Flash53
12-12-2005, 06:53 PM
Has anyone had this surgery?
Sponsor
Irishgal
01-22-2006, 06:50 PM
i got a hip resurface on the 1st march 05/ the reason i got this instead of a full hip replacement is cos i was 25 getting the op done and they said i would get a longer wear out of the hip resurface instead of getting the full replacement. will need a full replacement in about 20 years id say but fantastic results. dont know myself :)
legallyblondied
01-23-2006, 03:28 AM
Irishgal.....I am so glad your hip resurfacing surgery was a great success and that you knew about this type of surgery. Could you please tell me who your surgeon was and did you have the procedure done in the U.S? It make a lot of sense for you to have had the resurface since you are so young and there will be less chance of a dislocation or hip revision surgery later on in your life.....also less physcial restrictions in general......let me know about your surgery.....Karen
Irishgal
01-31-2006, 05:49 PM
i had the surgery done over here in ireland. i didnt know anything about a resurface until myself and the docs decided it was time for a replacement... i was putting it off for as long as i could. when the doc explained everything about it and how i would get about 20 years at least out of it, it just seemed like the right thing to do for. there was a 2% chance that my thigh bone could fracture within the first 12 months of surgery from the resurface, then i would need a normal hip replacement but tomorrow is the start of month 11 and so far so good.
couldnt have asked for a better surgery. went fantastic :)
couldnt have asked for a better surgery. went fantastic :)
ireland_ian
02-01-2006, 07:33 AM
I had two Birmingham Hip replacements in Ireland in November 2005, this is hip resurfacing using metal on metal replacements.
Approaching 3 months on and recovery is going very well. I am doing the exercises, walking and have just started sit-ups and static cycling. I am also about to start physio to improve my gait after 17 years of walking wrongly.
I am 43 and I think this type of hip resurfacing is a great idea, giving 20 years + use of the hips and allowing you to et back to normal activity. Including doing things that I havnt been able to do for years!
I am still getting some pain in the left hip after walking, this was the worst hip and the second to be done (a week after the first) and I put on 9 pounds after leaving hospital which I am having trouble shifting!
But in these early stages I would say the ops were a great success.
Approaching 3 months on and recovery is going very well. I am doing the exercises, walking and have just started sit-ups and static cycling. I am also about to start physio to improve my gait after 17 years of walking wrongly.
I am 43 and I think this type of hip resurfacing is a great idea, giving 20 years + use of the hips and allowing you to et back to normal activity. Including doing things that I havnt been able to do for years!
I am still getting some pain in the left hip after walking, this was the worst hip and the second to be done (a week after the first) and I put on 9 pounds after leaving hospital which I am having trouble shifting!
But in these early stages I would say the ops were a great success.
rp_aust
02-12-2006, 09:33 PM
I would encourage anyone who is younger, relatively active and thinking about hip surgery to look carefully at the possibility of hip resurfacing rather than total hip replacement (THR).
In my case I had both hips resurfaced (Birmingham) in one operation on 14 December 2005. I am a 54 year old male living in Melbourne Australia, and had osteo arthritis in both hips (right hip went first) for about 6 years. In the second half of 2005 things went downhill rapidly and I came to the point where I couldn't go on - painkillers did not work properly, waking up with pain every 1-1 1/2 hours etc.
I researched the internet on possibilities and decided that resurfacing sounded very promising, so got a referral to a surgeon that did them (very experienced - he has done about 500 over 7 years). He went through the advantages (retaining an intact femur, much more stable joint, more rapid recovery, greater range of activities following recovery, easy conversion to THR if the joint failed at some future time), but cautioned that bone cysts that could be seen in my X-ray could be deep enough to make resurfacing problematic - in which case he would need to decide in the operating theatre to do a THR. He also cautioned that whether I could stand both hips being done in the one operation could only be seen in the theatre, and he would do one hip and then decide whether I could go on for the second.
Given these caveats, the whole thing went off fine from my point of view. I coped with the operation well, and he was able to resurface both. I was in hospital for 8 days, standing two days after the operation, and taking steps with forearm crutches 4 days after the operation (those who only have one hip done do better than that). I found very little post operative pain, and the hospital was very good about offering painkillers on a preventative basis (they want patients pain free so that they are not detered from moving and starting the physio exercises).
By the time I went home I could get in and out of bed, walk around the hospital floor and give myself a shower. When I got home I needed to self inject a blood thinning agent (Fragmin) for 20 days, and wear TED stockings for 3 weeks. I took home exercises from the hospital physios, and expanded these when I went back 4 weeks after the operation. The surgeon and the physio were very keen for me to do hydrotherapy, so I went to the local indoor pool and saw an exercise therapist for a program which I have been following for the past 3-4 weeks, and that is really helping.
What makes me so keen is the visible progress!! Not only was there no pain from the start, but I sleep through the night (from a couple of weeks home), driving again (from 3 weeks at home), able to get out and about (went to the Quarter-Finals of the Australian Open Tennis 3 weeks after getting home). This is now my second week back at work (I'm not sure if that is all good!).
I know that resurfacing is still classified as an experimental procedure in the US, but it now has 7-8 years of history and I believe is clearly a better alternative for younger active patients who are able to sustain the operation. So it can be worthwhile looking into the possibilities. Don't leave it too late either, as the bone surface can deteriorate (cysts grow) and leaving it too late may mean that the surgeon will opt for a THR (which is not a bad operation - just not as good for younger active patients). Resurfacing is a technically more challenging operation than THR, and some surgeons could be reluctant to retrain to it. Keep looking..........
If anyone is thinking of hip resurfacing then the current best considered professional opinion is that offered by the UK National Institute for Clinical Excellence, in their Technology Appraisal Guidance No 44 "Guidance on the use of metal on metal hip resurfacing arthroplasty". This can be accessed at http://www.nice.org.uk/page.aspx?o=TA044guidance
To see a sequence of photos taken during a hip resurfacing operation, look at http://www.hipkneetumoursurgery.com/5_professional_area/hip_resurfacing_procedure.htm
Warning, these are close up photos of an actual operation and could be disturbing to some people.
For more information on how the different hip implants last over time look at http://www.dmac.adelaide.edu.au/aoanjrr/documents/aoanjrrreport_2005.pdf
This is the latest annual report of the Australian National Joint Replacement Registry. Modelled on a Swedish registry which had a significant positive impact on the success rates of hip operations in Sweden (by allowing surgeons to see what implants succeeded over time, and which had problems), the Australian registry has recorded details of hip and knee operations in Australia since September 1999. Probably easier to understand than reports from the Swedish body (for non-Swedish speaking English speakers). The implants used in Australia are sourced from all round the world, and the information in the report would be relevant in other countries too, in discussing with a surgeon what he does and how successful it has been.
Cheers
In my case I had both hips resurfaced (Birmingham) in one operation on 14 December 2005. I am a 54 year old male living in Melbourne Australia, and had osteo arthritis in both hips (right hip went first) for about 6 years. In the second half of 2005 things went downhill rapidly and I came to the point where I couldn't go on - painkillers did not work properly, waking up with pain every 1-1 1/2 hours etc.
I researched the internet on possibilities and decided that resurfacing sounded very promising, so got a referral to a surgeon that did them (very experienced - he has done about 500 over 7 years). He went through the advantages (retaining an intact femur, much more stable joint, more rapid recovery, greater range of activities following recovery, easy conversion to THR if the joint failed at some future time), but cautioned that bone cysts that could be seen in my X-ray could be deep enough to make resurfacing problematic - in which case he would need to decide in the operating theatre to do a THR. He also cautioned that whether I could stand both hips being done in the one operation could only be seen in the theatre, and he would do one hip and then decide whether I could go on for the second.
Given these caveats, the whole thing went off fine from my point of view. I coped with the operation well, and he was able to resurface both. I was in hospital for 8 days, standing two days after the operation, and taking steps with forearm crutches 4 days after the operation (those who only have one hip done do better than that). I found very little post operative pain, and the hospital was very good about offering painkillers on a preventative basis (they want patients pain free so that they are not detered from moving and starting the physio exercises).
By the time I went home I could get in and out of bed, walk around the hospital floor and give myself a shower. When I got home I needed to self inject a blood thinning agent (Fragmin) for 20 days, and wear TED stockings for 3 weeks. I took home exercises from the hospital physios, and expanded these when I went back 4 weeks after the operation. The surgeon and the physio were very keen for me to do hydrotherapy, so I went to the local indoor pool and saw an exercise therapist for a program which I have been following for the past 3-4 weeks, and that is really helping.
What makes me so keen is the visible progress!! Not only was there no pain from the start, but I sleep through the night (from a couple of weeks home), driving again (from 3 weeks at home), able to get out and about (went to the Quarter-Finals of the Australian Open Tennis 3 weeks after getting home). This is now my second week back at work (I'm not sure if that is all good!).
I know that resurfacing is still classified as an experimental procedure in the US, but it now has 7-8 years of history and I believe is clearly a better alternative for younger active patients who are able to sustain the operation. So it can be worthwhile looking into the possibilities. Don't leave it too late either, as the bone surface can deteriorate (cysts grow) and leaving it too late may mean that the surgeon will opt for a THR (which is not a bad operation - just not as good for younger active patients). Resurfacing is a technically more challenging operation than THR, and some surgeons could be reluctant to retrain to it. Keep looking..........
If anyone is thinking of hip resurfacing then the current best considered professional opinion is that offered by the UK National Institute for Clinical Excellence, in their Technology Appraisal Guidance No 44 "Guidance on the use of metal on metal hip resurfacing arthroplasty". This can be accessed at http://www.nice.org.uk/page.aspx?o=TA044guidance
To see a sequence of photos taken during a hip resurfacing operation, look at http://www.hipkneetumoursurgery.com/5_professional_area/hip_resurfacing_procedure.htm
Warning, these are close up photos of an actual operation and could be disturbing to some people.
For more information on how the different hip implants last over time look at http://www.dmac.adelaide.edu.au/aoanjrr/documents/aoanjrrreport_2005.pdf
This is the latest annual report of the Australian National Joint Replacement Registry. Modelled on a Swedish registry which had a significant positive impact on the success rates of hip operations in Sweden (by allowing surgeons to see what implants succeeded over time, and which had problems), the Australian registry has recorded details of hip and knee operations in Australia since September 1999. Probably easier to understand than reports from the Swedish body (for non-Swedish speaking English speakers). The implants used in Australia are sourced from all round the world, and the information in the report would be relevant in other countries too, in discussing with a surgeon what he does and how successful it has been.
Cheers