Superpath Hip Replacement 3 weeks post op
Posted , 21 users are following.
hello everyone
im nervous about posting on here as I never in my life thought I'd be on a forum for patients so in some ways it is good I've learnt some humility as always thought I was indestructible as I've always been very sporty playing a lot of tennis, football, rugby and cycling as well as regular gym sessions.
Im 42 and last year after persistent groin pain that wasn't overly painful but nonetheless noticeable and wasn't going away after about a year I had an MRI scan, the results of which showed a FAI and laberal tear. My consultant told me the space between the ball and socket at one point was about 0.5mm and therefore I was too far gone to even attempt keyhole surgery and that I needed a THR of right hip. Being the cautious sole I am I had a couple of other opinions by consultants all of whom said same thing.
I kind of didnt take it too seriously as i wasnt in great pain and was still very active, playing a lot of tennis running and cycling. The most noticeable thing was during sexual intercourse in missionary when I could feel a grinding sensation in the groin and clicking. Obviously that became somewhat of a passion killer.
As time went on the pain was pain was getting more noticeable during tennis and my consultant suggested cortisone injections and sinvisc plus. The cortisone injections did great but only lasted around 3 weeks per injection. I didn't notice any great difference with the sinvisc plus.
Still up to around april/may this year I was still playing a lot of sport and walking fine. But then in June during a very brutal game of tennis while hitting a running forehand I experienced an almighty crunch in the hip and a bit of pain, not too much as I'd only just had last cortisone shot. This was a Saturday when the crunch happened.
No problems on saturday evening or sunday Sunday but the Monday when at work after being seated when I went to get up I was in agony and couldn't move. Hip/groin locked.
Since then this sensation continually happened if I bent my leg then tried to straighten it. I had an injection into a tendon that my consultant said was getting trapped and that did work but only for two weeks. I was at the stage where getting off toilet was a massive challenge. Once unlocked it wasn't too bad. I could walk ok and pretty quick. I noticed if I did no sport (or sexual relations) the locking subsided but as soon as I was more active the issue came back. My consultant told me it was a very personal choice when to have a THR but my quality of life was being affected and the aim of a THR was to improve that quality. He then told me about the Superpath technique which I loved sound of and he was one of very few surgeons who did this. I elected to have the super path and it was done on September 15.
Im 19 days post op and can walk with one crutch pretty quick but when I try without a crutch I'm struggling as hip is stiff. I can bend leg upwards well and outwards and can squat. Obviously no locking now.
my concern is I've seen you tube videos of people able to cross their legs and walking with no aids at all and in no pain. I have no pain when lying down or sitting down save for a bit of soreness where the wound is but my main worry is I do get a lot of groin pain when exercising or trying to lift my leg keeping it straight. Also when I walk the groin hurts and while other pain seems to be getting better the groin doesn't at all.
I go for my first physio appointment in two days time and I'm worried that this groin pain means something isn't right. I've gone into so much detail as wanted to explain how I was before the operation. Has anyone had the superpath and if so what were your experiences at this stage. I've read somewhere that the illopsis tendon can be damaged and of course when I was locking up before the THR I wonder if that tendon took some damage.
sorry if this is really long winded but it's all very stressful as I've never so much had a filling in my teeth let alone major surgery so I'm not sure where I should be and what I should be doing.
Thanks in advance for any replies.
7 likes, 395 replies
gerriberri66 gary45745
Posted
Hi Everybody!
?Judith: I am so happy to hear that you are ok despite your fall.. thank goodness you had no issues with your hip. But I am sure if your surgery wasn't so far in the past you wouldn't have been cycling anyway.
?Martin; what a disappointment for you. But much safer for you to have the surgery after you are 100%! Just get plenty of rest... and build up your strength so recovery will be much faster. Did they give you a new potential date?
?Status Update:
?Despite not sleeping great last night.. took 2 Tylenol at 2:am... I think it was because my leg was manipulated by the PA, along with the removal of the bandage.. so things are a little sore and hurt a bit.. but I'm still talking about a 1 pain level.. just enough to be annoying. Got up at my usual Vegas time.. did 2 loads of laundry, finished totally unpacking, paid some bills, went through all my mail, caught up on RE work... had some lunch ( wasn't hungry for dinner last night)..catching up on phone calls, and its only now 1:00 pm. My energy level is totally normal. ( actually higher than normal..lol) Oh I did decide to get into my car to start it.. be aware of things you normally do, like right leg first (I have a smaller sedan).. reminded me that whoops... you cant do that yet.. So extradited myself out and did rear in first then legs.. and yes, I must get some plastic to swivel on.. I think it will be easier.. but not driving today ... waiting on a couple of call backs for some referrals for PT... want to get that rolling.
?Going to get dressed now and walk down to the mailbox and possibly further.. the weather is gorgeous here today ( sorry everyone!!..wish I could send you the sunshine and warmth..its 64 and sunny). I just don't want to sit in the house the rest of the day. .I think Richard asked if I was using crutches or anything. I really didn't need to since a week ago Thursday. My neighborhood is very hilly, so I will take a walker.. just in case.. don't want to be stupid and later sorry.. I may try a walk around the block... more later
?Have a lovely afternoon!! xoxo
gerriberri66
Posted
Hi Everyone
,
Hows everyone doing? Judith, your ankle? Martin, your cold? Gary & Richard...everything ok with you all?
Another high energy day. Feeling great. Unfortunately sitting to much for work and not walking enough. Decided to try out driving. Put a plastic bag on seat,and swiveled into seat. I have a small Lexus i350 F Sport and the seats are swoop up on the sides so u feel like you are in a cockpit. Between that and where the seatbelt buckles, it was slightly uncomfortable and I had to shift on my left cheek. I think I’ll bring a small pillow or towel to take the pressure off of the area. The driving part was a piece of cake. Using right leg on gas and brake not an issue. Drove slower than normal to smooth over the bumps. What I’m most excited about is it means my independence. I do have an appt to show properties tomorrow, but am having my client pick me up, which will be easier for me to get in and out. Dr Chow said he didn’t really want me to do too much of that, but hey, I work on commission and have to do what I have to do.
Ive got my PT evaluation set for Monday. Chow sent me home with a 8 page instruction sheet for the therapists to follow. Gary..was it like that for you?Im alittle nervous about PT as I don’t know anyone therapists who’ve even heard of superpath. So I’m going to be highly diligent that they do the right things. Spoke to someone I know who had THR with surgeon here I was going to use, he did therapy for 3 months, which seems excessive compared to what we are supposed to do.
whats doing across the pond? Cold here today. 66. 🤭
Have a great evening!, xo 🍸💗
gary45745 gerriberri66
Posted
Wow!!! U r way ahead of where i was at your stage. Well done.
I wasnt given any literature re PT. I had first PT session after 3 weeks. After around a month the advantages of superpath diminsh as the people who have had traditional methods start to get more mobile which means PT guys wont treat you any differently to those who had other methods.
I would say if it hurts dont do it at this stage.
Snow is thawing here and my snowman eye fell out so im sad. However today finished christmas shoppijg so im pleased about that. Xxx
RichardKen gerriberri66
Posted
Dear Gerri
Great that you continue to progress well. It is very easy to set yourself back when doing so well so do take care as your stem still takes time to become well locked to your femur!
As for my own hip experience I had no physio when I had my first hip replacement twenty years ago and to be honest I don't think I would have benefitted.
I only needed one walking stick when leaving hospital which was dumped a day or so later. From that point I walked and walked and basically just got on with life and back driving a low slung manual car at three weeks.
The revision earlier this year was a whole lot different as I felt that my muscles were far less capable following surgery. The bruising was quite severe, perhaps due to having been on blood thinning tablets for several years.
I was offered physio but turned it down and have made a quick recovery although I suffered a cracked pelvis from being thrown onto the floor of the ambulance taking me home from hospital.
This meant five weeks non weight bearing and basically just having to sit and lie on my bed which was frustrating in the extreme!
At six weeks post op I was allowed to weight bear and within days I was walking a mile or so each day and driving after three weeks. I felt that I had fully recovered from the surgery about a month after I started to weight bear.
At the moment I'm waiting for a very difficult revision of my ankle replacement which was done five years ago which to be honest I am dreading.
Well I hope everyone following this thread is moving forward well and not being effected by snow and ice! Here it is a lovely sunny but chilly day.
Cheers, Richard
RichardKen gerriberri66
Posted
Thanks for sharing your nice sunny weather with us shivering in the cold in the UK!
The crutches will assist in making sure that you are walking with a good gait and prevent Limping. Sounds as if your hills will be good for strengthening your muscles. All good stuff and a bit like the terrain I have here. Keep up the good work!
All the best,
Richard
gerriberri66 RichardKen
Posted
Good Morning Richard,
? You are right; I have to remember that as good as I feel, I did just have major surgery and I shouldn't believe nor should I just get back to my life as before ( just yet). In your opinion, ( and I know you are not a Dr, or are you? ) does it take the bones to lock into the stem? I know its not an exact science as everyone heals differently. I think that you are the first person, since I've been on this website that has actually had revision surgery. Sounds like that was a much tougher to handle than a first time Superpath THR. What did they actually do during the revision? Did they replace the parts? OMG! What a horrendous thing to have to experience in an ambulance. That's totally crazy and quite upsetting for you. It does sound like you made an amazing recovery after that despite what you went through. I truly sorry that you need to go through the ankle revision as well. Did something happen to it? When will that be?I practially never hear of ankle revisions, at least here in the States. What will the recoup be for that? PLEASE don't use the same ambulance service to take you home! Here, we are on our own to get home.. maybe safer that way! Sending much love and prayers your way! xoxoxo
RichardKen gerriberri66
Posted
Dear Gerri
You are correct, I'm not a doctor.
I was told to take great care not to trust or catch my ankle for the first six to eight weeks so I understood that was the time period when the initial bone to prosthesis locking was going on.
It was perhaps a bit ambitious of me to be walking such rough Stoney country tacks as soon as I got home but that wad all that we had outside where I lived! I have a good sense of balance and being fit it did not really worry me unduly.
Regarding my revision, there was quite a bit of concern because my surgeon's notes from 1997 when I had the original surgery had not been mislaid and although he knew the make and type of the prosthesis he was using then he could only guess the size of ball.
In the end my new surgeon who was an expert in revisions and who quite coincidently had been trained by my original surgeon took measurements off the X rays. Next problem was the prosthesis makers had at about that time changed the diameter of the top of the stem of the prosthesis!
It was decided that a rep from the company would be there during the surgery with tools and adapters so that a replacement ball could be fitted. In the end a slightly larger diameter one was installed along with a matching cup and retaining piece. I was quite apprehensive that something might go wrong....a lot was riding on it!
Due to the many weeks I had to wait for the hip revision the metal ball was running on the metal cup retainer and producing a metal sludge. This my surgeon tried hard to remove but he was not able to remove all of it without further surgery and hoped that all would be OK which seems to have been the case to date.
Regarding the ankle (if you Google Yogesh total ankle replacement you will see me walking and trotting up and down stairs at twenty weeks pos op). The surgery was very successful but there was a potential issue of osteolysis which erupted big time just over a year ago. I believe this was due to excessive wear debris from the joint that my body could not deal with because as you will see from the low rez photo the top part of the prosthesis has been positioned badly offset to the left. It is so far wrong that the surgeon had to chop bone from the tibia!! You will see the two large cysts one on each side of the top part of the prosthesis. There are a number of smaller ones under the bottom part.
If left the bone would collapse and the prosthesis would fail so it will have to be extra ted in it's entirety a and a far larger and longer one put it with an amount of bone cement to fill in the gaps. The prosthesis will be built up in add on sections.
Recovery from a total ankle replacement is months before one is walking anything like normally quite unlike a hip replacement which is a walk in the park in comparison. Given that I was walking really well at twenty weeks with the original replacement ankle, twenty weeks is my aim point for the revision. There is lots that can go wrong so I'm not giving it more than a potential 50% success rate, hence my concerns as I've always had a very active life.
Well that's the history so far. Apologies for the length of my reply.
Cheers Richard
Ps I cannot see how to add the photo of the X ray from my phone so I will add it later from the laptop.
judith12644 gerriberri66
Posted
gerriberri66 RichardKen
Posted
Damn! Lost a whole response... here it goes again.
Richard,,I just watched your video. It’s so great to see a face behind the emails! It was amazing how well you were walking, and flying up and down those stairs! Love your pups. 🐶🐶. Then I looked at your X-ray. It’s really sad that you need to go through that all over again. Do you have a date set? My prayers and thoughts are with you for an easy surgery and quick recovery.
Everything here is great. Unfortunately I made the stupid mistake of showing 4 properties Friday. Even though my clients picked me up, getting in and out of the car so many times took its toll. Yesterday I met clients for a walkthrough, as we are closing on their house tomorrow. Then I drove to my local casino where I met a friend, we played a while, then had lunch. At that point, I had to come home and rest. I chose to stay home today and just do things from home. By 3 I was tired and now I’m just resting up. I think I really need to do more of these ! I have my PT evaluation tomorrow and will set those appts set up.
Hope we everybody is doing well. Have a great afternoon. Ok. Evening there! Xo
RichardKen gerriberri66
Posted
Dear Gerri
Yes it is such a pain when one looses a long reply...done it many times!
Glad that you found the video interesting. You can hear the birds singing in the background too if you ignore the sound of the camera hunting! BTW the barn was my last building project and basically all me own work.
I'm still waiting for a date for the revision surgery but hope that it will be by mid January.
Glad that you had a productive day at work. Must have been such a positive feeling Gerri. Very easy to overdo things especially when with clients so do try to pace yourself...fine for me to talk!
All the best, Richard
gerriberri66 gary45745
Posted
Ugh. This website drives me crazy sometimes. I wrote a whole response and then then lost it. Ok. Here it goes again...
Sorry to hear your snowman ?? lost his eye. Perhaps you can call Martin for help since he’s an optometrist. Lol. You must be very organized that you finished Christmas 🎄 shopping! Good for you. 👏🏻
Once again I appreciate hearing your experience, so I know what to expect. I think that all of us who are on this website, having chosen superpath, are all anal about every step of the process. I will try to relax a bit about it. Good to know your PT is the same as “regular” THR patients. How often have you been going? How many times per week? Do you have a feel as to when you will be done ? Once we get our mobility back it can’t go back if we stop the PT right? Our normal activities will keep things running sufficiently?
Im heading into bed to watch tv and play on computer, leg raised...more comfortable than stretching out on couch.
Have a great night.
gary45745 gerriberri66
Posted
I had no PT for first three weeks. Just did my own exercises at home and lots of walking. First week in back garden, second week outside short distance then from third week longer walks.
Plenty of rest is like gold at your stage. Let the muscles heal andget over being invaded. May not have been cut but it was a deep wound and lots of trauma so takes time for musckes and ligamemts to recober. This time next month u will be back to normal more or less. From that poijt its about building back to being an athlete which is where PT will be tailored if thats your goal to be very sporty. It is mine and im still not running yet. Mainly due to how cold it is so still just loosenijg muscles up
m05 gary45745
Posted
Sorry not been posting just caught up on posts now, will post a bit later thanks for your thoughts everyone.
Cheers Martin
gerriberri66 m05
Posted
Hi Everybody,
?Been awfully quiet here on the website! Hope everyone is ok but just busy with Christmas stuff. I started PT yesterday.. I'm a bit sore today ( around incision) and actually my shin bone.. how odd. I
? asked the Therapist to show me how to make sure I am walking correctly and he showed me an exercise where you roll through your heal and maybe that's why the shin is sore... maybe those muscles haven't moved for a while.. I thought I would go to PT 3x's a week.. but I think I will keep it to 2.. and do my homework exercises.. I really want to get on with it, but I think forcing your body to do stuff really needs interim time to recoup. I hate to say it, but I'm kind of over the hip thing.. I just want to be back to normal.. Everything takes so much more time than before. I have no choice but to deal with it.. I guess I'm just tired today.. Yesterday met clients to close on their new house, took my car to dealership to have air put in tires, went to grocery store for a small food shop... and then did PT in afternoon.. I guess I shouldn't complain about the amount of activity I am actually doing exactly 2 weeks post op. I'm sure you all probably have gone through the "I'm over it " stage. . Sorry to b***h today.. you know this is so not like me.. but that's how I'm feeling today. ...
?Wishing you all a wonderful day. xo
RichardKen gerriberri66
Posted
Dear Gerri
Good to hear that you are making excellent progress. I've been trying to get my niggling long term lower back issues sorted out before my ankle revision surgery with a new chiropractor. I was also having some strange shoulder muscle pain which she seems to have improved but the back is taking longer but I'm hopeful that will improve soon.
Best wishes to everyone here.
Richard
judith12644 gerriberri66
Posted
From what I read on the forum, some physios are maybe a bit too energetic and unrealistic with their expectations. I was told to walk and walk and walk....
Wishing you all the best, Judith
gary45745 gerriberri66
Posted
I did tell you first 2-3 weeks the toughest. The main obstacle is the wound. That will sfart pulling and making u change your gait as u walk . Trust me once stitches dissolve and dressing comes off itz plain sailing. So hang in tjefe just a bit longer