From Anterior Hip Replacement Back To Triathlon: Day 1 after surgery

Friday, March 2, 2012

Day 1 after surgery

5am the nurses insist on bathing me, 6am they insist is breakfast time, although I am too nauseas to eat. After multiple medical staff visit for different tests and questions it is finally 8am and PT time. I was really nervous about trying to move my legs off the bed and then learning to walk . Getting off the bed was hideous but walking with a frame wasn't too bad. It wasn't as intuitive as I had expected it would be.. "move frame, lean on frame, move bad leg, move good leg". Repeat. I am pleased with how I did and keen to take it a little further next time.
Visitors were lovely to see but the energy required made me sick. I was able to nap on and off (at one point so deeply that the nurse went into a panic trying to wake me) until x-rays and another attempt at walking. This time nausea and dizziness stopped me from getting far at all.
5 more lovely visitors left me feeling blessed but exhausted and sick.
Dr Davidovitch checked in on me. He says my blood count is ok, I shouldn't need a transfusion, and still appears to think going home tomorrow is an option. I can't see that I'll be ready but here's to a good night sleep and not too much pain.

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Osteoarthritis and My Path To Anterior Hip Replacement

A doctor first mentioned arthritis over 10 years ago as the why reason my hip ached sometimes. It didn’t seem to be anything important so I pretty much forgot about it. But by three years ago I limped, couldn’t walk far, couldn’t jump, would get a sudden excruciating pain in the joint, would fear it collapsing under me on stairs (which it occasionally did), struggled to get up from sitting on the floor, and couldn't run so much as across a street. I finally went back to the doctor and was told my hip would need to be replaced. No other alternative procedure or route possible. I researched (resurfacing, physical therapies, partial replacement). I also met with several doctors for second opinions, and the best prognosis I found was "you will have to replace it but you don’t need to do it until you can't take it any more". This was from Hospital For Special Surgery in New York. So I continued with life as normal, and looked for alternatives to running to keep me in shape and exercising/competing outside. I discovered that the more I swam and biked the less pain there was, as well as less limping, aching, and sudden collapses. This kept me going for another 2 years, to compete in open water swim races, indoor bike events, and a triathlon with a friend doing my run for me. By last autumn the swimming and biking were still working ...but not as well ... and by now I was taking painkillers every night in order to sleep... so I began researching again. This time it was not about whether I needed to have a full hip-replacement surgery, but what kind would be the best for me.

In most areas of my life I don’t feel that young but in the world of hip replacement I am. I expect the joint to last me a long time, I expect to do a lot with it, I expect to recover quickly, and I'd also like a small scar. For traditional hip replacement the incision is usually 10-12inches and the recovery several months after a minimum 5 day hospital stay. The restrictions on the patient afterwards can be extensive with many lasting forever. With minimally invasive hip replacement incisions are usually 3-6 inches, hospital stays 2 days, and recovery much faster with few or no restrictions. There are also several types of minimally invasive hip replacement methods - two incision or single incision. As I researched further I also discovered the Anterior Approach. With this approach, as no muscles or tendons are violated, there is an easier and faster recovery, a lower risk of dislocation, and NO restrictions after the surgery. This is the surgical approach for me.

About Me

Friday, March 2, 2012

Day 1 after surgery

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