Hip Replacement
- Thread starter et64
- Start date
Had mine done a decade ago at the age of 63 (damaged a hip surfing in HI when much younger, finally caught up with me). Of all my repairs it was the easiest and quickest to recover from.
Post-op you'll spend two or three nights in the hospital, during which time the physical therapists will get you up and moving with a walker (before surgery pick one up cheap from Goodwill, you'll only need it for a couple of days at home) and give you some simple exercises. Once you're stable slow walking on your own with the walker, barring any complications you'll be released.
Once home, I worked with a local sports med PT 2x a week for two weeks who kept upgrading my recovery workout, the Bosa ball my go to (have used it on knee repairs as well)
By week three I was walking a slow, flat mile. At week six I was back in the pool swimming laps. By week 16 I was surfing again.
As to the repair itself - standard these days to go with the minimal incision approach, about half go with ceramic ball and cross linked polyethlene liner implant, the other half with titanium and poly. Due to my activity level, I went with titanium. Have any questions, feel free to message me.
Here's a vid on the Bosa ball. Once strong enough, flipping the ball over so you're doing the exercises on the base while balancing on the ball provides an even better workout. Still using mine.
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I have had 2. One at 35 and one at 39. I was back on the river in 6 weeks
Think out your side bed urinal system system. You will be stiff the first week and taking a piss im thr middle of the night sucked till i got a urinal that had a hole on it and the tank on the floor. Just lean over and let it rip.
Dont get crazy with the Oxy it will give you painful constipation that will hurt more than your incision. So try to be sparing with the pain meds. They will prescribe you pooper pills too. Thats why.
Eat healthy, you dont want the shits either.
Dedicate your rest time and dedicate to the PT too.
I wish you goodluck and hope its anterior approach you are doing.
Edit: My wife says, " and be good to your care taker".
Think out your side bed urinal system system. You will be stiff the first week and taking a piss im thr middle of the night sucked till i got a urinal that had a hole on it and the tank on the floor. Just lean over and let it rip.
Dont get crazy with the Oxy it will give you painful constipation that will hurt more than your incision. So try to be sparing with the pain meds. They will prescribe you pooper pills too. Thats why.
Eat healthy, you dont want the shits either.
Dedicate your rest time and dedicate to the PT too.
I wish you goodluck and hope its anterior approach you are doing.
Edit: My wife says, " and be good to your care taker".
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I had a egg-shaped femur "head" from birth that manifested itself throughout my adult life as a "bad knee" because I unknowingly compensated my gait for it. For a year at 59 yrs old, there was pain in every step. Dr. Philip R. Downer, MD - Orthopedic Specialists of Seattle performed an anterior hip replacement surgery in the operating room specially configured for him at Swedish in Ballard. The pain the next day was no worse than a bee sting. I was taught how to do stairs, and after verifying some OH stuff I was released. *I only took one or two prescription pain pills at home.* I walked without crutches in his office one week later where he asked me "Do you have to limp?" It was a habit I had to "unlearn".
I think I walked with crutches then a cane for 6 weeks, to prevent falling and *did not put more than body weight on my leg for 3(?) months* to allow the bone to "adhere" (grow in)to the prosthesis. I was pool walking as soon as the stitches were removed, and riding a stationary bike for 30 minutes a day after a couple of weeks. *To answer my concerns about longevity of the prosthesis with working out - hiking again Dr Downer advised if I wasn't a runner not to start, to use trekking poles when backpacking, and not to jump down; but rather step down from rocks and logs on the trail to avoid "shock" to the new joint. 6 year follow-up, no wear detected in x-rays of the prosthesis.*
7 months later I hiked 8 miles 3800 ft elevation gain into Necklace Valley with my younger brother & nephew, repeating a 4-day fishing trip I had done *30* years earlier with my brothers.
Yes, life is good after hip surgery.
I think I walked with crutches then a cane for 6 weeks, to prevent falling and *did not put more than body weight on my leg for 3(?) months* to allow the bone to "adhere" (grow in)to the prosthesis. I was pool walking as soon as the stitches were removed, and riding a stationary bike for 30 minutes a day after a couple of weeks. *To answer my concerns about longevity of the prosthesis with working out - hiking again Dr Downer advised if I wasn't a runner not to start, to use trekking poles when backpacking, and not to jump down; but rather step down from rocks and logs on the trail to avoid "shock" to the new joint. 6 year follow-up, no wear detected in x-rays of the prosthesis.*
7 months later I hiked 8 miles 3800 ft elevation gain into Necklace Valley with my younger brother & nephew, repeating a 4-day fishing trip I had done *30* years earlier with my brothers.
Yes, life is good after hip surgery.
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klq@stl
Steelhead
TIP-Make sure you provide one of these for your wife:
Amazon product ASIN B08FZ75VH9
May you have a speedy and safe recovery!
Amazon product ASIN B08FZ75VH9
May you have a speedy and safe recovery!
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Have had an excercise bike in the house for the past 45 years. Previously used road bikes on wind trainers, for the past 15 years an Armstrong LS5, preferring the more upright position with a reader/TV n holder. Clock 10 miles on it every day in winter if not a pool day, aside from the cardio also vg excercise for hips and knees.
Post-op constipation is pretty standard as a results of the anethesia and pain meds. Couple of aids that work really well are Senekot (prefer their laxative gummies), and if really plugged up, the drugstores carry 8 oz bottles of Magnesium Sulphate, which is the prime ingredient used in colonoscopy preps. A bottle of that in the morning will flush you out by evening. Benefiber a good daily supplement for that as well. Shouldn't be much pain after the first 48 hours post-op, likely to be off the pain pills by day three.
And good if someone is home with you the firt few days to help out so you don't have to spend much time on your feet.
My wife kids me during repair recoveries that I married her because she was an orthopedic RN when I met her...I maintain that was just one of many pluses
Post-op constipation is pretty standard as a results of the anethesia and pain meds. Couple of aids that work really well are Senekot (prefer their laxative gummies), and if really plugged up, the drugstores carry 8 oz bottles of Magnesium Sulphate, which is the prime ingredient used in colonoscopy preps. A bottle of that in the morning will flush you out by evening. Benefiber a good daily supplement for that as well. Shouldn't be much pain after the first 48 hours post-op, likely to be off the pain pills by day three.
And good if someone is home with you the firt few days to help out so you don't have to spend much time on your feet.
My wife kids me during repair recoveries that I married her because she was an orthopedic RN when I met her...I maintain that was just one of many pluses
I also had hip replacement surgery when I was 63 and it was a piece of cake. My surgeon preferred posterior (as opposed to anterior). They had me up walking four hours after it was over, home the next day and on Tylenol by day 5. My advice is to do exactly what the surgeon and hospital PT person tells you to do and as others have said, be nice to your caregiver. I didn't have to see a PT person - it was all DIY.
My neighbor just had anterior hip replacement and she was home the same day (outpatient). I hear that recovery is a bit quicker with this technique.
I hope all goes well!
My neighbor just had anterior hip replacement and she was home the same day (outpatient). I hear that recovery is a bit quicker with this technique.
I hope all goes well!
This is really timely for me, as I predict a new hip in my future. Since retirement I have to think about which month(s) I can most easily spend hobbling... probably late winter/early spring (after the ski season; before fishing, wing foiling or gardening seasons start heating up).
I'm humbled and grateful that these are my primary concerns. I hope I never lose sight of such good fortune!
I'm humbled and grateful that these are my primary concerns. I hope I never lose sight of such good fortune!
My understanding is the older technique they dislocate the joint to do the procedure
The newer anterior technique avoids this
I believe recovery from the dislocation was the hard part
Hip recovery wasn’t bad
Knee replacement on the other hand is proving to be way more difficult
Good luck
The newer anterior technique avoids this
I believe recovery from the dislocation was the hard part
Hip recovery wasn’t bad
Knee replacement on the other hand is proving to be way more difficult
Good luck
This is just me, and I was pretty much done with skiing anyway but since a titanium prosthesis is a lot harder than bone I have either been very careful or limited activities where a bad fall could produce a compound fracture of the upper femur or hip joint. My cousin who was a ski designer was back to skiing one year after his anterior surgery with Dr Downer.
Uptonogood
PNW raised
Had my surgery three years ago. was up, walking with a walker that afternoon, spent the night, discharged the next morning. Used a walker for about six days, a cane for five hours, then walking steadily increasing to two+ miles every day since. Follow surgeon’s instructions to avoid infections, don’t push it. The only issue was getting a sock over the surgery side foot. Was given a tool to assist, problem solved. Now, socking up is no problem.
By the way, my understanding on the anterior site procedure, very little if any, muscle is cut, bu pushed aside. Of all joint replacements, the hip is the easiest and has the best outcomes.
By the way, my understanding on the anterior site procedure, very little if any, muscle is cut, bu pushed aside. Of all joint replacements, the hip is the easiest and has the best outcomes.
correct - anterior avoids dislocation, less damage, faster recoveries.
Going home same day typical if replacement is done in a surgi-center, not typical in a hospital which has different infection control and mobility standards. The primary driver for hospitals to keep patients in at least 24 hours post-op, besides obvious revenue, is that is when infections start to emerge.
My daughter is a PT in Spokane who works with the aged, handles a lot of hip replacements in the 70 to 80 group, and they see a higher post-op infection rate and subsequent hospitalization among same day surgi-center patients then hospital patients. Much of this is from patient wound dressing self-care in the first 48 hours. End of year reviews of total cases within the health care system always tell the story.
There is a term in hospitals called morbidity rate, which is identifies the percentage of patients who come down with an illness or infection in a medical faciity they didn't have before entering it.
Want to know how good your hospital is in protecting your health, find out it's morbidity rate.
And about the actual hip replacement pocedure. The surgeon who does the most usually does them well, and the orthopedic sports med surgeon who does a bunch usually does them best.
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I came home same day from the knee
About two nights from the hip
Best of recovery to all involved
Can be a life changer in more ways than one
About two nights from the hip
Best of recovery to all involved
Can be a life changer in more ways than one
FinLuver
Native Oregonian…1846
An hour is about right for an oil change at one of them speedy change places.
If its jiffy lube the bill is similar too.An hour is about right for an oil change at one of them speedy change places.
My wife had her hip replaced, many years ago now, so my memory is not as good as it used to be, but here goes.
She was now her feet with a walker right away, going up or down stairs took a month to do on her own.
Once she was able to go up and down stairs she could have been walking/wading to fish.
I will say to ya, don't go anywhere without a walking stick, wading staff on the gravel bars and trails.
She was now her feet with a walker right away, going up or down stairs took a month to do on her own.
Once she was able to go up and down stairs she could have been walking/wading to fish.
I will say to ya, don't go anywhere without a walking stick, wading staff on the gravel bars and trails.
