Hip replacement

Anyone on the board have any insight on ability to seriously hike in the mts after hip replacement surgery??

One of my close hiking friends had a hip replacement over ten years ago and can still do demanding hikes. I've done Madison and Moosilauke, among others, with him this winter and I have to remind myself that he has had the procedure.
The technology has advanced since his replacement so I would be upbeat about future hiking.

A couple of my climber/skier acquaintances here in the ADKs have had one or both hips done, and are out there participating hard. These guys are in their late 50s, climbing 10 and skiing slides, etc.
Technology keeps getting better...most people advise waiting as long as you can, both to avoid unnecessary surgery and also specifically because technology keeps improving. Be as fit as possible going in.

I have a couple of hiker friends, both women, who've had total hip replacements. One of them, in her 60's, had it done about 10 years ago. I did Whitney with her as a dayhike 2 years ago. The other, in her 70's, "needed" to finish about 300 miles on the PCT to complete that goal, which she did.

Prospects should be good

I have a friend who had hip replacement surgery (both as I recall) I know he gave up backpacking and restricts himself to day hiking. He enjoys all sorts of dayhiking. I know for a fact he's done traverse of jefferson via Presidential stuff like Six Husbands Trail and Caps Ridge. Good luck!

Thanks for the encouragement. Went to the Orthopod today for what was a sure strained adductor (groin) - I know that the pain began immediately after an over-ambitious / severe stretch back in the cold weather days of Jan.

However, X-ray shows arthritic material around R hip joint. Nerve transmits to the upper leg (and often to the knee). May need replacement, or not, but no time soon. Treating with a blitz of Motrin.

Somewhat dismayed that the ligament/tendon/muscle sprain possibility was NOT ruled-out since X-rays do not show soft tissue detail. And this was with a pro hoops team MD.

Gotta finish the NE 4s with the BSP 3 this early summer! But the pain in the R upper leg makes going up stairs a challenge. Hopefully it will motrinasize itself to obscurity.

I know of at least one member here who has had a total hip replacement and is going strong. Perhaps they will come along and comment.

Its also my understanding that hip replacements have a high success rate and faster rehab time than knees. My Dad had one and still walks 6 miles a day at the ripe age of 79.

Good luck, Rup!

Sabrina may be talking about the same friend but there is someone from the boards who had a hip replacement, healed in just a few months if I remember correctly, is almost 40 years my senior and kicks my butt up the trails (even though that doesn't really say much ). Good Luck, I am sure with good physical therapy you will be back on the trails in no time at all.

sli74

sli74 said:

Sabrina may be talking about the same friend but there is someone from the boards who had a hip replacement, healed in just a few months if I remember correctly, is almost 40 years my senior and kicks my butt up the trails (even though that doesn't really say much ). Good Luck, I am sure with good physical therapy you will be back on the trails in no time at all.

sli74

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Yup, kicks butt on Tele skis, too.

You wouldn't know about the person's hip replacement to see the person hike, except the surgery does attract TSA employees when the security screening lights up at airport checkins.

To delay, consider shots

I had major hip pain starting about two years ago, and was diagnosed with Osteoarthritis in my hip. In order to postpone replacement surgery, I've been getting shots of cortisone into the hip, and the results have been pretty good. The shots can be done up to three times per year. I'm currently getting them every six months. There's no more pain in getting these shots than giving blood, just a needle stick feeling. The skin is numbed with a cold freeze, then a local anesthetic (lidocaine) is used to numb the tissues, so the injection can be done without pain. The doctor uses ultrasound to place the needle with cortisone directly into the joint sac. The lidocaine provides pain relief from the arthritis for the first half day or so, giving the time for the cortisone to kick in.

My reason for delaying the replacement surgery is that the hardware used in a replacement has a limited life (getting longer all the time), and once a replacement has been done, getting another one is more difficult due to the bone that is taken away to do the first one.

Another area to check into is hip resurfacing. This procedure uses less hardware, and removes less bone, so it retains more for further work when the hardware used for the resurfacing wears out.

Just my experience and the information I've been given. Hope it helps some.

Don't delay surgery too long. The younger you are the faster and more complete your recovery will be. The strength of the implant depends on the growth of new bone material to lock it in place.

The primary long-term issue is wear or damage to the polyethylene liner used in most artificial joints. Periodic Xrays are used to catch any problems at an early stage, when the liner can still be replaced without having to disturb the bone or metal implants.

Assuming a good recovery from the surgery, the primary warning about hip replacement is to avoid high-impact activities, such as running, basketball, etc. which can cause premature damage to the liner. Weight bearing activities - including backpacking - are OK, but avoid flat-footed landings coming down the trail.

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor, but I'm living with an active recipient of a double hip replacement. As time goes by, her snow-plow is staying strong, as mine shows signs of aging hips!

I had hip replacement done in January 2010. I had it done in Concord, NH. The procedure was "anterior" total hip replacement on the left side. I was hobbling around on crutches the day after the surgury, driving my truck (automatic trans) 2 weeks after the surgury, and back to work (at a desk) in one month. I would wholeheartedly recommend an anterior approach instead of the old-fashioned way which often leaves the patient bed-ridden for up to a month.

Having said that, I can't say that it was a complete success. The pain in my hip has gone - and that's a big relief - but the mobility hasn't come back and probably won't. It's easy for me to walk straight ahead, but my ability to have lateral movement sucks. For example, I can't walk normally in a tight circle nor can I "accordian" my legs. That means that there are trails I'll probably never do again. Caps Ridge, for instance. Huntington Ravine. Mahoosic. Pretty much any trail that requires contorted or overly stressful lower body movements are out for me. Of course - and I cant stress this enough - YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY!!

I if could choose whether or not to have the surgury again, I would definately do things the same way. Expat's post is an excellent one - it differs from mine but reinforces the fact that every one's experience will differ. Expat's reasoning for postponing his surgury is very valid. I'm 55, the life expectancy of a replacement hip is ~20 years and I dont know if I'll be strong enough to have a second replacement when I'm 75. I would have liked to delay the surgury 5 or 10 years but the pain was too great.

Good luck! You may have to modify your lifestyle a bit after surgury - it won't turn you into a 20 year old again - but successful surgury should definately improve your physical lifestyle over what it is today.



bob

dentonfabrics said:

I had hip replacement done in January 2010.... but the mobility hasn't come back and probably won't.

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Don't give up yet. The 1-year mark was a low point for my partner, who expected to be more mobile after a year. Fortunately, her mobility improved significantly in the second and third years, and beyond. Now seven years after the surgery she feels better than she did for many years before the surgery.

With so much focus on how quickly you can be "back on your feet", I think we tend to ignore the time required for a full recovery. Have good ongoing PT, massage, and other assistance is very important.

For those who have been thru this, how long did you take the anti-inflams?? I've been on Motrin 600 mg 3x / day for a week, and it hasn't made a **** difference. How long does it take the inflammation to subside, and when do you look for another med, or plan B.

YMMV - for bad sprains/strains (hip/groin/lower back) in my past, I've been on 800mg 3x per day for over a month...each time. It took OVER a week to feel much relief. I also had PT. Can you get some PT also?

Becca

The orthopedic said that there is no proof that PT does any good for this. He also gave me Rx to try it. So,...

What kind of PT did you do? and how long after the incident did you start it??

I had a track coach tell me that it sounds more like a sprain. Runners suffer from this all the time. rcmds no load bearing (on hip) exercise, and rest.

My husband Pat had his left hip replaced in 2003 in his mid-60's. In 5 months, he was hiking in the Grand Canyon, including scrambling and shimmying up ropes. He couldn't even tie his shoelace before the surgery. Being in shape helped tremendously, and yes, he's still telemarking and had to do all the snow shoveling alone this winter, poor guy.

rup said:

Becca

The orthopedic said that there is no proof that PT does any good for this. He also gave me Rx to try it. So,...

What kind of PT did you do? and how long after the incident did you start it??

I had a track coach tell me that it sounds more like a sprain. Runners suffer from this all the time. rcmds no load bearing (on hip) exercise, and rest.

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Hi! I'm not sure what type... they did some kind of electrical muscle thing, stretched it, and gave me exercises. I felt as though it kind of helped. It's possible it was just a waiting game.... I went to a chiro originally (YMMV!!) due to the back problem, from there I went to PT.

The initial problem a pelvic/lower back sprain/strain from a fall down a flight of stairs. Several weeks later I had increasing hip/groin pain. It was very frustrating for more than a year. It became intermittent, so, I always thought it was getting better and then it would come back. I began to wonder if it was mental. I kept experimenting with how I was sitting/standing/crouching. I thought it would never end. Eventually it went away. I now have a LOT of sympathy for chronic pain sufferers....FWIW I do run/hike/step/bike/etc.