Good News, bad news

[Baby Barista]

The Good:

    Just had my 8 month follow up with Dr. Pritchett. X-ray showed excellent bone ingrowth on the cup side and a very healthy femoral neck. Still some bone remodeling going on right where the femoral prosthesis transitions to the neck. After a bit of a plateau in ROM and muscle strength, I feel like I'm making some good progress once again. Still, I do have tenderness in my piriformis and down the outer flank of my thigh. If you remember the pain I had after surgery, this isn't all that surprising. I think I'm going to be one of those people who takes a full 18-24 months for a full recovery.
    I tried a bit of light jogging the other day... 2 minutes run, 2 minutes walk for about 24 minutes total. By the end, my hip was telling me I might not quite be ready. I'm listening to the advice.

The Bad:

   My other hip has started bothering me a bit lately and it turns out there's a reason for that. Dr. Pritchett said the x-rays show quite a bit of deterioration since my last appointment six months ago. I knew this was an inevitability, but had hoped the other wheel would last me a few more years. The funny thing is, I'm having a difficult time following my own advice to just get it done. It's not yet to the level of pain my other hip was and I still have some joint space left. It's not good space... lot's of bone spurs around the edges and such.

   I think it's coming down to two things: 1) With the last surgery, the reward of being pain free, far outweighed the inherent risk that comes with any major surgery. This time the scales seem more balanced. 2) The thought of going back to square one again, is not a pleasant one.

   Some things that are motivating me to do it are: It would save me a $2500 deductible if I have it done before the new year... and the sooner it's done, the sooner I can be done with OA and Celebrex.

   I've got some thinking to do in the next few weeks, and as always, would appreciate feedback from the hippy community.

[obxpelican]

If it were me, because of the $$ I would do it now, and if it were me I would do it because that I want to move on with my life.


Chuck

[Dan L]

Barista,

I can very much empathize with the feeling of going back to square 1, I felt that way as well, but now 6 months after #2, I definitely did the right thing by moving forward.  The $$ is more of a reason as well.

The second one was way easier for me because the worst one was done first.

Hope it helps.

Dan

[Dee Dee]

We are in the same situation almost. I am scheduled for my other hip but I am struggling with that decision.  I do not have the pain free ROM that I hoped for by now.  The thought of not being 100% on my 1st hip then going in for the second with months more work of recovery is very scary.  I can save $1000 copayment but need to decide if that is the important factor compared to a degenerating hip that I can live with for awhile longer. 

Not much help but I understand your feelings.

[HippyDogwood]

My first post here but the thread struck a cord.

45 yo sporty male who was diagnosed with bi-lateral FAI Cam 2 years ago just ahead of knee surgery but told not to bother with scans or further action as no symptoms.

2 years on and suffering symptoms that ranged from zero issue to downright un-accpetable and I went to a surgeon looking for an arthroscopy and tidy up to see me through. Somewhat shocked to be told that issues are way beyond arthroscopy and to get my head around THR / BHR as the only option and that I would know when the time was right. The trouble is I just don't feel like I will know, as with THR it is easy, just keep going until you can't put up with the pain anymore as you can't make anything worse.

With BHR, worst case is it goes from being an option to taken off the table if you leave it too long which would be a further kick in the teeth. I'm lucky that $$'s is not a driver in the decision, albeit unlucky as that might actually push me to make the jump.

I have level 3-4 OA left hip with partially detached labrum and fluid build up with some tendonitis. I play a bit of golf which triggers some painful twinges and the walking can be a little tough but most of the guys at work would be amazed to hear that I am a THR candidate as I have no issues with stairs or walking round the office. Travelling is an issue, so must have generous legroom as am a big guy and sitting in cramped conditions really sets off shooting groin pain but I can work around that.

So, do you run with something that will hopefully give me betterment for the relatively short periods of time that it is an issue or hold off to allow longer for research feedback, new procedures, avoid being the minority statistic that things get worse for and risk taking BHR off the table, as I have been told that there is currently a mismatch between damage and actual symptoms. Just to add that the right side is not great and will inevitably end up needing the same thing, but I think golf has been responsible for the left side being worse. So again, you can go what feels early on the left side to leave a decent gap before the right is done or hang in there and potentially really roll the dice on bi-lateral BHR.

The decision feels like a massive one to me and I am now seeing Jeremy Latham in a few weeks time as he will be my chosen surgeon and want to hear what his take is on it

Good luck to all in reaching the right outcome for them

[imgetinold]

Dr. Gross pointed out that my other hip has signs of deterioration as well, but not bad.  I'll need it eventually.

If you already have pain, it is most likely inevitable.  And if the rate of deterioration continues on it's path, how long do you have?  A year?  If it's a year or less.......man, do it. 

I totally get the setback of going back to square one in your recovery.  But......that's also inevitable, no matter when you do it.  Do you want to be fully back to sports 100% and THEN go back to square one?  I just don't think there's EVER a good time for people like us to start over, but it will happen.

Our family has a saying in card playing when you DON'T trump someone when you could.  "Duck now, pay later".  Save yourself $2500, and get on with it forever.

[hernanu]

The Good:

    Just had my 8 month follow up with Dr. Pritchett. X-ray showed excellent bone ingrowth on the cup side and a very healthy femoral neck. Still some bone remodeling going on right where the femoral prosthesis transitions to the neck. After a bit of a plateau in ROM and muscle strength, I feel like I'm making some good progress once again. Still, I do have tenderness in my piriformis and down the outer flank of my thigh. If you remember the pain I had after surgery, this isn't all that surprising. I think I'm going to be one of those people who takes a full 18-24 months for a full recovery.
    I tried a bit of light jogging the other day... 2 minutes run, 2 minutes walk for about 24 minutes total. By the end, my hip was telling me I might not quite be ready. I'm listening to the advice.

All really good things mixed in with expected things from an overall recovery. You're at nine months along, which was a time I was still having issues with running (couldn't do it), ROM ( had gotten back quite a bit, but still felt it) and some with tenderness (I couldn't get a date ...  ).

The running will come, try the roller for the outside of your leg, time heals all wounds (and also wounds all heels)... but you sound pretty good right now, BB...

The Bad:

   My other hip has started bothering me a bit lately and it turns out there's a reason for that. Dr. Pritchett said the x-rays show quite a bit of deterioration since my last appointment six months ago. I knew this was an inevitability, but had hoped the other wheel would last me a few more years. The funny thing is, I'm having a difficult time following my own advice to just get it done. It's not yet to the level of pain my other hip was and I still have some joint space left. It's not good space... lot's of bone spurs around the edges and such.

   I think it's coming down to two things: 1) With the last surgery, the reward of being pain free, far outweighed the inherent risk that comes with any major surgery. This time the scales seem more balanced. 2) The thought of going back to square one again, is not a pleasant one.

   Some things that are motivating me to do it are: It would save me a $2500 deductible if I have it done before the new year... and the sooner it's done, the sooner I can be done with OA and Celebrex.

   I've got some thinking to do in the next few weeks, and as always, would appreciate feedback from the hippy community.

I was pretty surprised when my second hip gave up the ghost after my first surgery. At first I thought it was that since my first was feeling so much better that I actually felt what the second sincerely was telling me. My uninformed conclusion though (and I only waited three months) is that I was so enthusiastic about my recuperation and its impact, that my right was put into a mode that it hadn't been in for ages - trying to keep up with a totally regenerated left.

I truly limped into surgery the second time, very happy to have scheduled it, although when I scheduled both I thought I could have lasted a year. The recovery for the second was similar to my first, although everything seemed to go faster, since I was so psyched now that I knew I was done.

I do get the reluctance to do it again, in some ways I was fortunate in that there was no choice and I was locked into the second in my mind.

My thoughts are that you know it's not getting better, so the pain and deterioration you have now will increase. I also had bone spurs, a slight bit of cartilage (found that it was bone on bone after, masked by the bit of cartilage), pain, etc.

All of that was gone the second time around and I didn't need to worry about it again. Both hips are healthy and getting stronger still. I'm not putting up houses right now (Woodstock), but I could if I were skilled.... or winning races (David, B.I.L.L. ).

The point is that you have the second going, and are already feeling pain. You don't get points for pain - your kids won't get higher college entrance scores, you don't get better tables at restaurants, etc... all it does is take that nice smile in your picture away.

The money is important, but minuscule compared to getting your life to go fully forward. You can make more money, but to get months or years of your life when you could have been pain free and happier is invaluable.

(IMO)....

[Woodstock Hippy]

'' Some things that are motivating me to do it are: It would save me a $2500 deductible if I have it done before the new year... and the sooner it's done, the sooner I can be done with OA and Celebrex.''

That says it all right there.  The second part is more important; you have to have it done so just get up and get it done.  Saving 2500 dollars is a nice bonus and it is real money.  Once you recover from the second hip maybe you can us some of your savings to take your wife away for a nice romantic weekend.  She'll have earned it and so will you.

[hipnhop]

I had both done 12 months apart. My decision was based on a few things:
1: Pain in unoperated hip (5/10), even with taking Voltaren on a daily basis.
2: Didn't want to keep taking meds
3: What was the point of having one good hip and the other bad.

Going through the surgery again sucked.  At leat this time i knew what to expect.  I got it done and six months later, no regrets.

Best of luck.
Hip