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Do you have pain in the other hip after first hip replacement?...please read

Posted , 11 users are following.

rose0000
rose0000

I had my first hip replacement in December last year on my right hip, and quite quickly within a few months (or less) my left hip started to hurt so much, the pain was terrible! I felt so completely disheartened to think I would now need the second one done.

Although xrays show my left hip is very far from perfect, I really did not want to have another THR (I am 41) so soon. This message is to those whom are in the same position.

Now I am nine months on, my left hip pain has decreased significantly and is not too bad, so for anyone not wanting to rush into a second hip replacement, it might be worth giving it a few months to settle down. I think the strain of the first hip replacement on your other hip is huge.

Having said that if the pain is unbearable and you are suffering, there is no point to wait, as we all know the pain doesn't get better, but for those with moderate to mildly severe, it has been worth waiting for me, I am hoping to give it a good few years before undertaking my next one now, as I can definitely live with the left one as it stands now.

(I hope I haven't played devils advocate by posting this!) smile 

On a serious note, I wanted to share my experience with you - it may be reassuring to you if you have the same kind of pain in your other hip.

5 likes, 20 replies

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  • Canada_Hippy
    Canada_Hippy rose0000

    Posted

    Yeah, me too.

    I was told by my surgeon before my first THR that the other one was just as bad and that would start bothering me within a year. It didn't hurt at all at the time.

    My first surgery was 7 weeks ago and I was doing really well. No pain, great recovery, happy, etc. Then BOOM, after 3 weeks, my knee on the good leg starts aching and locking and buckling. No hip pain at all.

    I felt so betrayed and upset. I thought it was my knee but the physio tested it and said it was referred pain from that hip. Now I had 2 weak legs. Great.

    So I'm back on ibuprofen, which I really wanted to get off, and I will schedule the second surgery for the spring.

    I felt cheated that I only got 3 weeks before the good leg went bad. I was really down. But I've put back all the precautions I had in place before I had surgery and will just have to tough it out.

    I feel I have a Porsche on one side and a rusty old bike on the other.

    • dave63380
      dave63380 Canada_Hippy

      Posted

      Hey Canada, sorry for your pain, it is discouraging to feel you're recovering and then have something else go bad. I hope they can determine where the problem really is.

      Hopefully it's your hip and not your knee, I've done both and the hip is usually easier.

      I had both knees replaced two years ago and did a full year of physical therapy. I was feeling great, walking at least a mile a day, and then out of nowhere my right hip started to hurt. Within 3 months I couldn't walk again. Yes that is very frustrating!

      I'm 11 weeks post op RTHR, getting almost back to normal. So stay positive and do what you have to, but the sooner you start on the road to recovery, the sooner you will get there. Wish you the best.

  • renee01952
    renee01952 rose0000

    Posted

    hi rose, 

    Great post, darling and great comments as well  -

    I am happy for you that you are doing so well and the pain in other hip haqs decreased -

    My story (many times told ) is that after 1st R THR groin pain appeared on left side (this is when I found this forum) - At the 6 weeks follow up appointment an x-ray was taken and showed that left hip's cartilage came down from mild to bone on bone in 6 months .... 

    I was devastated and the thought of having another THR was terrible - 

    Fast forward ... well, proper healing could not take place (in my case) and left hip's pain was so bad at some point that I almost was looking forward to the hip surgery ... I mean this - 

    6 months post-op from 1st THR I ahd the 2nd one .....phew .... 

    listen to your body, sweet rose .... she knows best ...

    big warm hug

    renee

  • virginia26165
    virginia26165 rose0000

    Posted

    Thank you for this. I am feeling pain in my other hip three months after having my right hip replaced. I'm feeling like it would be so unfair if the left one went downhill so fast when I'm just getting back on my feet again. Today I took my active three-year-old son to the playground by myself and stayed there with him for an hour, something I have never been able to do in his whole life before. To go back to being crippled again would seem just too cruel. Your story does give me hope and take a load off my mind. The x-rays I had taken both before and after my THR surgery didn't look like the left hip was nearly as bad as the right had been, but the pain has had me worried. I guess I'll just continue to work hard at normalizing my gait so that other parts of my body aren't unduly strained by favoring my surgical hip.

    Thank you for sharing.

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