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Simultaneous Bilateral BHRs Saturday, December 22.
2007
I'm 52 yr old male New Zealander around 90kg and 178
cm tall who has kept active and in relatively good
shape. For me the first indication of hip issues
was the severe pain I felt after completing a half
marathon run. From that point on I suffered a
"catching" sensation which when it occurred, crippled
me, albeit temporarily. Sometimes when going to stand
from a sitting position I would literally lock up
and not be able to move. Throughout this time I also
suffered from a lot of lower back pain which I
blamed on many years of playing squash (racquetball), I
had been playing throughout my late 30's and most of
my 40's. Eventually after lots of visits to my GP
with the usual prescriptions for voltarin (diclofinac)
I asked for X-rays. What a revelation these
were, showing that my back was in not a bad condition
at all however contrastingly both hips were in a
very sad state with little or no cartilage left
between the joints. Being told I needed bilateral THR
came as a mighty shock and being completely honest,
had no appeal at all!! Thanks to a lot of research
on my various options I kept getting drawn to hip
resurfacing. Quite frankly the decision was very
simple - resurfacing! Pat Walter and her Surface
Hippy website generated for me so much positive
information.
After being advised by a number of medical people including an
orthopedic specialist that THR's were the only
option I found Mr Hugh Blackley one of the few
resurfacing specialists in New Zealand. Hugh
Blackley's attitude was very positive from the
outset, he answered all my many questions and
demonstrated a level of experience I was very
comfortable with,at the time he had performed
something like 150 BHR procedures. Coincidently I
also was put in contact with a person who had in
fact had a recent BHR with Hugh and couldn't have
been more happy with the outcome.
December 2 found me checking into North Harbour
Southern Cross hospital with the procedure scheduled
for first thing on Dec 3. After a fitful sleep (no
doubt nervous anticipation) I found myself prepped
and being wheeled into the operating theater.
Around midday I became aware of my surroundings as I
was wheeled back to my room from the recovery
room. My anesthetic regime had been Epidural and I
couldn't have been more pleased with it. Apart from
being numb and with my legs feeling like a couple of
logs there was no pain, in fact from that point on I
have not had any pain, maybe a little bit of
discomfort but certainly nothing like the pre-op
pain I had learned to live with.
Something that sticks in my mind was being so
incredibly hungry in the time after the op and being
so lucid. Of course I had a catheter in place and
found it not an issue at all, in fact it was quite a
good feeling not having to worry about going to the
toilet.
My first night post op was very long, no pain just a
feeling of being uncomfortable, it seemed to take
forever for daylight to arrive. At one stage during
the night as sensation came back into my legs I
found myself with each leg sliding over each side of
the bed, not a great feeling, so called a duty nurse
to get me back into a normal position.
Day 1 post op I was assisted by PT Debbie to stand
up and was able to walk on elbow crutches around the
bed. Again no real pain and feeling mightily pleased
with myself! Later in the afternoon I managed around
75 m walking on the crutches in the corridor. During
that day I began oral pain relief, tramadol and
panadol in preparation for the removal of the
epidural the following day.
Day 2 first thing saw the removal of the catheter
and then the epidural was taken out later in the
morning. What a great feeling not to be tethered to
something!
Lots of bed exercises, glut squeezes, leg flexing and
then another long walk in the corridor 120 m as well
as learning to negotiate stairs. I notice that my
left leg appears to be a little behind in the
healing process when compared to the right. With my
right I can just about be fully weight bearing
whereas the left its probably about 50%.Going up
stairs the right is just so easy but to lift the
left I have to make a conscious effort. I spent the
afternoon of day 2 ambling the hospital corridors,
maybe 300 m. Speaking with Hugh Blackley and he said
not to worry about the 90 degree rule, it just
doesn't apply! In fact he encouraged me to try and
stretch my knees towards my chest!!
Day 3 checked out of hospital and began the 4 hour
drive home in two stages, just to allow time for
stretching and exercise. Our vehicle a Toyota Prado
is very high off the ground, however by backing up to
the passenger seat and using the handles above the
door and on the front pillar it was a relatively
easy process to get in.
What a great feeling to be home, though I didn't
notice any pain Hugh Blackley advised continuing an
oral regime of Panadol 4hourly and Tramadol 12
hourly. Interestingly he doesn't use TED's at all but
does prescribe aspirin daily for the month post op.
Once at home I found my favorite piece of equipment
to be my Lazy Boy recliner chair, in fact I sleep in
it as it gives so much support without putting
pressure on both my incisions.
One of the things that I found hard to come to terms
with was feeling so good and trying too hard and
overdoing things. From Day 4 through to Day 11, I
suffered quite severe ankle swelling. I found the
best thing was to slow down and spend a lot of time
with my feet elevated (using the recliner). By Day 18
the swelling had disappeared and I was down to just
one elbow crutch. Each day just seems to be getting
better and better. Overall it has been a wonderful trouble free
liberating experience and one I'd not have the
slightest hesitation in repeating. Now there is the
gradual strengthening, rehabilitation and getting
back to normal everyday life. I just can't wait to
get back to the mountain biking, hiking, hunting and
fishing pain free and unrestricted.
Gavin |
