My hip adventures started about a decade ago (2007-8) with groin pain, especially when hiking downhill. I'd had a horse incident involving my groin, so I thought it was that. The pain wasn't bad at first and I tried all sorts of therapies and therapists to help me heal. By 2017, it was really impacting my life and I was getting desperate to find a solution. During a hike, a stone turned under my foot and a sharp pain shot through my hip, deep inside. At that moment, it dawned on me that something was wrong. I don't know why it took me so long, denial I guess, and I was only 51.
I scheduled an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon specializing in hips. He showed me my xrays and explained to me that I had congenital hip dysplasia in both hips. Previously, I thought this only happened to dogs! There was virtually nothing left of my right hip and my left hip was also deteriorating. He wanted to know what I was doing for pain and wasn't sure how I was walking. My pain wasn't that bad, except when I tried to walk for any distance or stand. I could still do a lot of yoga and Tai Chi, so it never occurred to me that my hips could be that bad.
I had my right hip replaced a little over 2 months later (September 20, 2017), finally coming to terms with the fact that I had to have it done if I wanted to walk and function at all. In fact, since the day I was born, it was always in the cards that I would have to have both my hips replaced. I remember being grateful for 51 good years on my "old girls" before they gave out. I was also thankful I never knew about the birth defect. I had lived a very active, adventurous life, oblivious of my weak hips.
My surgeon is young and specializes in non-invasive techniques and uses robotics to assist in his surgeries. He was able to get my leg length spot on (my right had always been about 1/4 inch shorter). But, there were signs of distress on my femur so he decided to put a cerclage cable around it to shore it up. The cable, I now know, was the cause of my longer and more painful recovery on the right side. My muscles are still not functioning normally and I have continuing pain at 11 months out. I am planning to have it removed in October, 2018.
I was told that my left hip would either go very quickly or would last longer as a result of replacing my right. At the 90-day mark, I was just getting back to walking a mile, when my left hip decided it was her turn! That was a very depressing and discouraging time. I still had so much pain and disability from the first replacement, it was agonizing to consider doing it again so soon. At that point, I thought it might have been my dysplasia that was causing the long and painful recovery. So, I fully expected to have the same problems with my left side. But, again I wasn't able to walk and sleeping was painful, so it was time to buck up and get it done.
My left hip was replaced on May 16, 2018. I must say that the recovery on this hip is miraculous by comparison to my right! I was walking without aids by the 4th day post-surgery. I did not have the pain and disability I'd had on the right. It was at that point I knew it was the cerclage cable that had caused the problems, and was still causing them. At this point, my left leg and hip is noticeably stronger than my right. I can run my hands down the muscles and feel the difference. My right side is literally atrophying. It feels like the muscles hit that cable and just give out. I must say it has improved a lot over the almost year since my first surgery, but it is still problematic and the two sides are definitely out of balance. I very much favor my right side.
I am currently at the 3-month mark after my last replacement and it felt like it was time to get on Bonesmart and tell my story. This site has been very helpful to me, along with the International Hip Dysplasia site. I have very actively blogged about my Hip Adventures at
https://rhondaashurst.com. This is a non-commercial blog meant to help all my fellow hipsters out there. If you scroll down, you will see the Hip Adventures theme which has the whole story and I continue to update it regularly. You can also find my Hip Tips and my recovery videos and xrays on the Resources page on my site. All that being said, we are all unique and your journey through will be different than mine. Trust your own body to tell you what it needs. Best wishes on your journey! Please let me know if I can answer questions or be of help.
P.S. I also started a thread called: Has anyone had a cerclage cable removed? If you have any useful information or tips on this subject, please let me know. I will update that thread and this one once I have it removed, but I'd love to talk to someone who's had it done...
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, I suppose that is why we are called 'patients', certainly has pushed my patience to the limit!
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