Did you have a hip replacement? (55, move, father-in-law, 2014)

[NYgal1542]

I've been bothered for the past couple months with a back ache, more like a burning sensation, that makes walking very difficult. It runs in between my hips, started low in back but moved to just below waist level. Now I'm getting severe pain in my right hip. Sometimes hard to get out of bed. Sometimes hard to stand from sitting.

I can only guess my hip needs a replacement. My right knee was replaced in late 2014.

If you have gone through this or something similar, I'd appreciate reading what you have to say about it.
Thank you!

[Garthur]

I had my left hip replaced a few years ago. Getting it replaced was a no brainer because of the pain. I couldn't even walk without severe pain. No amount of drugs helped.

As far as back pain, I have always had some back pain.

The ortho doctor said that my left leg was 1/4" shorter then my right leg and the stress put on my pelvis caused my back pain. He said he could fix it in the surgery. I got the new hip about 2 years ago.

It took about 6 months to completely recover from the surgery but I was walking fairly well within 2 months.

Now I have zero pain from my hip and my back.

If I had to do it over again, I would do it tomorrow.

One of the best decisions I have ever made.

[Charlie&Rose]

I have a friend who just had her hip replaced, a month ago. She still has a walker, but she is happy she had it done. She is feeling better, and in no pain.

[don6170]

Originally Posted by marcandme

I have a friend who just had her hip replaced, a month ago. She still has a walker, but she is happy she had it done. She is feeling better, and in no pain.

My ex-Father-In-Law had one hip replaced. Went great - little pain or issues. Had the other one replaced by same doc and hospital. He had all kinds of pain/issues with that one.

[JRR]

My left hip was in really bad shape and I had it replaced four years ago. Surgeon did the posterior procedure. Everything went well and I was taking short walks down the street within a week. Unless the subject comes up, I don't even think about the fact I have an artificial hip. Having had both a hip and a knee replaced, at least for me, the hip was a stroll in the park compared to the knee.

[NYgal1542]

Originally Posted by JRR

My left hip was in really bad shape and I had it replaced four years ago. Surgeon did the posterior procedure. Everything went well and I was taking short walks down the street within a week. Unless the subject comes up, I don't even think about the fact I have an artificial hip. Having had both a hip and a knee replaced, at least for me, the hip was a stroll in the park compared to the knee.

I had a knee replacement in late 2014. I did all the things the doctor told me to do. Never have had a problem with it. No pain. My knee surgeon doesn't operate anymore, so I'll have another surgeon from same medical group do it.

I'm kind of dragging my feet on this as I have to make some arrangements for rides, cat care while I'm gone, etc. I dread that more than the surgery.

[Shelia Shay]

I had a hip replacement two years ago and I'd do it again without hesitation. It had become impossible for me to walk without severe pain, so my choice was surgery or a wheelchair. I recovered quickly. After getting home from the hospital, I never needed or used a walker or crutch. I reached all of the required benchmarks in a few sessions, so I was dismissed from physical therapy early. I had some difficulty finding a comfortable position for sleeping, and for a few weeks I had a bit of pain first thing in the morning, but other than that, the worst part was counting the days until I could be mobile again.

The knee replacement a few months later was a completely different story, but this thread is about replacements so I won't go into that.

[NYgal1542]

Thank you all for your responses to my post.

I would imagine everyone's experience is a little different from the next person.

I remember that problem with finding a comfortable sleep position, I had that problem when I had my knee replaced.

I think my attitude of getting better quickly after my knee is what helped me do that. I had some plans that would require being able to move and get around. Even tho those plans fell through, I was happy I worked hard at getting back in shape. And no more pain!!

[Sand&Salt]

I had my hip replaced in 2016 due to bad pain trying to walk, came on pretty suddenly too. It was simple with a quick recovery---walker for a couple weeks, then a crutch for a couple more. I never think about it. It did pop out once, when I fell hard, but doctors put it back easily.

Unlike the knees which still feel like huge foreign objects in there, since 2013.

Hips seem to be a no-brainer, but think long and hard about knees.

[SunGrins]

I wouldn't have a knee specialist do my hip. They sent me to one who was a "sports medicine" knee guy and I went and found a trusted hip guy instead. I have actually walked away from two ortho surgeons because they were barely listening to what I was saying or feeling.

I had a left total hip replacement a year ago. My pain was largely related to weight bearing, not general and constant pain even when I was in bed. The images showed that the femur ball was flat and was like having a square peg in a round hole. Putting weight on it or trying to walk was painful and my limping gait was messing up my knees and ankles. The surgery was about 45 minutes and I was semi-awake (spinal block) through it. My ortho surgeon did not believe in physical therapy beyond the first couple weeks after surgery as an assessment tool but had me walking as much as possible each day. After a year I hardly remember the pain I once had and walked all over Santa Fe yesterday without any problems.

in contrast, I had back surgery years ago due to pain similar to what you describe. After 30 years I have back issues - scarring, stenosis, and radiculopathy that causes problems with coordination and numbness but not much actual pain.