Doctor would not do both hips at the same time

[Demidiaz54]

Hi everyone so glad to be here! Both of my hips are shot my doctor was not comfortable doing both at the same time. I am concerned that this would hinder my recovery . How soon after should I consider have the other hip done? My doctor told me 3 months but I have so much pain that I can't wait and thinking about a second opinion thanks

 

[Jamie]

Hi, @Demidiaz54 ....welcome to BoneSmart! You may notice that I've moved your thread to the pre-op forum as you have not had your surgery yet. Please don't worry about getting responses as many of our post-op patients come on over to this forum to help others. You'll get plenty of comments here. Then, once you've had surgery, you would start a recovery thread on the other side in the recovery forum. This procedure keeps things organized so people can follow what is going on with you as you progress through your hip journey.

Don't give it any thought at all about doing your hips one at a time. Actually, that's how most surgeons operate and patients have no problems. How long between the surgeries depends on what your doctor prefers. It sounds like yours wants 3 months in between. I think you'll be surprised at how well that works. Your new hip will have some surgical pain for a while, but it is going to be really strong as you start getting back on your feet. You'll actually be walking with it a day or so after surgery (maybe even the same day). Your pain management program should help ease discomfort in the non-operated hip as well and before you know it you'll be getting it done as well.

Your surgeon knows you and himself (these surgeries are rough on the doctors too....very physical for them) and you want someone who does not try to push the envelope. You're going to do just great!

That said....there are surgeons who do bilateral hip replacements. If you truly want to go that route, just be sure you find a surgeon who does a lot of them and is completely comfortable with it. There is never anything wrong with seeking additional opinions on your case.

 

[JMACCA]

I understand that you would be disappointed. I was when I first was told that they wouldn't be done together (however, I only have 1.5 weeks between mine). By all means get a second opinion. Circumvent the disappointment by asking the receptionist if the surgeon has done bilateral hip replacements (THR's done at the same time).

Although mine are close together, as I get closer to the date I am nervous about having them both done, think it will be harder in the short-term.

 

[mopster]

I talked to surgeons who do bilateral replacements, but only if the patient insists. Recovery is harder short term, but long term it does not make a difference. If you are fit (body) and willing (mind) and insist (business) and your surgeon can do it - why not - just be prepared that it's going to be a bigger challenge in recovery.

 

[Jaycey]

@Demidiaz54 Welcome to BoneSmart. So glad you found us!

I think you will find that having your hips done separately will not hinder your recovery. Yes, the "hip in waiting" may complain but in terms of recovery - there should be no problem. @Miss Muffet has had one hip done is will shortly be having her second hip replaced. I am sure she will confirm the recovery was fairly straight forward.

 

[gazelle7777]

@Demidiaz54 My doctor suggested doing both knees at the same time.... I had BTKR in 2013 and everything went very well.... a year later when I decided to have hips replaced, I asked my doctor if I could have them done at the same time... he told me he preferred to do hips separately as they seemed to heal faster and better with less complications.

This guy is the Top doc in the country and he does a huge amount of hips and knees... I respect his decision and reasoning to do each hip separately. I had Anterior method done first hip in 2014, second hip in 2015. It was the easiest surgery to come back from and everything is splendid! I think you need to trust your doctor... of course if you do not think his answer is for your best interest to do the hips separately, it is your right to find a doctor who would do both at the same time.

 

[Josephine]

How soon after should I consider have the other hip done? My doctor told me 3 months

I call that 'grabbing a number out of the air' thinking! There have been members who had the second hip done as early as 6 days after the first. But I agree with the others, do some research and find a surgeon who does them fairly routinely.

 

[Miss Muffet]

Hi @Demidiaz54. Yes @Jaycey is right. My OS chose to operate on the worse of my hips first. He suggested a gap of of 3-6 months between surgeries and told me the reason he does them separately is because the operated one can then support the second one during its recovery. It is certainly doing that job. Sure it does grumble a bit having to help Leftie out, but that absolutely doesn't compare to the raging pain it experienced beforehand. I do concur with his decision - especially as I imagine I would need much more help during my rehab, whereas within a relatively short time I was managing pretty well. Good luck

 

[Hip Hip Hooray!]

Hi, I noticed that you're in New York, and that you're only 54. There may be a surgeon in your area who does bilateral surgery. You sound like you would be a good candidate. It's worth researching. I had my hips replaced at the same time, and I'm so glad that I did. My surgeon recommended it. They were both bone on bone. His feeling was, "One hospital stay, one time under anesthesia, and one recovery period." I couldn't be happier with my outcome.

My physical therapist told me that my surgeon doesn't usually do bilaterals, either. I think it helped that I was healthy, 50 years old, and light. It's interesting to research. There are many people on this forum who have also had successful bilateral surgeries.

The other thing that appealed to me was the financial aspect. One deductible, and one time paying for a kennel for my dogs.

 

[leejaa]

ALways a hard decision. If you really want bilateral I would get a second opinion with another OS and then see how you feel about him and his experience and what he says. I have had both knees replaced but not at the same time - my decision because I wanted to make sure I had one unoperated leg to recoup with and I personally wanted not to take a chance where I would have to go to a recovery facillity vs coming home. I wanted to come hope post op and my husband was working FT at that time so I wanted to make sure I was OK being home alone all day and I was. I had the surgeries about 6 months apart in the same year - this took care of my high deductible requirements for the year so the second surgery had no extra cost for me for surgery and recovery. This also let me be home alone during the day through recovery without any issue. It worked for me but I know others had bilaterals and they did great also. We, each, have to make the choice that works best for us once we collect all the information on the surgeon, recovery, etc. Good luck on your hunt for answers and a final decision.

 

[LarryNYC]

Hi, Demidiaz54.

I just had bilateral hip replacement (anterior approach) 11 days ago with Dr. Roy Davidovitch at NYU and have been completely blown away by the results. If you are interested in the anterior approach, you may want to consult with him.

I am 42 years old and went into the surgery with a little extra weight but good overall health. The next day I was out of bed and walking with crutches. I had no meaningful pain and was discharged about 22 hours after surgery finished. I used the crutches for another day or so at home, used a cane for another couple of days, and then was device-free around day 4. By day 5, I was able to take short walks outside my home in an adjacent park, and on day 10 I went to a convention and walked for over 2 hours up and down the aisles.

I did have a lot of swelling for the first several days, and I'm now dealing with some muscle pain as I use and re-build muscles that have been neglected for decades. Sleeping can be tough, as I get very stiff at night, and then moving hurts. But I am already essentially "back to life" and walking better than I was before the surgery.

I am told the surgery took about 2 hours, and I had about 700ml of blood loss. My incisions are about 4" long and healing nicely so far.

I am incredibly glad I got the bilateral approach. I would never even consider getting one done at a time, given the option I had with Dr. Davidovitch and my age and health.

All in all, I highly recommend Dr. Davidovitch for the bilateral approach!

 

[Zelda]

I had mine 3 months apart. My second hip was definitely ready but I did like the security of knowing that the first one was fit and reliable before I started the second.

Looking back, I think I might now have pushed to have them done together but mainly because of issues with sick pay and time off work.

 

[Medfordart]

My doctor would not do both either. He said that they worry about if you were to get an infection in both. I am a lot older, so spacing out has worked for me. I feel strong enough with the first one. Ready to get that second one done!

 

[Michegon]

@Demidiaz54 Hi, Bilateral Jim here. I'm 28 months post-op with Mini posterior approach. My thoughts were to have one recovery, less chance of infection vs two surgeries, actually less expensive, and my legs healed at the same pace. My recovery was as fast as anyone on this board, single or bilateral. I was driving in7-8 days and back to work in 5 weeks. The key is getting the OS that "Rocks" then let them do their job. Good Luck!

 

[SwimGirl]

@Demidiaz54 There is a reason that surgeons refuse to do both hips at once. You are under anesthesia twice as long and you can have more blood loss with both at same time. I do not believe that having hips done separately increases the chance of infection. Either way the skin is opened on each leg for a time. I would think long and hard about doing both at once. My OS recommended 3 months apart but I chose 2 months. You use your good leg to support operated leg which will be swollen to get up from chairs and toilets. When I stood up the first time I said to myself how would anyone having both legs done push themselves up.? Biggest thing is the energy drain.
Read over info in library here about recovery timeframe for two hips! Whatever you choose Good Luck to you. We will be here for you postop!