Hip labral tear/Arthroscopic surgery/Can anyone relate?

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I'm an absolutely terrible swimmer, but if it's the only activity I am cleared to do you can bet I'll take it.

Don't worry, everybody is a terrible swimmer until they keep practicin'.
 
I copied your original post and sent it to my friend (the aforementioned ortho surgeon). He gave me the whole rundown and ended by saying if you were heading to MGH, most likely you'd be seeing McCarthy.

My friend trained with him during his residency. If you would like to read his reply, I'd be happy to pm or email it to you.
 
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...and if he performs any of his procedures at Newton-Wellesley, I will come up and spend my lunchbreaks with you!

And, just being overly maternal here, but, if you don't know what activities you should be doing, why are you put there walking till it hurts, missy!?

thanks for keeping us all posted!
 
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Serious injuries tend to change the perception of your own existence, make you appreciate what you took for granted before. While the current reality sucks(i've been there), once you get back out there you will appreciate everything so much more. The morning sun will appear to be a new color of gold that your mind never perceived before. Best of luck with your recovery.
 
As someone who has "been there, done that", I can sympathize with you, and offer considerable encouragement. At age 72 I had a leg almost paralyzed by pressure on the nerve; I plan to hike Mt. Washington before the end of summer.

You will need three things to get back in good shape reasonably soon:
  1. Good medical care, both for the operation and the post-operative rehabilitation
  2. Motivation: It is very discouraging to be way less fit than you were
  3. A bit of luck or, more accurately, no bad luck
You are all set for item #1. Mass General, like Brigham and Women's (where I was treated) is one of the very best hospitals in the world, which means that they have great specialists. When I learned that I had been referred to the Chief of Spine Surgery at BWH I did not bother to do any searches about my doctor: I knew he had to be absolutely first class. I also had a great physical therapist.

I would guess that you are even better off on item #2. You are far more athletic than I am, so you probably care about your body even more than I do.

Finally, of course, you have to avoid bad luck. Shit happens, but fortunately most of the time it does not.

The major difficulty for you will probably be patience. Your body will almost certainly heal more slowly than you would like. That's life!

My very best wishes for a complete, and reasonably prompt, recovery.
 
I'm thinking you should tackle this list in the meantime. I'll join you every slurp of the way.

http://www.strangebrewtavern.net/beer.html

+1 - We should have weekly support group meetings here for her. Sorry to hear you are going through all this Larisa. I'm still having problems with my right knee myself. Going for a second opinion and to discuss surgery options on October 5th here. First surgeon wanted me to try wearing a brace for a while but it doesn't do anything.
 
I had arthroscopic surgery on my left knee at the end of May 2009 since I couldn't rehab the knee over a three month period. I found the best surgeon I could (the practice handles the Pittsburgh Pirates) and with proper rehab, I was back hiking in five weeks and intense hiking and activity in seven weeks. You are young and in condition so your recovery would go well. I do not know about your particular ailment, but I would expect that the best surgeon at MGH should certainly minimize any risk and get you back quickly.

Best of luck!
 
I have no experience with this particular injury, but I've had three knee surgeries (same knee . . . stupid ACL :) ), and one shoulder surgery (torn labrum), and I'm still going strong. Well, "strongish" . . . but no fault of my injuries . . . the blame lies squarely with good beer and my wife's chocolate cake :D

Hang in there, and good luck. You'll get through it!
 
I am so sorry you are dealing with this. I have not had a labral tear, but that is one of the few joints I haven't injured. Having gone through a Knee Arthroscopy in October, followed by a Rotator Cuff repair in April, then a stress fracture in my foot in June, I can tell you I feel your sadness about not being able to keep your fitness.
Get it fixed, take time to rehab it, and you will be back in high gear soon.
Arthroscopic surgery heals fast. Try to keep an optimistic attitude. It is a head game as well.
Can you do a rowing machine? It is a killer cardio if you get going, and there isn't alot of pressure on the hips.
Good luck,
Sandy
 
LRiz, I remember seeing a reference to you being on the shelf in another thread and wondered what was up. Sounds like the same injury that many major league baseball players (Mike Lowell, Chase Utley, Alex Rodriguez, Carlos Delgado, and others) and lots of professional hockey players have suffered recently (also torn shoulder labrums). Some have postponed surgery until the end of the season, and then have come back the next season in pretty good shape. For example, Mike Lowell underwent hip labrum surgery last fall after playing injured through the 2008 season, then slowly worked his way back into the regular line up this season and has played great, although the Sox are resting him a fair bit hoping that he will be stronger for their hoped for post-season. I believe that Alex Rodriguez underwent hip labrum surgery earlier this season, and is now back after a two-month rehab. In the article below, there is much speculation about causes for torn hip labrums, with many references to MGH docs, so sounds like you are going to right place. Good luck to you.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/b...31_with_labrum_tears_all_the_rage.html?page=0
 
I'm thinking you should tackle this list in the meantime. I'll join you every slurp of the way.

http://www.strangebrewtavern.net/beer.html

KDT

I wholeheartedly agree. Perhaps I'll post an open call for next week... :rolleyes:

Some good news on the hip front. On Monday I met with my orthopedist down in Nashua, and she informed me that my labral tear is quite small. Although the tear will most likely never heal on its own, she said that given its size it is possible that the injury will become asymptomatic with time. More importantly for me, I was also given the go ahead to start exercising again! Low impact at first (elliptical, bike, etc.), with an eventual build up to full activity as the pain subsides.

I just got back from the gym, where I was able to do 30 minutes on the elliptical followed by 20 on the arc trainer with next to no pain. While running is still completely out of the question, each and every day I'm noticing improvement in my hip. Walking is almost pain free for me now, and my joint flexibility is steadily returning. It's an absolutely fantastic feeling, and I must admit I'm quite surprised (and even slightly confused) by the rapid progress.

That being said, I am still eager to meet with the doctor down in Boston next week. Unfortunately there was a glitch with my MGH appointment (they called me and said I'd have to reschedule for December at the earliest :eek:)... but I was able to find a very well-regarded doctor down at Brigham and Women's who will be able to see me on the 22nd. I'm hopeful that he will be able to provide more insight into my injury. At this point, I am willing to undergo some additional recovery time if it might mean holding off on surgery. We shall see.

Thank you again to all of you for your kind messages and words of advice and encouragement. I can't even begin to express how much it means to me to be surrounded by such wonderful people. :)

If any of you are up for a small hike this weekend, please let me know. I don't think my hip is ready to tackle a 4,000 footer quite yet, but I'd love to get out and explore some flat, pretty trails if any of you have recommendations.
 
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