3 days post-op......
Posted , 6 users are following.
Hi all!! I had a RTHR on Tuesday. They let me go home yesterday.. The surgeon told me that it went alright but that he had cracked my femur putting in my replacement. He said that I was much smaller than he thought and as he was drilling into the femur, it cracked. He said that he put a "clamp" like deal around it and that it should heal as the hip is healing... I am still taking a lot of my pain meds. He doesn't want me to do a lot until the 6 week mark but I'm still doing the exercises that I was shown in the hospital. I use a walker and my crutches (kind of like them both). Ice is still my best friend and as much as I like to be totally out of pain, the pain meds keep dropping my blood pressure, last blood pressure was 89/55, so trying to be cautious as I can't be up while those are in affect due to the dizziness and wanting to pass out.
It is great to be at home. My mom is taking great care of me but feel like I'm a little girl who broke her leg lol I am so grateful to have her in my life!!!!
Thank you hippies for all your wonderful posts and advice, you also have been a godsend!!! I will try to keep all updated on my progress!!!
39 years/RTHR/April 25, 2017
3 likes, 20 replies
maree32074 hipstride
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GoneFishing hipstride
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Hipstride.......our newest Hippie WELCOME
I know your mom is enjoying taking care of you once again. Looking forward to your fantastic recovery - even with the hiccup of the cracked femur.
My blood pressure dropped in the hospital but did return to normal (actually higher than normal) once I got home. They told me it (BP) was so low because I was on A LOT of stronger pain meds in the hospital. Hope yours returns to normal soon.
Here's a trick you might try that helps with not getting up too quickly. As you sit on the side of your bed say " one, two, three, four, do not hit the floor" by the time you have said this you should be good to stand.
Again welcome to the club
hipstride GoneFishing
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linda81469 hipstride
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Evening hipstride!! After my first rhr I dislocated it, 3 weeks and 2 days later I'm having a revision.... I too had 2 "clamp like" cables put around my femur as it had stress fractures. Had to be 6 weeks non weight bearing and no hip flexion past 80 degrees and no hip exercises. This was so my own bone could grow around hip prosthesis and the femur. Went into rehab for 2 weeks had low blood pressure for awhile too. Thought I was slowly dying!!! But made it through then went through a deep depression after coming home. Was alone most of day in a wheelchair or hopping on one leg with walker. Now am dealing with scar tissue and nerve pain. Still limping after almost 9 months and using cane. Life has been pretty grim for me but I have my family counting on me so I persevere. It's not been easy. I'm seeing a pain dr now. Hopefully he can get this under control. Wishing you all the best for a speedy recovery and healing. 🤗 LD
maree32074 linda81469
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I am so sorry to hear how hard it has been for you.
I had a faulty hip (cobalt/chrome) replaced in January. The metal shavings caused bone density so I had bone grafts behind shell/ball as well as above the ball joint as metal shavings corroded bone and left a massive pseudo tumor. I now have a plate there. I was shown physio to do and only did what I was comfortable with (10 exercises instead of 30 etc) and I now continue these at home still. I was non weight bearing for 8 weeks and am now weight bearing at almot 13 weeks. My femur was cracked prior to surgery, I (also had a hernia). A vascular surgeon scraped/cut the tumor away at the front and I have a nice step ladder incision there. Then the orthapedic surgeon did his work to replace the shell/ball with ceramic/titanium. It was really hard after the surgery getting around. I also have nerve/tendon damage which may decrease after 6 months. All in all, it had to be done to hopefully give me back my independance. I sometimes wonder if I will ever walk the dog or go for walks with friends again but keep taking one day at a time and feel I am getting stronger each day. I am at almost 13 weeks post surgery and on crutches. It is quite annoying to find that people that had a Johnson and Johnson hip replacement with a cobalt/chrome shell/ball were able to class action and get free hip replacement and compensation where mine was a Smith and nephew and no class action or compensation in Australia. These companies only tested in the lab and not on bone. Criminal!
RichardKen maree32074
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Dear Maree
I'm so sorry to hear of your awful experience. That a company these days can put a product such as a hip prostethis on the market without proper testing is the height of irresponsibility.
Surely the surgeon who choose to us this prosthesis bears some of the responsibility for the outcome as he should have carried out due diligence to make sure that the product he was using was fit for purpose.
I feel for you and wish you all the best.
Cheers Richard
beth2509 RichardKen
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Much as I hate to say so, because I deplore the ethics of drug companies, but it is nigh on impossible to ensure that a prosthetic device is fit for purpose without using it! You can test it as much as you want outside the body, but it is only inside the body, and with long term use, that the defects begin to show. That is why, in the UK, there is a registry kept - it is the clinical database of what is working and what is causing problems. In one sense, once the most obvious tests are done, we are all guinea pigs!
That said, Maree, if you haven't done so you should consult a lawyer. The lack of any class action (and actually, there are some in progress against Smith and nephew) doesn't mean there is no legal redress possible. There are certainly claims in the UK against them, and we have no form of class action that is like those in the US.
RichardKen beth2509
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I take your point with regard to testing but it would be very interesting to know if they actually carried out a limited patient trial and evaluated the results before releasing it onto the market.
It would seem to me to be asking for trouble if they had failed to test properly.
Cheers Richard
maree32074 RichardKen
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I was told they tested in the lab but not on bone. I have spoken to several solicitors in NSW, Australia and they say the same that as it is out of the 3 year time frame from when first inserted, unless I go to court and may have a case to pursue (no guarantees) then there is nothing they can do. Yes, I can probably pursue the surgeon for negligence but it is not the service but the product that is the issue. I am also concerned about future repurcussions if I have to have moresurgery - like my surgeon would never want to see me again and I would have a bad name! I will be putting my name on a database with Health and Complaints Commission so that if any other cases turn up then perhaps a class action or ? I have looked on Shine Lawyers website in America and there are class actions theres but they have not even bothered to answer an email I sent.
RichardKen maree32074
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Dear Maree
Thanks for sharing this information. I'm sure that everyone reading your story will be amazed,that such a thing can happen with impunity these days. Have you had any contact with others who have been effected?
It is so frustrating when it is a battle to even get a reply to an email, but I hope you will have the strength and the deturmination to not rest until you get a satisfactory outcome.
Cheers Richard
renee01952 hipstride
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welcome to this side of hippy land ..
what an idiot .. sorry to say this ... of course things can happen, but still ...
what kind of exercises were you doing in the hospital? did PT know about the cracked femur?
Please be careful .. perhaps do less of the standing exercises - ankle rotations, foot pumps, going to the bathroom etc. should be okay ...
no better place than to be with your mommie !!!
be gentle with yourself and come back here anytime okay?
big warm hug for both of you
renee
hipstride renee01952
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Sorry it took me awhile to get back to you..... It's been a heck of a roller coaster with pain but I've got this!!!! Hip Strong!!!!
I have been doing foot pumps and ankle rolls and butt flexes 
along with the rest of the bed exercises but I can't move my leg out to the side!!! Absolutely not!!! I can do everything else unless that legs is to the side!!! He didn't give me a toilet raiser or anything!!! He said I didn't need it and it's true, I don't , I just straighten my leg out as I am going down... Perfect!!
as for the shower thing..... I was given stitches on the inside and a type of glue on the outside. It has a lot of gauze pads covering it and we were told to use the press and seal that you would use in the kitchen along with medical tape to make sure that there is a wonderful seal around it ... Then take a shower. I still was cautious and tried to leave it out as much as possible. But because it was sealed with glue, perhaps that is why I got to shower more quickly than others?! The glue seals it as the staples only close the wound but the skin has to take time to seal it??
RichardKen hipstride
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I'm glad to hear that you are home but his excuse about his cracking your femur is an admission or lack of experience or care.
He should have taken more care and progressively increased the drill/reamer size until the test prosthesis was a tight fit. Once that has checked out he can proceed to carefully tap in the actual prosthesis. It really is not rocket science!
Hope your recovery goes well but suggest you take extreme care until certain that the break has REALLY fully mended.
Cheers Richard
hipstride
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GoneFishing hipstride
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Wow I had to wait over two weeks to take a shower. And I have been asked to keep the socks on during the daytime for 6-weeks.
If you look at just the difference in our shower allowance LOL you are getting the gist of how different each recovery and doctors protocols can be.
My suggestion is to leave them on until you can speak to the doctor and ask. Aren't they just a joy to take on and off wink wink If you have a pair of rubber kitchen or garden gloves they help tremendously.
You sound like a real hoot
renee01952 hipstride
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it still amazes me how different post-op care is -
no stockings for me, just 6 weeks of injecting myself with Fragmin - not that that was fun though ... phew ..
are you on any other bloodthinning meds?
The shower thing is also interesting ... post-op 1st THR I was not allowed to shower until staples were removed at 14 days post-op - with 2nd THR I could take a shower on 2nd day post-op while still in the hospital -- same surgeon, same hospital - 6 months apart ...
are those contraptions the right size?????
hipstride renee01952
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they do have me on an aspirin as another form of a blood thinner and also an iron pill.? Did they use staples or a "glue" on the second thr? I think that gas a lot to do with when you can shower.?
I think I would rather wear the stockings... I can not stand needles!!! I'm not sure how I made it through this whole surgery/hospital stays but some how I did 🙂
hipstride GoneFishing
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As I said before in another reply, I think the shower privilege is due to how they closed the wound. If they used staples, I think it would take 2 weeks just because the staples close the wound but they don't seal it and it takes 2 weeks for you skin to "seal" it (heal). As with the glue, it closes and seals it?? Yes, I still covered with "press and seal" (that you use in the kitchen) along with medical tape. It did stay dry and it felt wonderful to get that sticky cleaning wipes that you have to shower with and wipe on your skin prior to surgery.... 🙂
As for those white tights, they showed me a trick and gave me one to take home to use. They gave me one if those blue "throw up" bags that they have for nausea. I just take off any plastic parts that might be on it and put my foot in the bag then put the stocking on. So much easier!!!! Then I take the blue sack out through that wonderful hole they have on the bottom, you know, where your toes get stuck outside of the whole and you pretty much beg anyone to help you out there 😂... I mean seriously? Lol