Hi, I had my left hip replaced in November 2024 (anterior approach) and I’d say I was progressing fairly well thru week 6. I was past the pain and just had normal weakness and occasionally getting out and enjoying the Christmas festivities/parties. I was starting to feel more confident and stronger in my steps, even forgetting my cane at times which I was using only because I still had a limp and didn’t want to develop bad habits until i was strong enough without limp.
Then at week 7, I began to have a different, severe pain when putting any weight on the leg. I thought it was because I overdid it over the holidays so i backed off and rested and iced a lot. When I went to PT, which I was doing twice a week, I told my therapist what was going on and she thought it could be 1) result of too much activity too soon or 2) IT band syndrome. But the pain persisted and even worsened by the following week, so I reached out to my OS/care team. After multiple X-rays and CT scan at week 10, my OS found that I had a complication that he rarely sees. He said it wasn’t my IT band, it was subsidence. My stem had sunk into the femur bone and wasn’t supposed to and there is risk of fracture if I keep walking on it. I was devastated. He gave me two options: 1) revision surgery immediately with a larger stem and collar to keep from dropping and cable to wrap the femur to prevent fracture or 2) wait to give more time for the bone to grow into the stem and see how my body responds, if the pain goes away and maybe I won’t need surgery. How much time that would take is unknown and I fear fracture in the meantime which is why he told me to go real easy, only use walker, avoid stairs.
I chose to go with option 2 at least for this week and we are going to reassess from week to week. What I’ve noticed in the weeks that I’ve been taking it easy (I’m now at week 11), the pain is equally bad when I’m non-weight-bearing. Meaning, I have severe pain when I get up to stand but ALSO when I shift in a recliner/bed or slightly move my foot outward or inward when sitting upright, or when dropping my foot into pants while seated etc. The pain I feel is sharp, usually causing me to gasp or yelp or swear out loud, and is felt mid-thigh and around incision area, sometimes even shooting down to outer side of my knee. I can have pain incidents like this 25 times throughout the day (I’ve begun to count each occurrence this week) but they go away after a minute with the longest pain lasting 15 min or so, until it gets triggered again.
What I’m curious is if anyone else has experienced subsidence and did it cause this same specific pain or was it only pain when you put weight on it? I’m wondering if there could be something ELSE causing my pain. Also, I’m torn whether I should endure the pain with hopes that it’ll just stop within a month or so or do I do the revision? At this rate, in 4 weeks time it has remain steady if not, slightly worsened.
I appreciate any advice, insight, thoughts. I know there were few similar cases I came across here on Bonesmart a while back but want to dive in a little deeper. I know @Sockeyewillie seemed to have similar case so would appreciate any insight.
Thanks!
Then at week 7, I began to have a different, severe pain when putting any weight on the leg. I thought it was because I overdid it over the holidays so i backed off and rested and iced a lot. When I went to PT, which I was doing twice a week, I told my therapist what was going on and she thought it could be 1) result of too much activity too soon or 2) IT band syndrome. But the pain persisted and even worsened by the following week, so I reached out to my OS/care team. After multiple X-rays and CT scan at week 10, my OS found that I had a complication that he rarely sees. He said it wasn’t my IT band, it was subsidence. My stem had sunk into the femur bone and wasn’t supposed to and there is risk of fracture if I keep walking on it. I was devastated. He gave me two options: 1) revision surgery immediately with a larger stem and collar to keep from dropping and cable to wrap the femur to prevent fracture or 2) wait to give more time for the bone to grow into the stem and see how my body responds, if the pain goes away and maybe I won’t need surgery. How much time that would take is unknown and I fear fracture in the meantime which is why he told me to go real easy, only use walker, avoid stairs.
I chose to go with option 2 at least for this week and we are going to reassess from week to week. What I’ve noticed in the weeks that I’ve been taking it easy (I’m now at week 11), the pain is equally bad when I’m non-weight-bearing. Meaning, I have severe pain when I get up to stand but ALSO when I shift in a recliner/bed or slightly move my foot outward or inward when sitting upright, or when dropping my foot into pants while seated etc. The pain I feel is sharp, usually causing me to gasp or yelp or swear out loud, and is felt mid-thigh and around incision area, sometimes even shooting down to outer side of my knee. I can have pain incidents like this 25 times throughout the day (I’ve begun to count each occurrence this week) but they go away after a minute with the longest pain lasting 15 min or so, until it gets triggered again.
What I’m curious is if anyone else has experienced subsidence and did it cause this same specific pain or was it only pain when you put weight on it? I’m wondering if there could be something ELSE causing my pain. Also, I’m torn whether I should endure the pain with hopes that it’ll just stop within a month or so or do I do the revision? At this rate, in 4 weeks time it has remain steady if not, slightly worsened.
I appreciate any advice, insight, thoughts. I know there were few similar cases I came across here on Bonesmart a while back but want to dive in a little deeper. I know @Sockeyewillie seemed to have similar case so would appreciate any insight.
Thanks!