Hi,
I just joined the site. I was diagnosed with OA in 2006 and told that I would need a right hip replacement at some point but that I should wait as long as possible since I was in my early 50's. Intermittent pains had been occurring for a year or two previously. My second opinion concurred. Neither of them do resurfacing so it took some research on my part to find out about it. Initially after finding out I talked with my OS about it and he told me that there were many complications with the procedures and it was way too new for him to start doing them although he did offer to refer me if I wanted. I don't believe he knows the stats on different Doctors though as he was going to send me to Rochester and there is nobody on this site from that area with a lot of experience.
Now that I believe the time has come for surgery I started doing my research again and found this site. What a resource and I wanted to thank all involved for taking the time to offer such information to the world! I found out about Dr Clarke in Syracuse and since I am only about an hour west of him I made an appointment for a consult. This will be happening in a couple of weeks. Everyone here speaks highly of him as a surgeon and coupled with the location it made the choice easy.
Anyway, thanks again for all the wonderful information here. Keep up the great work! I will post again and keep my story updated.
Jack
Hey,
Glad to hear you are on your way to pain free walking, you sound like you're way over the shock of realizing you need a new hip now is the time to look forward to pain free walking like your subject says.
Dr. Clark has a number of very happy patients on this site.
Keep us posted.
Chuck
I met Dr. Clarke today and was very impressed. He seems to have patient concerns at the forefront. He took lots of time and talked in depth with my wife and I and answered all of our questions about my procedure.
I am at ease with him doing my procedure. It's a good feeling. We have tentatively scheduled my surgery for next May. This is what fits my schedule. On this site it says he has done over 550 resurfacing procedures but today he told me the count is over 800 now. Even better!
Sounds like everything is on track for you now Jack.
Keep in touch.
Thanks for the update on Dr. Clarke's stats. I will update them.
Good Luck.
Pat
Thanks Pat :)
How are you doing Jack?
Well, I am still plugging.... the pain has gotten pretty bad but my surgery is in just a few weeks now.... the 12th of may. We have a child getting married next week so that is why I put off the surgery.... so that I would not miss out on the festivities!!
Hi Jack,
Congratulations on the upcoming wedding! I also waited a bit longer for surgery due to my granddaughters first birthday, so I understand.
I had my surgery with Dr. Clarke in March and I am very pleased with my progress. You are right, he is very easy to talk to and will take the time to answer any questions that you may have. His office even called a couple of days after I got home to see how I was doing and to be sure that I was receiving in home nursing care and physical therapy.
Community General hospital was also very good. They have a class that is held on the new orthopedic floor of the hospital for joint replacement patients. The class includes information on the surgery, pain medications, physical therapy, and what you will need for your return home. It was very helpful for me as well as for my husband.
I am also an hour away from Dr. Clarke and feel very blessed that we have someone of his experience so close.
Please keep us posted on how you are doing and have a wonderful time at the wedding!
Margie
Thanks Margie. I just found the notify feature so I will get updated on responses to this thread unlike the 4 months it took me to respond to the last one.... sorry bout that :-[
I received a call yesterday from SOS and am scheduled for the pre-op review with the RPA on the 28th. They sure seem like a first class operation there. Today I go to give my first of 2 units of blood in prep for surgery. We get back from North Carolina on the 27th from the wedding.
The last 5 weeks I have spent running to Rochester as my Mom was in the hospital/rehab and we are finally bringing her home today. This was a horrific experience and their ineptitude nearly killed her.... I could go on and on about this but the end of this tunnel is clearly in sight now.
I feel fortunate to have been able to plan and select whom will be working on me. We live about in the middle between Rochester and Syracuse and have always gone Rochester way for services like this. I look forward to something new and, I'm thinking, way better than past experiences.
Its been very hectic lately and will be for a little while yet around this household. The rest and rehab after surgery is actually sounding pretty good.... kinda weird really.... lol
I am so glad that your Mom is doing better and sorry to hear it was a bad experience for your family. It is always hard when the roles in life are reversed, but it feels good to give back to those we love. (remember that when you are the one needing the care)
At the hospital they will supply you with a hip kit, which will have a grabber (that will help you reach things and put on clothing), a sock puller, a long shoe horn, and a leg lifter (which will help you to lift your leg and position it) They also will send you home with a lifter for your toilet (so you do not break the 90 degree rule) The prices were actually less than what I could have purchased them for so it is worth it. If you can borrow a walker do that ahead of time so you have it to get home. I also had a cane handy at home ahead of time and by day 5 I was ready for it. As others have mentioned, so you may already know this, but a good recliner is a life saver. I slept in mine for 3 weeks, with a lot of pillows to lean into on both sides and under my legs.
A lot of this you may already know, but I thought if I could help at all in your rehab time....
Keep us all posted and have a great time at the wedding!
Margie
Had a hitch in the plan pop up. I received a call today from Dr. Clarke's office. They said that Dr. Clarke would do the surgery as scheduled but then he would be unavailable for the next 4 days or so. If there were any complications his team would handle them.
I don't really know what to think on this one. My understanding is that with this procedure it is important to get the most experience and best expertise available. While he may be doing the procedure, what if there are troubles in the first few days ahead? I know the chances are slim, but hey, it happens. Then what? My choice for Dr. Clarke might be for nothing if someone else has to go back in to perform more work......
I was on my way out the door at the time and could not take time to make a decision. I still have not made one that I am comfortable with but..... I am thinking that if I can delay for one week it should work out ok. I really don't want to wait any more than that and if I do, the blood I had drawn will expire. Or I can go ahead as planned and hope for the best... what to do, what to do...... I will have to call them tomorrow and get the decision made as time is drawing near. I hate when things like this happen!!
Got it worked out. I rescheduled for the 19th which is one week later. All is well ;D
So glad to hear it. I could tell you were worried, and I don't blame you.
Margie
A little addendum to my story...
With the release of new information at the beginning of May regarding the BHR as best in its class, I started to think about my Dr. saying he would use the Cormet. After much, much thinking and research about the subject, I called the office and expressed my desire to receive the BHR.
I got a return call the next day stating that Dr. Clarke said that due to my size he would prefer to use the Cormet due to the ease with its instrumentation but would use the BHR if that is my desire. I am 6' 0" @ 250lbs. and big boned, large frame.
This is just my decision.... ymmv
Ok, I am back!
My procedure went through without a hitch and I am now an official hippy!
On the day of surgery- the 19th
Checked in around ten. Was supposed to be there at ten thirty. The tool me back in no time and started getting me ready. My procedure was scheduled for twelve thirty but Dr. Clarke was running early. I had a consult with the anesthesiologist who gave me the option of general or spinal. I choose the spinal. Before you know it, I had kissed my wife and was on my way around 11. They had a bit of trouble getting the spinal injection in but finally they got it. That's about the last I remember.
Next thing I knew I was awakened to the cute little assistants face with a huge smile and telling me that everything went well and I had received my resurface!! This was wonderful news. I cannot say enough about the spinal. I woke up clear headed except for the oxy they gave me before the procedure. That was not really bad though. The spinal nums you from the waist down and I was the most comfortable that I had been in years, Totally relaxed and totally pain free.
Recovery room had me for a while, not really sure but soon I was headed to my room. The ortho wing of Community General in Syracuse is exceptionally nice. It is totally remodeled and super nice looking. All of the staff was great. Can't say enough about the place. It was a very positive experience.
The next few hours the spinal had not worn off so there was no pain. When it did they gave me more oxy. I also had a morphine button to use. I used it the first night but it didn't seem to do much. The pain was tolerable though. There was also a pain ball with a tube entered right into the surgical site.
I woke a lot that night and hit my pain button each time, I thought anyway. The next day was pretty good. They removed the morphine and just gave me some oxy. That must not agree with me as when they got me up I got light headed, woozy and sweaty. So I only walked a short bit the first day after surgery. No more of that oxy for me!
I did ask for tylenol and that was it from there on.
Day two after surgery found me in much better shape. I must have astounded them in PT because I did everything with seemingly ease and walked back to my room the entire way. I did the stairs as well so I came home on day 2..... and now I am home typing this our....
Overall a very positive experience. My pain is tolerable, and really only present when I work on excises to increase my rom.I am resting comfortably with no meds at the present.
Dr. Clarke told me when asked that my installation was perfect! Also that I had received a 56mm BHR. The largest is 58 I guess so mine is nearly the largest due to my large frame.
I am typing this on the wifes laptop as I didnt feel like getting to my pc just yet. Maybe tomorrow so if I have made mistakes or think of anything else I will add them tomorrow.
Cheers!
Hi Jack
Congratulations on your new hip - you are an official Surface Hippy.
Glad to hear things are going well for you. I hope they continue that way. You will have a great summer being out of pain.
Keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.
Good Luck.
Pat
Hi all!
Today is day seven post-op for me. Things are going good and I am burning up the carpet with my walker. ;D I haven’t taken any Tylenol in a couple of days and the pain is 0 most of the time. If I do have any pain, its really slight.
PT will be here today for their second session. My therapist is both a PT person and also a chiropractor. He seems amazingly knowledgeable and is also looking into the torn rotator cuff that I have been dealing with for a little over a year.
Just thought I would check in and say hi to everyone and wish you all well. Hopefully it won’t be too long before I can swing my leg over my motorcycle again and go for a ride……
Cheers!
Hi Jack, Great to hear that your recovery is progressing well. I'm sure I shared your frustration with swinging a leg over, in my case, a bicycle. Before surgery, I had to almost lay the bike down flat to step over, and then pull it up. I imagine that would be more difficult with a motorcycle :). On a good day, I could ride, on a bad day, I wouldn't have the ROM to even step over the pedal as it made its circuit.
I'm now 2 yrs post op, and recently I've really been trying to be aware of the blessings of "getting my active life back," and that comment of yours is one that I recently experienced. You will soon swing the leg over, and it will be great when you aren't in pain from the hip, but rather take it a bit slowly and deliberately in order to get a little stretch in while mounting the bike.
Good luck,
-Dirk
Hey Dirk,
My Dr. told me that the 90 day restriction would last 60 days. I don't know if that varies from patient to patient or not with him but I will respect his rules. It's not really that long and will only be mid july when the time is up. That will leave lots of summer left to get out and about. If I can't ride the bike, I can deal with that I guess but I think it will work out. Swinging the leg over is half the battle. Supporting the machine at rest is the other half but thats not that hard.
I do have an old Diamond Back bike out in the garage that needs a bit of fixing and have been thinking about taking up bicycling as well. It may be cheaper to just get a new one than to fix this one up. Time will tell I guess. No plans for hard core riding, but just for getting some good exercise.
I got out the forearm crutches today and found that I can move around really good and stable with just one in my left hand. The walker is soon to be history, if not already, but it served me well while it was needed.
Today is post op day 13 and I am heading to the PA for my first follow up.
The doctor did have me taking indomethacin which is an NSAID. I am going to assume this works as a blood thinner as well. At day 8 post op I called the doctors office and told them that I was developing a rash from this drug and they said to stop taking it. I was getting red patches with white scaly crap like psoriasis pop up. Once stopping the indomethacin it started to resolve quickly.
I started taking my 81mg aspirin on my own as they did not say anything about it. Hope this is enough of a dose to ward off clots as this topic has come to my attention recently.
Also, I am keeping my leg elevated a lot with "toes above heart". Dr. Clarke Said there is no need to wear the Ted stockings so I have not done that.
I am also looking for a natural nsaid as I need something for the arthritis inflammation in other areas of the body such as my back. I also have a torn rotator cuff in the left shoulder that has started screaming at me without the nsaids. I took Celebrex for 3 years or so prior to surgery. This caused terrible bowel movement issues and stomach troubles (heartburn) as well. Once off of it, things started working normally again and I also quit the prilosec (taken for heartburn) as well with no issues so far... knock on wood.
I have ordered some megared and am looking closely at sam-e. Although expensive it may be worth it for increased quality of life if it works like it claims.
Today's appointment went well. I liked the PA much better today, he must have had an off day before. I am doing well he says and after my 4 week mark the restrictions are lifted and I am to start crossing my legs and taking knee to chest to get the rom increased. He says this is even more important since I am not taking the nsaid to get the muscles loosened up again.
Also, he said the nsaid did not provide blood thinning and was not concerned about not taking any since there is no family history. I thought that was a bit odd. We discussed taking aspirin and I am going to start 325mg once a day for a while just to humor myself. He had no problem with that.
All in all a good report.
I am walking now with just one forearm crutch. I could use just a cane but the crutch provides a bit more stability. My rotator cuff tear makes my left arm a bit wobbly. I can take a few steps with no aids but I don't want to push things too fast.
Hi all!
I am now at 4 weeks post-op and doing well. Just after 3 weeks I switched from using one forearm crutch to using just the cane. I could have switched earlier but I have a torn rotator cuff that made my arm a bit wobbly so I stuck to the crutch. The next day I started walking with no aids and it went well so I did it more and more. Now I am walking with no cane at all and only the slightest bit of discomfort. I would not call it pain.
I do believe that my sudden ability to use just a cane, and then start to walk unaided the same day is due to me starting to take Sam-e which is a natural nsaid. Before this I had pretty intense arthritis pain in the knees, back, and other places. When I stood up it was really tough and painful due to not having any anti-inflammatory medicines in me.
For several years I took Celebrex for the pain/inflammation and it worked wonders. The trouble with prescription nsaids, at least with me, is that they have side effects that have proven to not be worth the relief that they offer. Celebrex tore my insides up. I could go into some graphic details, but I will leave it at that and only say that it was pretty severe. If you are taking prescription nsaids, I urge you to keep a close eye on things. They are nasty!
Here are a couple of good links to some info on Sam-e
http://www.biopsychiatry.com/sameart.html
http://arthritis-alternative.com/detail/SAMe.cfm
One week prior to surgery I was required to stop the Celebrex and that was one of the best things that could have happened to me. After surgery they gave me Indocin, another nsaid, and I continued it at home but that gave me side effects too and I had to stop it at about 8 days. From there on I had no nsaid and paid the price in pain and stiffness. Now that I have taken Sam-e for a few days and the inflammation and pain is backing off, my recovery took a giant leap ahead.
After lots of research on the internet, last Friday I bought the Sam-e and it really has helped. I feel nearly as good now as when I was taking Celebrex and Sam-e has no serious side effects for healthy individuals. It not only acts as an nsaid but also has mood enhancement qualities at higher doses.
I am taking 400mg once a day now and that is supposed to go to twice a day after a week. I am a bit more sore at the end of the day now but not that bad. The second dose in the afternoon should fix that when I start it. I may try just a half in the afternoon. Will have to see what works best.
As a point of interest â€" Sam-e has been a prescription drug in the UK since 1976 according to what I have read. It is not FDA approved here in the states so it can only be sold as a supplement. There are many studies and it has a proven track record though. Do your research and use at your own risk! It’s a good idea to talk to your doctor first too.
I am sure there must be lots of people here that could benefit from this. It is a bit expensive but for me it’s worth it at twice the price! Maybe I sound like a salesman, but I’m not. I just wanted to share this wonderful find in hopes someone else will benefit.
In any event, I am doing well at 4 weeks and walk nearly normal! At 4 weeks my hip restrictions were lifted, and I started driving again although I did have to take my wife to the airport 3 days early . I am going to wait a couple of more weeks before riding my motorcycle. It seems like the smart thing to do.
Hope all is well out there!
5 weeks and one day today! Most of the time I don't even think about my hip. I am walking normally. The only real evidence is after getting up from sitting for a while. After a few steps that resolves and that condition takes some time to resolve I guess.
Actually, I need to be more conscious of the hip as it is still vulnerable to femur neck breakage for up to one year. I want to place no excessive stress on it for a while to be on the safe side!
Rode my motorcycle a couple days ago and found no issues. Its a big heavy road bike so the ride is smooth. Planning a short trip this weekend.... under a 100 miles. I do have slight pain while driving the car, but that's from the position i'm in. Its even worse in the Vette due to the support built into the sides of the seats. The bike does not seem to impact me.
All in all i'm a happy hippy!
I am about 7 1/2 weeks now. Day to day improvement is negligible now since I am walking pretty near normal. Saw my surgeon a few days ago and he said that all is well. I asked to see my xrays and he measured the cup angle while I was there..... 39.6 degrees. Can't ask for better than that!
I am working on rom now and that may take a while to fully return. Think, cross your leg guy style as best as you can, then push down on the knee and lift the foot and try to lean forward. Also bring the knee to the chest with both hands as far as possible. I can get to my shoes to tie them but its not quite normal yet. It will come in time.
So, I am ending my story here for now unless something else comes up. If so then I will fill you all in. I read new posts every day and enjoy this site immensely. It has played a major support role in my life and I cannot say thanks enough.
Speedy recoveries to everyone!
Hi all
I saw my surgeon about 3 weeks ago for my 6 month checkup. X-Rays confirmed that I am doing fine and bone in growth is sufficient to remove all restrictions. I can now run and jump although he did say to ease into any of these activities. Good news for sure. He also wanted me to work on ROM more. I had not been doing too much of that but plan to get more aggressive now with it.
Dr Clarke in Syracuse NY told me that he has broken the 1000 mark for resurfacing procedures and I said that I would relay this information here so that Pat can update his stats. I would not hesitate using this doctor if it is within anyone's ability to get there. Top notch all the way.
Keep up the good work here on the site..... it is really appreciated by a lot of people!
I think my lack of activity in this forum could be viewed as a good thing. I don't think about my hip resurfacing at all and haven't in quite a few years. I have been living life as if it never happened, but of course it did. Right now I am 6 years out from the procedure and am very happy to have had it performed.
I recently have had knee troubles and have had to deal with that issue. It has brought prior experiences into my thought process. So, I was thinking about this site and what a tremendous help it was along with all of the people that contribute here. Figured I would stop in for a quick update and say hello to everyone. HELLO! :D
Many thanks again for this resource!
Jack - Thanks for stopping by and giving us an update. Great to hear everything is going well and you have forgotten about your hip resurfacing. It is always encouraging to perspective and current patients to read reports like yours.
I hope you will stop by again in a few years! Meanwhile, have fun being pain free and active with your great hip! Good Luck.
Pat
Hi all
Nearing my 7 year anniversary this month! I recently had a check up with Dr. Clarke. He told me that the 46mm and smaller BHR's had been discontinued/recalled due to failures. Luckily mine is larger than that at 50mm. Still, that is a bit disconcerting. I will be going in for a blood metal level test to find out how mine is. He x-rayed it the other day and said that it looked fine. Has anyone else heard about this?
Uh, yeah, the BHR small-sized failures and withdrawal thing is pretty well known. It's more of an issue for small men and especially for women. This has greatly reduced the devices available for women, and the surgeon pool for women, as well. As you can tell by the women who post here (including this one) there are still options. I believe the metal ions issue is more of a problem for women, but since that isn't a problem for me I don't follow that issue as closely. BHRs are still being used regularly for men. Yours shouldn't be an issue at all, unless you develop some sort of problem with it. IOW no need to yank it out just because it's been withdrawn from small sizes. :) So don't worry!
Quote from: catfriend on May 12, 2017, 04:06:45 PM
Uh, yeah, the BHR small-sized failures and withdrawal thing is pretty well known. It's more of an issue for small men and especially for women. This has greatly reduced the devices available for women, and the surgeon pool for women, as well. As you can tell by the women who post here (including this one) there are still options. I believe the metal ions issue is more of a problem for women, but since that isn't a problem for me I don't follow that issue as closely. BHRs are still being used regularly for men. Yours shouldn't be an issue at all, unless you develop some sort of problem with it. IOW no need to yank it out just because it's been withdrawn from small sizes. :) So don't worry!
Thanks. This took me by surprise because at the time of my surgery the BHR was touted as the cadillac of resurfacing implants. I haven't been keeping up as you can tell. Rather disheartening it turned out this way. I did have my blood drawn today but I feel fine with no symptoms so I don't expect trouble (knock on wood)