Ceramic on Ceramic too hard? - Knee & Hip Problems Message Board

AlienB · 06-30-2005, 12:39 PM

Hello Hipsters,
I'm a year and half post-op from what seemed like a very successful left hip replacement. I was 43 and up on the thing four hours after the surgery. I went home after only two days in the hospital. I did most of the post-op PT on my own because I was so far advanced. I was told jogging and playing doubles tennis shouldn't be a problem. Not the case, I have pain in the upper thigh at various times. Sometimes just walking but always going up steps and jogging. The worse thing was getting Tinnitus 3 weeks after the surgery. Trama or complications from the anaesthetic must have caused this.

When I went back to the Dr. he thought the ceramic was too hard against the bone therefore causing the pain. I thought to myself, well it's a fine time to tell me now.
I see younger people on the net running after ceramic hip replacements.
I walk without a limp but I'm still not happy with the results. I'd hate to see someone else choose the wrong model. Let me know if anyone had a similar experience with ceramic on ceramic.

Ripanco · 07-01-2005, 06:21 AM

Hi Alien,

I am so sorry to hear that you are not where you wanted to be. I can fully appreciate your frustration! I am just 5 weeks from a simultaneous bilateral THR. I am a runner. Or at least I was before my hips took me down.

When I met with my OS, I told him I really wanted to run again. No more long distances, on soft surfaces with cushioned shoes, but at least 30 min or so a few times a week. He was not thrilled with this, but he did not say I couldn't. What he did say was this:

He would not give me ceramic/ceramic because I wanted to run. Instead he used metal/highly crosslinked poly. He said it would give me some cushioning and much less chance of fracture. He would have used ceramic/ceramic if I wasn't going to run, because I am fairly young and very active. This is probably not what you want to hear.

On the other hand, there is a guy here in VT that got ceramic/ceramic hips about 9 yrs ago and he is still running marathons. And he is in his 50s.

I can so relate to your ear problems too!!! I developed tinnitus thanks to a misdiagnosis of what turned out to be an inner ear infections following a cold about a year ago. My local GP kept telling me it was a middle ear infection and by the time I finally saw an ENT, it was too late for reversal. It really is not fun to live with!

I do hope that maybe in time some of your pain will lessen. Is there any way that maybe they could change just the ball and socket without removing the stem? Probably not since most components do not interchange, but may be worth looking into. Good luck though!

AlienB · 07-01-2005, 10:44 AM

Ripanco,

Thanks for the informative response. I hope the recovery is going well and running is in the future. The bilateral THR must be tuff. Do as much PT as possible, I think it's crucial in getting where you want to be.

That isn't what I wanted to hear but the guy in his 50's running is encouraging.
Do you know him well enough to ask how he got to that point?

I'm afraid to for him to go back in, things could get worse. How are you coping with the tinnitus? Have you learned to ignore it or use sound enrichment most of the time?
With me the pain meds made it even worse...Let me know how you're doing..

2young2Bhippy · 07-01-2005, 04:17 PM

Hi AlienB, I am 37 and scheduled for a metal/plastic THR in August, but I'm still going to meet with a surgeon next week who specializes in ceramics here in Los Angeles. I just want to get the whole picture to feel I've made a good decision. I'm so sorry to hear you've had such troubles! How did you find your doctor? (He wasn't in L.A., was he?) I'm wondering how respected/successful your doctor is. Also, what type or procedure/incision(s) did you get? Thanks for posting, and I hope you'll be able to solve your problem without another surgery. Greg

AlienB · 07-06-2005, 02:40 PM

Hello,
My guy was the best hip Dr. in Kentucky so I was told. I started to go for the mini-incision procedure in Cinncinnati. However, with the mini he couldn't do the ceramic on ceramic, too large. I didn't want to have another surgery 8 years down the road and ceramic should last 20+ years. The ceramic just may be too hard to take pounding. My incision is only about 4.5 inches along my butt. The guy did a great job in that respect I just wasn't told about the possible downside of ceramic on ceramic. The metal/plastic just wears out but maybe you can do more?? I think you need to tell the Dr. what you want to do afterwards. If I had the decision again I would have done the mini in Cinncinnati. It's a tuff call and kinda a roll of the dice no matter what the Dr. tells you. Good luck..