Revision THR A new year and new hope: revision for loosened THR

prairienut

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I am starting my revision thread tonight because tomorrow, Jan. 2, I travel to NYC to stay overnight in a pretty cheap, well located, hopefully clean hotel with my son who is my "support person." I will get a call in the afternoon to tell me when I should arrive at HSS (Hospital for Special Surgery) on Jan. 3. My husband will probably be staying home as he needs to deal with his own medical issues this week. Thank heavens my son just finished his college degree and doesn't start his job until June. It was divine providence. He's a very upbeat guy and will help keep my mood positive. I'm also thankful my head cold is fading nicely.

I noticed on my HSS account that Dr. Waddell has listed the brand and model of shiny new hardware he will be using on Thursday. Let's hope this one lasts me more than 9 years. The revision femoral implant will be larger and longer than the previous and uncemented. I have very long legs, so he should have plenty of bone to work with. I sometimes wonder if the length of my legs contributed to the torque forces on the prosthesis over the years and hastened the loosening. I am quite active with hiking and bicycling so I did put that hip through its paces.

I'm ready to be on the healing side. Wish me luck on Thursday. I'll post when I get back home, most likely Saturday or Sunday.
 
@prairienut, great to hear you getting ready for the big day.

Oh ... I'm sure your long legs had nothing to do with the need for the revision. Wasn't it about you that the surgeon said the original device was a bad fit? (I might have confused you with someone else--but I think it was you.) I gotta tell you ... when I visited HSS (and occasionally I wonder if I should have stayed with the HSS surgeon), I found it to be spotless.

I ended up going to the Rothman Clinic near me in Philadelphia and the Rothman Surgical Hospital was really nice ... but ... I have to admit: it wasn't spotless like HSS. And the employees at HSS were just all SUPER nice ... super warm ... I had great nurses where I went, so I can't complain.

Anyway, eager to hear your report. I'm sure you'll get many good years from your revision device. Yes, they are longer than the originals. Great that your son will be with you.
 
@Going4fun, Yes, I am the one. My revision surgeon judges my femoral implant to be TOO SMALL based on a comparison (via x-ray) to the dimensions of the femur on my unoperated side.
 
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Hi @prairienut
Wishing you all the best on Thursday. I'm happy to hear your son will be with you offering emotional support. We'll be here to offer encouragement as well as you begin healing. I'll leave the Recovery Guidelines below for you to look over ahead of time.
Wishing you comfort as you await the 3rd. We'll look forward to your first post.

Hip Recovery: The Guidelines
1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary
2. Control discomfort:
rest
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​
3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​
4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these
5. Here is a week-by-week guide to

Pain management and the pain chart
Healing: how long does it take?
Chart representation of THR recovery

Dislocation risk and 90 degree rule
Energy drain for THRs
Pain and swelling control: elevation is the key

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it

Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

BIG TIP: Hips actually don't need any exercise to get better. They do a pretty good job of it all on their own if given half a chance. Trouble is, people don't give them a chance and end up with all sorts of aches and pains and sore spots. All they need is the best therapy which is walking and even then not to excess.

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery. While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each, member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.
 
Sending you healing angels to help you thru your surgery and recovery. Revision is standard with longer femeral implants, mine is 11”, my revision was due to a loosened primary femoral implant. 6 years later my revision went well. I know soon you too will be happy with the outcome and the main goal is mobility and no pain. To a better and pain free 2019! What better way to start out the new year and by summer you be happy this is done leaving so many more years to look forward to walking pain free and enjoying the things in life that bring you joy and happiness.
 
Wishing you the best, @prairienut. That's interesting that your original implant only lasted nine years. I am always curious to hear what people were doing, physically, when they experience loosening. Thanks for your honesty and information. I hope the new implant lasts you the rest of your life.
 
1546117540-HAPPY_NEW_YEAR.jpg
2019 will be Golden!
Glad all is a go and you will have your son with you.
Sending you all the best...we will all be waiting for you on the healing side.:friends:
 
Happy Wednesday @prairienut
Wishing you all the best tomorrow and peace and comfort as you wait.
We'll be here for you as you move through recovery.
Hugs :friends:
 
Thinking of you.
I hope that your resting confortably and your pain is well managed.
Wishing you comfort as you begin healing.
@prairienut
 
Hope pain is well managed..
Get through this tough first stuff...and you will be well on your Way to Well!
 
It is the morning after my revision surgery. I'm on my phone so this will be a short post. Turns out the acetabular implant was solid so he just replaced the metal liner with a plastic one. Yay! The femoral component was completely loose and had been that way a while. He easily pulled it out with his fingers! Yikes! He reduced my LLD from 13 mm down to 2mm. No transfusion needed. No fracture. My orders are full weight bearing as tolerated. I will be getting up and walking today. Pain is well managed. I'm ready to heal! Thanks again for all the good advice and support on this forum. More details after I get home.
 
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Good to hear from you @prairienut ! Welcome to the other side again. Sounds like your op went very well. You can definitely tolerate a 2mm LLD.

Please keep us updated!
 
Hurray!
Good to hear from you @prairienut
I checked your thread a while ago but it was probably early for you then
Hope to hear back after your first walk
Safe and sound recovery:wave:
 
@prairienut Just saw you had your surgery---congratulations! Wishing only the best for you. I hope you are able to follow the precautions mentioned on this site many times about PT, pain meds etc. I am the poster child for a good revision which was needed almost immediately from my first implant, and just want to send you words of encouragement as you recuperate. I definitely needed pain meds, tapered off of them appropriately though not too quickly, even though I don't like their side effects. And it gets so much easier after the first 2 weeks or so, keep the faith! Give your body time to heal and good luck!
 
Great news! Best of luck for a speedy safe recovery.
 
Just took first walk with a walker. Quad is very sore but hip feels stable, and that is a definite improvement. PT exercises are minimal: ankle pumps, quad sets, glute sets, heel slide to 45 degrees, and rotating foot outward and back, all done in bed
I am off of the IV pain med and transitioning to oral oxycontin and Tylenol. All the various tubes come out at noon today. Another PT session this pm and a trip to the bathroom. Will probably go home tomorrow or Sunday. We have a long flight of steps to our front door so I need to be able to manage those. Good thing we put in sturdy railings a few years ago.]
 
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Awesome update! You're doing great. I was anxious about steps but once they have you do them in the hospital it raises you're confidence. Navigating stairs is pretty non threatening if you take it slow and have someone walk behind you going up, and in front of you going down initially at home. I hope the surgery site is providing you with ice. It is such a great option for pain and swelling.
Wishing you a lovely rest of the day!
@prairienut
 
I am icing as I type! Made a trip to the bathroom and back. I need to get a walker with wheels for home. The very old one we have borrowed has none. Feels great to be free of tubes. I'm still very protective of my right hip. I'm so used to favoring it, I have to train myself to gradually trust it more and more. One big improvement compared to the original THR is that I do not have jittery legs. That was so uncomfortable! I believe lively conversation with my son and the TV helped distract my brain into not being so anxious.
 

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