26 and terrified

[lcnolen]

I'm 26. I have a 3 yr old. I'd never thought I'd hear that I needed hip replacement. As I've read around, I've heard that its not totally uncommon to need one after having had hip dysplasia. I'd had pain on and off for years, probably since at least 16, but since I was a very active competitve swimmer and runner I didn't think much of it...until now. This past April it simply got unbearable, every little movement hurt. Imagine chasing after a 3 yr old- wincing. Kind of takes the enjoyment out of being a mom, right?

I had arthoscopy done in August, since the majority of the pain was being caused by a torn labrum. The surgery was successful in fixing that particular issue, but the arthritis pain is back with a vengance. But are there any other options to having this pain go away? I've done pain-pills, and anti-inflammatories, and cortisone shots, and rest, and glucosamine. But for goodness sake, I'm 26! There's got to be a way to stave of such a huge procedure and reduce the agony...isn't there?

I know what the procedure entails and I know what prothesis I want to have, but the recovery is also really making me nervous. I'm sure it varies from person to person, but if anyone can relate a little bit of the "after-care" and recovery time-table details, I'd really appreciate it. I hate the idea of having to take significant time off work, and mostly not being able to do much with my daughter but watch her wreak havoc. And what will I be able to do afterwards? Does it complicate having more children? What forms of fitness are best for THR patients?

I'm so nervous about all this. Somebody...please share what you can.

Thanks!
Lisa

 

[dixieodoodles]

Icnolen,

I was born with hip dysplasia but it was not detected. The pain began in my right thigh when I was around 19. I began looking for a doctor for an explanation and pain relief. For some reason x-rays didn't show much damage. The doctors kept telling me that I was too young for a THR and wouldn't even consider it. But the longer they waited the more damage I was doing to the hip.

At 36 I finally found an OS who reluctantly gave me a THR. By then the socket area had all but disintegrated and the doctor said he didn't know how I was walking. No surprise to me!

Because they waited too long I had no muscle tone and dislocated twice right in the hospital. I stayed there for 31 days while they had me tone the muscles and fit me for a larger prosthesis. I recovered quickly once I got out of the hospital; enjoying pain-free living for the first time in years.

My left thigh started hurting 10 years ago. Again, the x-rays didn't show much damage. Again, I spent a lot of money seeing doctors who wouldn't do anything. I finally got an arthroscopy 2 years ago and was told that the ligament was shredded. Meanwhile, my right hip socket started slipping around.

I saw an OS recently who looked at my x-rays and other tests and simply asked which hip I wanted to do first. Surgery is set for April 16.

My experience was NOT TYPICAL at all. Besides the balls not having enough coverage from the sockets, both femurs are twisted to an odd angle. That's probably why the ligament is shredded. And I think this is something that the surgeons were consistently missing.

The Nordic Track was a great exercise for my hips after surgery. I'm in too much pain to consider using it at this time. There is another machine something like the Suzanne Sommers Thigh-Master that works both the inner and outer thighs. I got it at a thrift shop so I can't tell you the name of it. I've also been doing isometrics- squeezing, holding then letting go of my butt muscles. Hopefully, I'll be better prepared this time around.

I've never had children but someone once mentioned that if I got pregnant the widening of the hips might have caused dislocation. Scary thought! It would make sense to ask a doctor about that possibility.

I don't see why you should live in pain if you have found an OS who feels that a THR would help you. Most people recover pretty quickly, but you would definitely need help the first few weeks after surgery, especially with a small child to take care of.

Hope this was helpful. Let us know how you're doing!

Linda

 

[Katherine]

I'm 26. I have a 3 yr old. I'd never thought I'd hear that I needed hip replacement. As I've read around, I've heard that its not totally uncommon to need one after having had hip dysplasia.
I'm so nervous about all this. Somebody...please share what you can.

Thanks!
Lisa

Lisa, I dont know if you mentioned that you have a partner, but its important to have another adult around for at least the first week or two after discharge from the hospital. Preferably longer. This operation IS very successful, I think its 90% success rate, and failures are usually due to dislocation early after the surgery, I am told. So if you follow some rules, get lots of rest, try to excercise before, set up your living space and get all the living aids together like walker and crutches, grabber, toilet seat raiser, etc it is possible to manage and you will love the fact that after your body heals a bit the pain in your hip will be gone. But you will need someone to help you, because you cant pick up your three year old and carry the child for quite a while. You can hold he/she on your lap, you can spend TONNES of time with the child but carrying wont be possible.

I hope this helps you.

 

[maurice]

Re: Help!! 26 yrs need advice how to handle negative doctors about hip replacement

I am 26 and was born with a condition called purthesis of the hip. the hip was not formed properly and instead of having a full curved hip my was formed flat and therefore the bone has been wearing away, basically my hip is in constant pain and i have been hospitalised 5 times because i couldn't walk. it has also caused me bad back pain but the doctors keep telling that i'm to young but at the same time it is very severe.i went to see the os and she was very concerned as i had at least a 60% difference in mobility in my left hip compared to my right and i also walk with a limp as one leg is shorter than the other.The last time i was hospitalised the doctor said she hadn,t seen a hip this bad in a person of my age, i'm fed up being told different things from different doctors. i fear that the longer they put it off the worse i am going to end up. i cant afford to go private but if i have too i would take out a loan to go private. The last consultant that i seen seemed to lack any interest and disregarded any of my questions with negative responces but he doesn't seem to understand the pain that i am in.

Is there any advice that you can give me or point me in the right direction.

 

[dixieodoodles]

Maurice,

I see you are in Northern Ireland and I am here in the US, so recommending a doctor wouldn't do much good, I suppose.

Read my response two messages up. For 16 years I was in agonizing pain while the doctors just kept telling me I was too young. By then I had endured years of uneccessary suffering and my personal life is a mess. All I could think about was how to get relief.

My break came unexpectedly when I was working for FedEx. The pain was particularly excruciating that day because it had been raining. I started crying and got hysterical at my last delivery stop- which just happened to be at an OS office. Really, it was nothing I had planned and didn't even realize what type of doctor he was. Call it synchronicity, luck or an intervention from above. lol.

IMO, the age issue is just an excuse. The doctor just doesn't want to get involved. If you break your hip at a young age not one doctor would tell you that you're too young to get it fixed. But when you've got a more complicated issue, I think that the doctors would just rather not deal with you. They have enough patients and money where they can pick and choose.

Unfortunately, I don't have any actual advice. Last April I had my other hip replaced after begging doctors to do it for 10 years! I don't think my condition- hip dysplasia- is very well understood. The doctors would rather do the simplest procedures where they are more or less guaranteed a good outcome with no complaints or further problems.

Believe me, I feel for you. All I can say is to just keep banging on doors. If you can in any way afford to get insurance, do it. Then maybe the doctors will be greedy enough to want to help you.

It's too bad that pain isn't apparent. I still say I'd rather have no leg than endure the pain I did for all those years. And, btw, I'm still on narcotics and far from pain free. But at least it's tolerable now.

If it's in any way possible, I'd suggest checking out a drier climate. I moved from NYC to New Mexico and overall I feel better. If the humidity is above 50% I'm stiff and sore, but here it's usually drier.

If you just need to talk, you can email me at home- [email protected].

Linda

 

[dixieodoodles]

Maurice,

It doesn't look like my PS printed.

If one leg is shorter than the other, the first thing you should do is add the height to all your shoe soles. That could be one reason you're back is painful. I was recently told by an OS that if one leg is more than half an inch shorter than the other, it can cause all kinds of problems. When I got a half inch added to all my shoe soles, I could right away feel the difference. Even using a cane for a while, along with the new shoe height, may be a big help.

Linda

 

[Josephine]

Dear Maurice. My heart goes out to you as well. Perthes, when left untreated in infancy, is a devastating condition but you should have had it properly treated by now. The surgeon I used to work with in Essex (long since retired) often used to do them back in the 70s and 80s. Charnley designed a special range of prostheses just for them. There is no need for you to suffer like this. Can your GP not enquire around for a hospital that specialises in these congenital hips? Maybe in Eire?

If not, can you afford to get over to England? I know the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital will do THRs on 20yr olds and have done so often.

 

[Karen]

Hi Maurice
Being in Northern Ireland can you not access UK hospitals under NHS Patient Choice? which give patients more choice about where and when they receive elective surgery.
Wrigthington in UK takes patients form all over UK. They have several consultants who specialise in more complicated THR's, I was CDH which caused major problems and Wrightington operated on me when I was 27 and a friend of mine had here bi-lateral THR's done at 19! I'm sure I've people from Northern Ireland too. See https://www.wiganleigh.nhs.uk/Internet/Home/Hospitals/wrightington.asp

Regards Karen

 

[Ginny]

Hi Lisa,

I am 35 yr old active female. (marathon runner, triathlon, etc. ...the gamet..) My pain started 5 yrs ago and slowly deteriorated in the last few months. I had total hip replacement surgery last week (14 Jan 08).

I had surgery at UAB in Birmingham, Alabama. USA.
I have strict post-op instructions from my doc. Only toe touch weight bearing on my surgical leg for 6 weeks, no driving or as a passenger for 6 weeks. no bending, twisting, lifitng etc.

Everyone had a different situation, hip and doctor. This is a great website to get info, but remember every person is different. I did a lot of research prior to surgery and learned there are so many different combinations of hips, implants, materials, and procedures.

I posted most of my hospital experience on a different message board. I think it's the one titled "help 29 yr old".

I'm home for the next 6 weeks, I check this sight daily. Feel free to post a reply. I'll be glad to share my experience.

Ginny