Revision THR Krista's Gluteus Medius Repair 1 Year post THR

[Krista]

Thanks, all! I just love my BoneSmart friends and how we support each other, before and after surgery, and over time.

@Cas, which of the three darling dogs in your profile pic is yours? He is so lucky, sharing a home with you and all of those cats and rabbits. Never a dull moment for any of them! We used to have our own dog, a sweet boy who was a pointer mix and weighed 85 pounds. He was pure gold. Sofi is a dear, but she has her feisty side, no doubt about it!

@Constanze, you ARE young! And you have recovered so well from your hip surgery. I can only dream of doing what you do, but I am satisfied with my abilities. Yes, middle school boys can be nice (my own was), and they were so good to Sofi, but I was a substitute teacher for that age for awhile, so I know the tricks they can pull!

@Mojo333, cheers for the miracle of recovery! You have brought that light of hope to many others.

@Irish Joe, thanks for stopping by with your positive thoughts! Health and happiness to you, too.

 

[Cas]

@Krista Hi . This is an old picture. All the dogs were mine!! LOL! Inuk on mat with Chaska behind Chloe the Collie and Jezz the one on settee. Sady they have all crossed the rainbow bridge. I now have only 1 dog but may consider another if I can get mobility issues resolved!! They all went to weekend shows with me and we camped. Nukka was the Show dog, Chloe agility, Jezz obedience and Chaska ????? Just my boy.
Will have to resize a pic of Shey to show you.
Hope you are having a good day today love Carol

 

[Krista]

Awww, @Cas, love all of the pooches! Somehow you got all their sweet faces in one photo. You must have been so busy with all of them and their activities, and it's sad that they have gone over the bridge. Looking forward to seeing Shey. Sure do hope that you are physically able to do whatever you want to do in the future. I'm having good days. I am so organized that I have started scanning old family photos again. Had a l-o-n-g break from that for the various surgeries, when brain fog wouldn't let me do it. My son is going to be with us for two weeks while he is in town on business. Normally he is 2,000 miles away! Hang in there, dear Cas!

 

[Cas]

@Krista morning . Wonderful news about your son. You must really be looking forward to the visit. So glad you are now feeling better and well enough to resume scanning the photos. Every day that is a good one is a blessing isn't it. I find I can now drive for reasonable distance on a good day with splints!!! Freedom.
A picture of Shey on board ferry to Outer Hebrides > Keep well and hope you have more good days than bad love Carol.

A

 

[bugaboo]

Krista, curious as to how you are doing now? I had an open repair four months ago. Gluteus medius completely torn, gluteus minimus fifty percent torn. Bursectomy and large bone spur removed. I still have lots of pain and a significant trendelenburg gait. I got kicked out of pt a month ago to take a break because everything is so inflamed. Had a follow up MRI, tendons are attatched.....just shows inflamation and fluid. Scheduled to have the fluud aspirated in August. Wondering if I'm ever going to walk normal again or be able to give up the cane. So much for being able to go back to work at 12 weeks. All the sciatic pain i had went away until i started walking again. Horribly frustrating!!!!!

 

[Krista]

@bugaboo, sounds super frustrating and distressing! Sorry you are still having the limp and the pain. I am now 21 months post-op from the tendon repair. My surgeon was very conservative about what activity I was allowed after the surgery. For 6 weeks I wore a brace to remind me to keep to the 90 degree rule, and I was only allowed 20 pound weight-bearing on the surgical leg for that time also. Then I had very slow PT, never pushing, never causing pain, only allowed to move ahead when I had mastered the tasks with no pain or regression of strength. I went mainly because I loved the hip massages that I got with every session!

I am still not 100% in that hip, maybe about 80% in strength, and I am fairly certain it will never be stronger, but MUCH improved than before the surgery. When going upstairs, I can only do alternate legs without holding on to railing with great difficulty. I am extremely careful and slow when going downstairs and need an arm to steady myself. I have full range of motion. I still have some pain in my hip after I have done a lot of walking, but usually none. I can walk without a limp, but since I have a bad back and spinal curvature, it is difficult for me to walk any distance without a walking aid, usually a cane. My surgeon warned me before surgery that I might not get better, and might even end up worse. I elected to go ahead since it was awful, and I didn't see how it could be worse. I am happy I had it done.

I did not have the complications that you have, of the inflammation and excess fluid. I would definitely not do any PT, if I were you, but just gentle walking. Hope the aspiration helps!

 

[Mojo333]

Hi @Krista my lovely hippy pal.
Hope you are doing okay, and getting ready for some turkey!

I appreciate all the lovely encouraging thoughts you have shared with myself and many others on the forum.
I am indeed thankful for you.
Happy Thanksgiving in advance!

 

[Krista]

How absolutely sweet, @Mojo333 ! And a Happy Thanksgiving to you! I admire all of the support that you give to everyone on this forum. I'm making dinner for my husband, daughter and her boyfriend. Should be a very nice event. I'm doing so well. Husband and I went on our 12 day backpacking/camping trip to the wilderness island again in August, and my hip performed beautifully! I walked so much, mostly on beaches, carrying my lightweight camp chair to lounge in. Slept on the ground in a tent. Spent another 12 days on the mainland exploring natural areas.

When we got home, I spent 7 weeks dog sitting for a darling pooch, and was walking miles every day. I went for my two-year check-up with the gluteal tendon surgeon's physician assistant the other day, and she asked if I was doing any exercises. I said, no, just daily activities, and plenty of them. She tested my leg strength in all sorts of awkward positions and was shocked when they were mostly at level 5, which is the strongest. She said all is well, and I should come back in 5 years for another check-up.

One more piece of extremely good news is that after almost one year of doing daily Tymlos injections for osteoporosis in my spine, my bone density there has increased by 19%, and is now osteopenia. The other two levels that they measure in the femur both increased significantly as well, and are in the osteopenia range. I will see my endocrinologist next week to discuss the results and continuation of treatment. I think they recommend taking Tymlos for 18 months to 24 months, not sure what he will say. My back still hurts sometimes, and cracks and gives me plenty of trouble, but at least the bone density is much improved.

I still check into our forum here to chime in on threads where my experience with the torn gluteal tendons post-THR might be of help. What a fantastic place this is for us hippies! Happy Holidays and full recoveries to all !

 

[Mojo333]

Oh that is such welcome happy news.
Your positive spirit is always welcome.
You have overcome some terribly hard times, So graciously!
Glad to know you are doing very well!

 

[Pumpkin]

Krista,
Happy to hear you are doing well. I am impressed with your camping adventures, sleeping on the ground, WOW!

 

[Krista]

@Pumpkln, thanks so much! A lot of planning went into me being able to sleep on the ground! I had an excellent, 4-inch thick air mattress so that I could comfortably sleep on my side, the only position in which I can sleep. And I had to use one of our food storage kegs, which is a very strong cylinder about 15 inches high and 9 inches in diameter, to lean on with my arms while getting up to a stand. It wasn't easy, but I did it. I also bought an expensive new super-lightweight tent that had a slightly taller entrance so that I could more easily stand up while also leaning out the doorway and not catch my head on the tent. We planned everything to the smallest detail beforehand, so I could enjoy the experience once there. I have since gotten a new back brace that makes walking distances easier for me. I'm always looking for ways to improve quality of life!

 

[Constanze]

That's lovely @Krista . It's great you went backpacking and camping in with your husband in August. Must have been fun. I haven't done any camping in a tent since my hip operation, but I've done a lot of travelling including by plane to Australia or New Zealand where we went mountain hiking or kayaking. I'm also a runner - both my operated and my unoperated leg are doing fine. I was also diagnosed with osteoporosis before the operation, but my surgeon still succeeded in installing the uncemented stem which is supposed to establish a firm bond with the bone, and that worked. I wish you good luck that your bone-density will get even better. I think mine must have done after all this exercise. Exercise is good for bone density as an orthopaedic doctor explained to me. Have fun and a nice fall and winter (winter finally seems to have come to Germany but in Frankfurt no snow yet - this has been forecast in some places in the hills).

 

[Krista]

Hello, @Constanze! You are a whirlwind, with all of that traveling! I haven't flown in an airplane since 2012. It's great to hear that both of your hips are doing fine. My THR was uncemented, like yours, and I have no osteoarthritis problems in my other hip (yet). Regarding osteoporosis, the only sure way to know bone density status is to have a Bone Mineral Density test, such as a DXA scan. Weight-bearing exercise is good, and so is getting plenty of calcium in your diet, but that is no guarantee of healthy bone density. We've had snow 3 times already in the last two weeks. Enjoy your winter and holidays!

 

[Constanze]

Thank you @Krista, that's very kind of you to say so.
Yes, indeed, I had a DXA scan in 2014, and the result was very low bone density. But it came to a surprise to me. I never had any problems. I had several falls, including falling off my bike and bruising my arm very badly, but never broke a bone. I also took some medicine for my osteoporosis in 2014/2015 but I'm not taking anything now. Enjoy the season. Best from Constanze

 

[Marvy]

Happy Thanksgiving Krista! I am so happy to hear that you are doing so well after everything you have been through. And to have your surgeon say come back in 5 years- you had to be elated to hear that!

Your camping trip sounds wonderful! Hopefully after surgery I will be able to hike like I used to.

We’ve never been on a camping trip that long but to me it would be delightful to even semi-disconnect from everything.

Thank you for all of your advice regarding tendon issues - I really appreciate it!

Keep us posted on how your doing (and about your travels!)

 

[Krista]

You are so welcome, @Marvy! Two months from today is your next (and hopefully FINAL) surgery.

Have a delicious and peaceful Thanksgiving ! will be making the big meal tomorrow so that we can celebrate with my daughter. I am making pumpkin pies right now. I'll definitely update my thread from time to time about how I'm doing. Currently, I am wearing myself out going to craft shows and window shopping, since it's too cold for outdoors walks. Take care!

 

[Mojo333]

Pretty Lady.
Hope life is being good to you and you are doing well!
Hope your day is Sweet!

 

[Krista]

Thanks for reaching out, @Mojo333, I'm having a lovely summer so far. I was just editing photos of the gorgeous native Illinois prairie flowers that are blooming in our garden! I am well and as strong as can be expected. We've planned our 3-week vacation in August, to do lots of walking in natural areas in northwest Michigan and camping on the wilderness island again. I'm so busy at home, putting our finances in order, and trying to truly organize and declutter our home. My husband will be retiring soon, so I'm expecting changes in our future activities, with more time for traveling.

My big problem area remains my back/spine, and I don't like the constant cracking that I hear from there as I move about. My twice-operated hip is great, but other hip is iffy, and both knees and ankles are complaining. And my hands...they hurt quite a bit. But that's to be expected with my body. I am loving life and living to its fullest!

Hope you are in top shape. I appreciate so much the encouragement and help that you give to all who come to Bonesmart!

 

[Mojo333]

My big problem area remains my back/spine, and I don't like the constant cracking that I hear from there as I move about. My twice-operated hip is great, but other hip is iffy, and both knees and ankles are complaining. And my hands...they hurt quite a bit.

Don't fall apart on us, you have lots of traveling to do.

I am loving life and living to its fullest!

It is what I love about you most. We cant wait for all to be perfect before we just go be happy, can we?

I hope your aches give you a reprieve as you prepare to travel, or at least you are somewhat distracted by life's offerings that you manage to enjoy yourself. Hugs

 

[Marvy]

Hi @Krista

I love that you are planning on traveling more once your hubby retires! We are still a couple years out from that, but, like you, looking at the financial part and figuring out how we can retire and still travel.

Your camping vacation sounds so wonderful (and stress free)!

Like Mojo said, I hope that the achy joints will not distract you too much from enjoying your travels. There are so many places to go!

Wishing you the best!