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Bilateral THR Tony2hips Recovery

@gregsohappy2 My specialist has 100's of THR's to his name so plenty of experience to his name so I guess it was a bad day in the office for him. It certainly was for me. Still getting the clicking / grinding in left hip but will just have to go with it for now I guess until I see him again next month. Not the nicest feeling but after years in agony I can live with it for a month.

@Krista Thanks for your reply. I have yet to find anyone to have had an xray laid full on a newly operated hip. But if the hospital are claiming it had no effect on the dissociation of the liner, I guess I just have to put it down to bad, painful and unnecessary experience. Hospital have said they investigated it but will not tell me the outcome and when I asked for copy of Radiology request from them showing the xrays that my specialist had asked for they said there are none.
 
@tony2hips , I've tagged @Josephine , she's the expert here and may be able to provide direction as you are in the UK.

From my non-medical point of view, I think you had a terrible experience. Their efforts to explain and rectify it seemed to be for their self protection rather than investigating what actually went wrong and assigning appropriate responsibility. Perhaps you can consult with a solicitor who deals with such matters?

I hope your new hips settle down and that you have a good recovery :)
 
@tony2hips, here in the US you can go to the hospital medical records department and request the operative report (all the details of what exactly went on during the surgery, the make, model and serial # of devices, etc.) and a copies of your hospital files detailing everything that happened while you were there, test results, who saw you, your vitals, etc. In the US these things must be given to you, although you will probably have to pay for the copying cost. Here you can even do it by phone if you would have a hard time getting to the office. You can get the forms sent to you or can download and print them online. You must say what records you want and sign and date the forms, turn them in (or mail them in) and then you get copies.

If I were you, I'd make sure I got my hands on those, as they may answer some questions that you have.

I am highly suspicious of the answer you got saying that there is no record of the request for the xrays. How can that be? There have to be orders for everything, and those orders don't just disappear after they are given.
 
@Krista I have been sent of my records which are all the standard records including standard reports on the original bilateral and the revision a week later. The trouble is when I asked for the Radiology requests so that I could see what xrays the surgeon asked for, but I was told there aren't any. I also asked for a copy of the investigation into what went on in radiology but was told I can't have them due to data protection and confidentiality of the radiologist. I asked for a copy of the report/investigation invest to what went wrong with the operation but again told I cannot have them for data protection / confidentiality which is bizarre as I obviously know who my surgeon is. Even stranger is the fact that in my daily medical notes the hospital did send me there is one handwritten line from the surgeon that says he apologises and admits his mistake. I'm not sure the hospital saw that when they sent them. Overall it seems ridiculous that they will not send me the information on the bad aspects of my treatment, only the standard notes.

@Horseshoe It is a difficult one as I want to know why it went wrong, why the incident in Radiology took place and what the repercussions are for me going forward (increased chances of dislocation, subluxation etc) associated with having a 2nd surgery in a week. The trouble is I feel I'm not being given the information that I need. When I had the meeting they seemed very interested in what I had to say about all the other issues I had, which on their own we're annoying and frustrating, but when I ask about the major problems I feel fobbed off. For instance when I asked about the sudden popping and really sharp pain I had when I woke up in a chair, they said it would have been a stitch pulling. I'm no doctor but the stitches had dissolved 8 days earlier and the pain I was in would not have been that bad putting in a stitch with anesthetic! Going legal is not something I really want to do but it is starting to feel that I may have to to get the real facts!
 
I would think that any written record that pertains to you, that is a part of your medical records at that hospital and with that surgeon, belongs to you and you have a right to see it. Perhaps some legal opinion about just getting all of the records is in order. We need information about what was done to us and why, especially if there has been a bad outcome. I am sensitive to this subject because I have never been able to walk right or without pain since my THR in July, 2015. I have two new surgeons who will be operating on me in August, and, while I know one problem for sure that will be repaired - the gluteal tendon tear - they will see if anything else is amiss and fix that, too. I wonder if it was something done wrong by my original surgeon, or if things went wrong during my "recovery". Good luck in your search for answers. Perhaps you digging further into this will get you some relief, and also prevent these things from being done to someone else.
 
@Krista I am sorry that you have had the problems you have experienced. It must be very frustrating to have to undergo further surgery with new surgeons and to still be in pain. I totally agree that patients should be entitled to have access to copies of all information about them. I feel that before surgery, you weigh up all the risks that are involved in the operation and make a decision. One risk you shouldn't have to factor in is not receiving the correct treatment or a surgeon not carrying out the operation correctly. In my case they are claiming that the acetabular liner was not correctly seated in surgery, which considering all the information freely available on the internet, is a really basic error. Yet the hospital seem to be claiming that this is a risk of surgery. It certainly wasn't on the list of risks on any disclaimer I signed!
 
@tony2hips, and it has happened to at least one other person that I know of! There is a man from the UK on the other forum where I am a member who also had his acetabular liner put in at the wrong angle this year. He had an attempted revision at 10 weeks, but they were not able to budge the cup from out of the bone. He was awake during the surgery and heard them trying mightily. So they sewed him back up in the same shape he was in going in to the op. He is under the care of a different surgeon now, a specialist in a big hospital. He will be monitored and they will see what happens in future. He can walk without pain or limping, but apparently the main problem is that he is at greater risk of shattering the cup due to the angle. He may be pursuing some legal action. I can put you in touch with him via personal message, if you like.
 
To day is the day for my right hip replacement .I'm getting ready to go to the hospital and I will not be on here for a few day .
 
Just a quick question for all.

Following your THR's what physio did you receive? I only had a visit from a physio after 6 weeks and only then after chasing the hospital to find out what was going on. I have since had 1 further visit with a final due this week. These visits have basically been watch me walk and tell me what exercises to do. My fellow patients from my stay (sinhle THR's) have been having weekly or twice weekly sessions at hospital gyms using equipment under supervision to help recovery.

Would like to hear other hippies stories especially UK patients.
 
I'm in the UK and have my first physio booked at 5 weeks, and then weekly for 3 weeks after that. I am currently 12 days post op. I understand that it's as you say for a walking check and some more advanced exercises :)
Not that I can even do the basic ones yet!! Good luck!!


Right THR
10th June 2016

Sent from my iPhone
 
The PT that came to my home once (first week home) said I didn't need any formal PT, but just needed to walk, walk, walk and I'm doing really well. I've seen PT cause some chronic pain issues with some members here, but I've also seen some who swear by it. I think the most important thing is to make sure they aren't too aggressive and you stop any exercises that cause you more pain. Hopefully you can get your medical records and get a second opinion on the issue you are having.
 
Friday they let me go home.I'm having a rough time getting around.The Dr said my hip replacement went well and I need to be careful when moving around the house.I'm going to be resting a lot today .
I have to see my Dr. July 7 for follow up apt.
 
@gregsohappy2 Glad to hear your operation went well and you are back home. Done well getting a follow up appointment so quickly. I had my operations in April and apart from a compliants meeting my appointment is not until 9th July. You should start your own thread detail your recovery and you will get lots of help and advice with any questions or problems you may encounter. Good luck on the road to recovery and look forward to hearing how you progress.
 
Well I had my complaint meeting at the hospital for what it is worth. I was supposed to be able to take a recording away with which didn't happen. 10 days later I was emailing them to try and get a copy only to receive an email back telling me the recording (llike my operation failed) but they had taken notes so the Chief Executive of the hospital would write to me. He did apologising for the poor communications and stating the notes were enclosed. Needless to say the envelope was empty. During the meeting the surgeon claimed that the popping and real pain I felt in the left hip was a stitch pulling! That despite the fact by then the dressing had been removed and stitches dissolved. They then claim that at a meeting it was decided by their Clinical Governance Committee that the surgeon not fitting the acetabular liner correctly was just a complication of surgery and no one was to blame. So I needed to undergo a second surgery in 7 days but no one was at fault. Really? They also stated that I may be the only person certainly in the UK to require a revision surgery 7 days after a bilateral THR but it is just a risk of surgery! Despite numerous requests for copies of Radiology requests, investigation into the radiology incident and the meeting discussing why my operation failed, the hospital keep finding reasons to not send them. Today I have filed a formal SAR (Subject Access Request) demanding access to ALL notes referring to my treatment. I have been signed off by the physio who has put on the discharge form that I achieved my goal of playing a full round of golf within 3 months which is strange as I haven't even fully swung a golf club. The treatment and inaccuracies just grow and grow everytime I have communication from the hospital. My two fellow ward mates have been having weekly physio sessions at hospital gyms whilst I have had to join a gym to access the treadmills and bikes that my ex physio has said I should use. I just despair at the way I have been treated and would never recommend this hospital to anyone. If the treatments good it may be very good but if it is poor it is abysmal.
 
tony2hips said:
These visits have basically been watch me walk and tell me what exercises to do.
Click to expand...
This is basically what I get but I find it helpful as I have struggled with my gait. I've never used gym equipment while there.

I hope you've got a good record of all the conversations you've had. I'm stunned that your physio has signed you off with such an obvious lie. Good luck in getting some kind of apology and explanation.
 
So many problems! Hope you get the full documentation as requested in your SAR. How can the physiotherapist say that you have played golf when you haven't? You must feel like you are living in a Kafka novel.

I have an additional note about the man in the UK that I told you about who had an unsuccessful revision of a wrongly aligned acetabular cup. The misalignment was apparently seen in an x-ray the day after his initial THR, but nobody said anything about it until weeks later. The man was doing LOTS of walking in his attempt to recover, and by the time he had the revision at 10 weeks, the liner was so deeply embedded that surgeons could not get it out. So, in a way, it is good that you had the revision so soon, before the liner became so firmly entrenched that it would take a more complicated surgery to have it changed. The man I mentioned is facing a third surgery with a new surgeon to finally fix it.

That does not change the fact that your revision should not have been necessary in the first place! What happened to you, with the cup put in wrong, has happened to others. It seems to me to be more than a blamelss "complication", but incompetence on the part of the original surgeon.
 
Sorry I've not been on there much. I've been resting. I'm able to get out of bed but not into bed. My children help me with that.I'm having to get Enoxaparin injection in my stomach (what a bumper) so I will not get blood clots.My right hip is doing fine.both of my legs feel like they are even.My Dr. did a good job once again.I can't wait till I'm able to walk on my own(that will be one of the most happiest days of my life).I walk a lot,from one side of the house to the other (they say I'll get well faster if I do this). I wish that everyone has a full recovery and a better life from their total hip replacement.
 
You would absolutely think they would need to report all failures as if not it would definitely skew the findings.Hope you are doing better.I think it's how the hospital and Doctors behave when thing go wrong that is A measure of their knowledge and compassion.




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