Now for my little surgery story: I had severe OA in my left hip, but held on to
my own joint over 20 years hoping it would go away or technology would improve.
I used a lot of alternative and western medicine therapies and the orthopods
that looked at my x-rays were impressed that I was still as active as I was. But
this June after a surfing trip the pain never relented, and I ended up with a
bad limp and a cane, and knew the time had come.

THANKS TO ALL!

Dr. Ure performed total resurfacing surgery using Birmingham BHR on Monday
afternoon. I was surprised when I checked in for surgery I had a slight fever.
I’d had some sinus problems leading up to that but it was assumed to be viral.
So I woke up about four hours later in my room with no pain (epidural and other
dope still in strong control). Dr. Ure checked me out that afternoon as did the
PT and they all said I was doing fine. That night my fever faired up to 101 and
I felt really shitty, like I had the flu. I used a couple of the morphine drops
for comfort and I think they gave me something for the fever. The next morning I
felt better and was able to eat breakfast. Still very little surgical pain. The
PT cam by that morning and we did some movement things. That afternoon/evening
my fever faired again and I felt really bad. They controlled it with Tylenol and
a couple of more morphine drips. Really hard to sleep just due to fever thing….
So the next morning I felt much better again and we took out the morphine
button. As the fever this came back each afternoon I took Tylenol and
Percoset..and some Ambien at night for sleep. Sleep was the magic that was so
hard to get….I’m a side sleeper and usually not very good at it anyway. With the
fever and lack of mobility sleep was very difficult to achieve.

On Wednesday I got blood in my urine…another complication. These ancillary
complications were much worse than the surgical pain. We decided to stay at the
hospital another night.

By Thursday the blood was gone from my urine and my fever was starting to go
down. I checked out of the hospital Friday morning and we flew back to Solvang
on Saturday.

It is so good to be home!!!! I slept 12 hours last night and fever is gone. I
feel more surgical pain now and my incision looks more black and blue. I’m using
Celebrex, Tramadol, and Tylenol for pain, plus now I’ve kicked back in some
great supplements like fish oil, SAME and alph-lipoic acid.. Pain at rest is
0-1. Pain when walking is 3-8. Two crutches. Having never had major surgery or
illness before, the concept of being so dependent on help and immobilized is
still something for me to grasp.

So if this helps anyone just the tiniest bit, good. If not, it’s a great place
to journal my story.

Kevin L-BHR Dr. Ure 10-8-07

8 Days Post Op

This is a running journal entry but I’m going to copy and paste in different
categories to see if I get help.

I downshifted yesterday and even more today, trying to come to terms with
movement in a pain level of less than 4, as . I think I was trying too hard. It
is not a race, it is a healing.

One observation that I’ve had since I was in the hospital and for which the
continued referred pain in my knee and thigh (my hip and the incision area feel
ok) may be responsible for is increased leg length on the operated side.

My operated side had been about 3/8- 1/2 inch shorter and I was wearing a lift
in my shoe to compensate. Interesting over all the years how different
professionals would measure and come to conclusion about where the shortness
was. Some said leg, some said due to the deteriorated joint, some said pelvis
structure. Anyway, I had discussed this with Dr. prior to surgery and it was
apparent on my x-ray that the left hip socket was distinctly higher than the
right. Dr. Ure said he thought he could change that through the surgery, which I
agreed to.

Now my operated left leg feels distinctly longer (seems like an inch) than the
right when standing up. If I stand up to what feels straight my right foot is
actually off the flor or I’m standing on the ball of the right foot in a lifted
position. If I put all the weight on the right side, my left leg must stay bent.
This is not a good feeling, along with the pain.

9 Days Post Op

What a difference paying attention to my body made. By slowing down and keeping
moving pain always under a 4, I feel a huge jump in welfare in just one day. I
think I got a handle on this now. Only thing is, I felt so good today, I may
have overdone the walking…but it sure was fun! This morning was so beautiful I
actually drove through the valley with my wife taking pictures of the fall
scenery.

I think my issue with leg length will resolve….seems to be common complaint that
usually goes away…and I’ve noticed that posturally, my stance and balance are
radically different than with the funky old joint. So I think I just have a lot
of unlearning and relearning to do. Also, some people have said it is a
physiological thing with surgical recovery, swelling, etc.

11 Days Post Op

This note to Dave Kelly who is also considering Dr. Ure sums it up:

Hey Dave…how’s it going? I’m doing a little one day, then I do too much and the
next day I’m tired. So goes life huh? Anyway today I feel good, I walked two
blocks with just barely the assist of a 4 5″ wheeled rollingwalker on part of my
stride. I find I can stand up straighter and work on balance and stride by kinda
letting this walker roll along with me and only touching it as needed. Got my
house routine down now and also this was the first day I didn’t wake up with a
nasty headache. I think the headache was due to neck complication (more
calcification) and the crutch use. I started a routine of upper
body/neck/shoulder stretches yesterday, and applied heat and ice before bed and
walah!! no headache.

Oh and I can’t say enough good things about Denise at Dr. Ure’s. She helped me
yesterday track down some durable medical goods (I’m getting a different kind of
crutch) in an instant. Ordered and paid for through insurance, when I’d spent
half the day in frustration dealing with insurance and trying to find the thing.
If you choose Dr. Ure, rely on here heavily for all help…she comes through with
simplicity and she loves it.

Have you made any decisions yet? Give me a call if you want to talk.

I’m really stoked to have a joint that doesn’t keep telling my body how to
move….just gotta get all the tissue happy now.

3 Weeks Post Op

Well, days seem long when you don’t have to work and small things seem larger.
Overall I’m stoked with my progress. I just have to ignore the little stuff and
give it to the bigger power of the universe….and of course to my surfacehippy
support group.

Dr. Ure was kind enough to reply to my email of two weeks ago regarding leg
length….as we already figured out…it is most likely perceptual.

I had some interesting questions for Dr. Ure regarding his view of PT. He really
doesn’t recommend it for 6-8 weeks post-op but when you leave Mercy Medical they
give you a a set of exercises to do 5-7- times a day. I’m going to my PT once a
week and I find that he really helps my stay right with the exercises and
explains healing and the muscle stuff which is very reassuring. So I’m waiting
for a response from Dr. Ure on this issue. It’s so great that he is accessible
by email.

Also, I’ve had a really bad time getting a much needed forearm PLATFORM crutch.
I need it because I have a bad right wrist and the regular crutch is causing
pain and swelling, and probably screwing up the little bone I have left in
there. Apria health care tried to deliver a Forearm crutch to me….NO WAY….this
has been a constant problem…..no one seems to understand that a PLATFORM crutch
supports you weight with your elbow, not wrist. Anyway, after a lot of research,
I’ve found that there are safety concerns with the PLATFORM crutch….but I think
it’s BS. They are available on the market for about 0, but I can’t get my
insurance to pay and I can’t afford. None of the local loan pools have one. If
anyone out there has one, please let me know.

So I ordered some trekking poles today for …maybe that will help.

I’m getting around pretty well. Able to walk a couple of steps with no crutch.
Walked about a mile today with the walker. It’s better than the crutch. I just
kinda push it in front of me and only touch it on part of my stride.

I’ve cut the Tramadol in half but still taking 200 mg Celebrex. I’ll be happy
when I’m able to get off that crap. The pain level in my wrist is as bad as the
hip at times. The pain in my hip is mostly around the groin..and down to the
knee…unfortunately some of the same pain pathway I had before surgery…It will
take some manipulation (massage, acupuncture, yoga) probably to get my body to
forget that pain channel.

4 Weeks Post Op

Feeling stronger for sure. Can finally do the straight leg raises. Pain tweaks
are worrisome if I pay attention, but everyday is a new thing. Got my trekking
poles and absolutely love them…don’t go without them. My feet are still trying
to find the ground…it’s like I’m a rapidly growing teenager with growing pains
and clumsiness just ’cause every day is so new.Lot’s of stress in personal life
is adding to stress of surgery….moving again next week; impending Thanksgiving
with a trip to Florida and the memory of my mother who passes away on
Thanksgiving three years ago. My wife is extremely unsettled to..she just
started back to work….so that’s just a big NEW thing. So it is STRESS SURVIVAL!
Breathe in..breathe out. Meditate. Mantra. Rest…..

Here are some interesting cuts from emails that have gone back and forth between
me and a couple of Ure Hippy Supporters:

“Dr. Ure was very kind with me and gave me all the time I wanted. His first
comment wast that for an active 55 year old a Resurfacing was a “no brainer.” I
asked really tough questions and he answered them all. The questions about PT
and cemented or uncemented are clearly on his plate. He said essentially that
the cemented versus uncemented is a difference without a distinction. There is a
retrospective study under way using prosthesis recovered from people who have
passed away. The data looks to be showing no difference between the two.

On PT he was very adamant about nothing before six to eight weeks. He said to
give everything time to heal. He told me I could start gentle yoga at six weeks.
His reasoning besides healing is that once one is past this initial period there
is ZILCH (his word) chance of dislocation.”

“Thanks for your support. I am truly sorry you have to move in the midst of your
recovery. I can’t even imagine. A director’s chair and a megaphone sounds about
right. I know how hard it is to sit still when others are working. Be careful
and don’t take any chances.

Looking forward to hearing about your phone conversation with Dr. Ure. Make a
list of all the things you want to ask and check them off. He was adamant about
PT with me. He said none until 6-8 weeks. He is trying to prevent any chance of
a dislocation. The European and Indian docs are not recommending any PT. I think
the point is that the surgery is for active people who can rehab it on their
own. Plus the fact that you are using your leg in a normal way because it still
loads like it did before the surgery.

Looking forward to hearing what Dr. Ure has to say. It is really great sharing
all this information.

Physical Therapy

As you can see by the rest of my blog, I’ve been very confused and had a lot of
questions regarding PT and how much and when..so forth and so on. There seems to
be a full spectrum among Drs.

Anyway, this came to me from Dr. Ure’s Office regarding PT

“Hope you are well! I had a chance to speak to Dr.Ure yesterday about P.T., and
he says you are fine to do the exercises in the book. He really doesn’t
encourage people to do formal P.T. for at least 8 wks, preferably 12wks, as he
considers your activities of daily living enough until you have a chance to
heal.

Posted by Kevin Ruddick in Dr. Ure Hippies