appointment yesterday with Mr McMinn and some of his staff.

I have a date for surgery on 8th October.

I am well aware of the issues with MoM resurfacing and in fact my sister had a catastrophic experience with a BHR (not fitted by Mr McMinn). She has now been revised to a THR and had a lot of pelvic bone grafting.

In spite of that I am going ahead with this because a) Mr McMinn’s results are 98% survival at 15 years and b) my own outcome has been so good. I have been very active – lots of tennis, for example and never had a moment’s worry about it.

With respect to metal ions etc, my father had two McKee – Farrar MoM THRs fitted when he was 56. These are the same metal as is used for the BHR. He had them until he died 34 years later and never had any trouble with them. Nor any of the side effects people worry about from metal ions.

David
Rt BHR 11/11/99
Lt BHR scheduled 8/10/13
Mr D. McMinn

October 9, 2013

All going well. New joint was fitted yesterday. The pain is being well managed.

I had a lot of sleep last night and also during the day today, but have also had two sessions with the physiotherapist including a walk out of my room into the corridor. Feels fine, better than I remember the last one (or it may be that I am more confident).

Thanks for all your good wishes.

Mr McMinn did six BHRs yesterday – for all of us it was our second. A first for him.

David

October 10, 2013

Well, the second day post-op I found I could do a lot that was not possible on the first day. I am also no longer attached to anything. They have started to slow down on the painkillers and, at rest I am without pain.

I have done quite a lot of exercise today, got a warning from the PTs not to overdo it and this evening I feel somewhat sore.

Hoping to go home tomorrow, if the scans look OK.

November 19, 2013

My new left hip is six weeks old today. Like you I have had absolutely minimal pain (apart from when I did something to my back) and can walk fast.mhardly has any painkillers after the first three days, no icing, no swelling…

My physio today said that I was doing all the extra exercises she gave me really well and I was beyond physiotherapy until after I get the go ahead to do more strenuous exercise and have 90 degree rule lifted. That should happen when I see Mr McMinn in eight days time.

I am allowed to drive as of today, but haven’t needed to so far.

I know that fate has a habit of biting your bum if you are too pleased with yourself, but so far it all seems too easy. I cannot believe that a surgeon can do so much work on you and leave so little damage.

November 28, 2013

I saw Mr McMinn yesterday at the seven week mark. I feel great, am walking fast and without a limp for up to three miles plus, could go further.

He gave me the go ahead for the next stage. Mainly stretches (goodbye 90 degree rule) and swimming.

He said I could ride my bike, “but don’t fall off”. He is concerned about fracture risk, rather than dislocation. I asked him more about this and found this interesting.

I asked him if it was more bone ingrowth we were waiting for, but he said that arthritis patients are at high risk of fractures because the pain has meant that we do not walk or run on it and the lack of impact means that the bone becomes weak. Further, he says that this bone strength takes a long time to get back.

For example, I am looking forward to playing tennis at the six month mark, but I am talking about social doubles. He said that if you were going to start “throwing yourself about the court”, he would advocate waiting as long as eighteen months. It takes that long to get better.

To reiterate, this is not about breaking the join between prosthesis and bone, it’s simply breaking your leg.

January 14, 2014

My second, last October, seemed ridiculously easy to recover from. No significant pain and no limp to overcome. I think that was partly down to the fact that I got this one dealt with quickly. I had still been playing tennis (of a kind) up to a few weeks before surgery. When I got the first one done, I had not played any sport for a couple of years and I had to learn to walk properly again.

My first surgery seemed to go very well, but I recovered even quicker from the second. I asked my surgeon about this, expecting him to say that techniques had improved over the intervening years, but he put it down to luck. However careful he is, sometimes there is some bruising. That makes your leg more difficult to move.

I also had zero swelling this time. I don’t know whether this is the reason, but Mr McMinn makes you wear a full-length stocking with light compression for six weeks post-op. That’s in addition to the normal anti-DVT knee high compression stockings.

So we have been lucky for those first few weeks. Many others have more discomfort and swelling etc to deal with, but will end up with a great outcome, which is the important thing.

March 2, 2014

Yesterday I played my first tennis since surgery almost five months ago.

I suppose I stopped playing about five weeks before surgery, once the pain outweighed the pleasure, so that’s about six months since I previously played.

In the few days before I had hit a few balls with friends a couple of times, but this time I went to my club’s mix-in session. I am very aware of the need to avoid falls and therefore did not chase anything crazy and played within my abilities.

It felt great. The joy of moving without pain! And the sheer pleasure of hitting the ball again.

October 4, 2014

One of mine is 15 years old next month and the other one year old in a few days time.

He has certainly transformed my life. His results demonstrate that with the right surgeon, the BHR is a fantastic solution.

I was 51 for my first, 66 for my second. The recovery from my second was even easier than for the first. I had remarkably little discomfort, could easily lift the operated leg off the bed the day after surgery.

I asked Mr McMinn whether they had changed the procedures in the intervening years, but he just put it down to luck. It’s a question of how much bruising happens.

One change is that, whereas I had a conventional full anaesthetic first time, for the second I had an epidural preceded by a much lighter full anaesthetic. Much better!

May 24, 2015

My first is now well over 15 years old and feels “as new” at the moment. When the other was done eighteen months ago, they said that the original looked as it did when implanted.

September 26, 2016

I don’t know what number I was in Mr McMinn’s series, but I got a BHR on my right side on 11th November 1999. That’s getting close to 17 years.

I have played a lot of tennis in that time, including plenty of singles. Nowadays, my knees limit me to doubles. I have also walked a lot, motorcycles a lot. I had so much energy that I had a late career change, went to drama school and trained as an actor. Worked at that for about nine years. Now mainly retired (though doing a filming job for the next couple of days.

In short, I am very glad I had it done and it has never given me a moment’s trouble. I went back fairly recently to have the left side done and they said that the first one looked as new on X-ray.