No pain...limited hip movement

[lumonya]

Hi my name is Emily I am 34 years old and was diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the left hip at the age of 15.  When I was 11 it started with pain in my left hip and they initially thought it was a muscle pull.  After many visists to specialist the diagnosis of osteoarthritis was made.  The thing is I had acupuncture to the hip and that has pretty much taken all the pain away.  Most of the stories I have seen, pain is a big motivator to having surgery, which is even what my family doctor suggested. The problem I have is from the age of 11 I have been unable to sit cross legged or tie my shoe properly.  I have walked with a limp for the  past 23 years.  In the past 2 years things have worsened in that I cannot ride a bike anymore. The movement in my left hip joint is very limited (flexion and abduction). I am interested to know if there are others who had limited movement in the hip joint, who have gone on to have hip resurfacing how this has helped.
Emily

[annie]

Hi Emily,

You are definately not alone.  I have suffered limited hip movement and range since aged 11 due to a slipped femoral epiphysis.  I am now 43 and have received a BHR on 22-10-08.  It got worse and worse to the stage it was really impacting my quality of life.  Walking was very difficult.  I too could not tie my left shoelace or sit cross legged, or get on a bicycle, had to give up riding my motorcycle and playing tennis.  It has only been 7.5 weeks now but already I have a greater range of movement than I had previously.  I still cannot tie my left shoelace but its early days yet.  With more exercises this will be achievable come time.  I am walking much better albiet still with a limp at present but again this may disappear too if I am lucky.

If you want any further info pm me and I'd be happy to let you know how the recovery is progressing.

Annie the frozen Scottie

[wayne-0]

Hi Emily,
I'm 47 and just had both hips done on nov 7th. I have not been able to sit crossed legs for 3yrs , I could only ride a bike standing up on the pedals for the last 2yrs , tying my shoes was a huge chore . I had to prop my foot up on something behind me and reach back and tie them. Well I am five weeks post op and can now tie my shoes ( it takes a little stretching but I can do it and it keeps getting easier). I can ride a stationary bike now sitting down no problem and ride 4 miles a day. Sitting crossed leg for me is gonna be some time because my adductors and hip flexors are still super tight but I'm working on them everyday to lossen them. Anyways I am able to move my legs and hips now in ways I haven't been able to in years . So I am very happy about my surgery and its outcome to this point so far, I can't wait to see what life will be like in 3,4,5,6,7,8 more months.My wife worked for an acupuncturist several yrs ago so I know how much that helped me, but I never had her work on my hip. Good luck.
                                          Wayne

[lumonya]

Thank you for your messages, i really did think that I was alone, but to hear your stories and your progress encouraging. 
I meet the surgeon on Tuesday so hopefully I am candidate for this surgery.
Annie please do keep me updated on your progress.
Emily

[bernsber]

I too had a slipped epiphysis on my left hip when I was twelve. Combine that with bilateral dysplasia, and by age 31 my cartilage was shot. I obviously had all the limits in activity, ROM...etc. I had my left hip done in sep and my right a week and a half ago. Due to short necks my ROM will never be normal unless i convert to a THR, but THR's are not acceptable to me. The important thing for me is that now I am pain free and will be able to resume normal activity once I'm healed up. Best of luck with everything and make sure you get all your questions answered before you move forward.

Ben
Dr. Su LBHR 9-11-08
RBHR 12-5-08

[wayne-0]

Emily,
Keep in mind this very important fact, not all doctors are pro hip resurfacing. Some actually think it is a procedure that will fail and thus will never recommend it. I met with three different surgeons and this is what they said, 1st recommended resurfacing but did not do the procedure, 2nd said he would not do it for me cause my hips had too many cysts and he said my bone quality was not good for resurfacing, 3rd said while my hips were in horrible shape he said bone quality was good and the cysts shouldn't be a problem and that he could and would resurface them for me. I chose the third because of his experience and I trusted him. So definitly find a surgeon who is pro hip resurfacing. Pat has a great list here on her web site.
                                          Wayne

[mindjoy]

I had my hip resurfacing done 6 days ago. I also had a condition since early childhood, dysplasia, and as a result I had limited ROM and getting worse all the time. Prior to the operation I got to the point where I could barely put my weight on the leg so walking became almost impossible and painful. I am almost 49 yo and I couldn't wait any longer. My case was very difficult but dr. Brooks in Cleveland, OH was able to perform resurfacing on my right hip successfully. Make sure to read all the relevant information before choosing the procedure and a doctor, however, the consensus is that resurfacing is better for everybody if it can be done.