Hi,

Has anyone had a revision surgery to keep their BHR and not go to THR? I am concerned that at 18 months my hip flexor still feels tight and is restricted in bringing knee to chest and bending down flexion to put socks on, do shoe laces etc.

Please share your experiences and if you think it possible to change the angle of the hip cup.

Thanks,

Josh

Josh-

Lot's of subjective criteria.  First in the AM I'm sitting on the side of the bed getting dressed.  At the gym in the PM or any other time of the day I'm standing for that stuff- I worked for that.  What is your stretching/exercise routine?

Just came home from a movie where I had to cross my ankle over knee many times for comfort.  At 15 months bilateral I still need to grab the hem of my pant leg to get into position- just cant make the leg do it on its own yet- but i couldn't cross my ankle over my leg for several years prior to surgery and now even if it feels tight an d a bit constricted it feels like it continues to improve.  I will never see a full Lotus again.  But somehow, after working through bilateral prostheses I don't think that matters much to me

How bad is the restriction?  Can you improve on it with stretching/yoga/exercise/pilates instead of surger?

What are your long term goals?

Hi jim,

Its almost as if im more restricted in the hip flexor/iliacus post surgery than with the arthritis. I want to return to soccer, running, every sport imaginable really and be as active as possible. At present certain kicking positions and sprinting are too much. I wonder if my muscles/ tendons have shortened to cause this impingement. Stretching, surgery, rehab doesnt seem to alter the mechanics of the pinging knee to chest movement.

Hi Josh,

What does your surgeon say about the restrictions?  I still have limitations bringing the knee to the chest.  From a standing position the movement feels weak and from a lying position it feels limited ROM.  I continue to work on it and see improvements but they are small which I accept.  At 64 with at least 4-5 years of bad deterioration prior to surgery there was bound to be some loss of strength and ROM.  I try to approach it as an adventure in relearning my capacities and enjoying the improvements.  Using the dip bars and bringing the knees up to the chest- or as high as they'll go- is a really strong exercise to develop the flexors and psoas.  I find it very challenging- maybe explore that.  I'm not a runner but do use the treadmill to do some light and short distance jogging as well as a trail in the woods where I hike and do some short jogs.  I still find the impact distressing- it feels like the joint doesn't like it and I don't know if the muscles and soft tissues will ever strengthen enough to support that activity but it seems to very gradually continue to improve.  Sorry I can't provide a definitive answer.  I'd suggest speaking with your surgeon to rule out any positioning problem with the device.  Other than than just keep on trying to work through it is all I can do or offer.  Best of luck.