Hip Operation Questions

Jaceyduck

Hi I would like to say hello and tell you about myself I am a full time carer for my husband with MS and am in a lot of pain from my hip. I have been diagnosed with Osteoarthritus of my right hip and have been told I will need a hip replacement.

Due to Covid I have shielded my husband for a year since the pandemic started and I am so desperate to have some normality when restrictions ease. I have missed my children and grandchild so much only seeing them very few times and at a distance. After a long wait I have got a telephone consultation with a hip surgeon this week and I just want to seek some advice from you. Best case scenario for me at the moment would be if I could have the hip op maybe towards the end of the year and be offered a targeted hip injection to ease my pain and let me have a few months when lockdown ends to have a bit of normal life with less pain before having to go through the long recovery period of a hip op.

Do you think would be something I might be offered and have any of you had a targeted hip injection and how long did it work for. Thanks

anneb82

Hello @Jaceyduck

Thank you for your post and welcome to the online community. I hope that you will find this a friendly and safe space to share and join in.

I understand that you have finally spoken to a surgeon after a long wait. You are in considerable pain with you left hip and have been diagnosed with Osteoarthritis. You are wondering whether a targeted injection would be the way to go in the interim while you wait for your hip replacement.

It must have been difficult for you with the pain that you are suffering with as well as being a carer for your husband. I know Covid has been trying for us all and is has not been easy for any of us. We are all looking forward to getting back to normal.

I personally have never heard of this targeted injection that you have mentioned, however one of the many people within the community may have.

Ive included a couple of links below that I think may be of some sort of help to you.

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/treatments/surgery/hip-replacement-surgery/

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/managing-symptoms/managing-your-pain/

I hope that they are of help to you.

Please continue to look around the forum and get involved. Please also do keep us updated on how you are getting on. I hope that you find some comfort soon.

Take care

Anne (moderator)

Lilymary

Hi @Jaceyduck , welcome to the crew. I’m sorry to hear you’ve had such a tough time lately, and now have a wrecked hip to boot. I’m also waiting for a new hip, and had the targeted steroid injection in August. I’m afraid I got no benefit from it at all, not even momentarily, whereas others find they get up to several. months relief. It’s can be difficult for surgeons to predict the outcome, so I wouldn’t set too much store by it - if it works, it’s a bonus, but it can’t be guaranteed.

Jaceyduck

Thankyou Ann for your response, I talk to the hip surgeon this Wednesday and will convey my feelings to him. I just feel that after a full year of being a full time carer for my husband with ms and missing my family @nd friends so much that I would love to have a few months of normality before I have major surgery . Thankyou fir your response

Jaceyduck

Thank you lily Mary for your honest response , that’s what I’m afraid of that my hip wont benefit from any targeted steroid response. I will post later this week what is the outcome of my telephone conversation with a surgeon at my local hospital . I will be in touch thank you x

frogmorton

Hi@Jaceyduck

Some people do really well with injections into joints my own ex MIL being one. They last for her up to 6 months!

We're all different take a look at this thread sorry I don't have a lot of time to search for more....https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/676247#Comment_676247

It may well be worth a try and is a personal choice. I wish so much it had worked for our @Lilymary though ((()))

You may well have nothing to loose.

Good luck and let us know how you get on

Lilymary

Hi @Jaceyduck , while mine didn’t work, definitely give it a go. It was only a moderately painful/uncomfortable process, not enough to put me off having it again had it worked. While it’s a shame mine didn’t help, I would never discourage others from trying it. Even though I got no benefit from it, there were no negative side effects either, so there’s no reason not to try it.

My surgeon said (and I don’t disagree with him) that their aim is to reduce the pain we experience. For hips, if they can do that with drugs etc, great. If and when that’s not enough, they move to the next level which is guided steroid injections. If those work, they’ll keep doing those until they’re not working either, so then they escalate to the last stage, which is replacing the damaged joint.

Sadly for me I went straight from 0 to stage 3 in a matter of a few months, drugs just about keep me mobile, and had it not been for the pandemic I would have had surgery long ago and would be skipping in the daisies by now. I should just be grateful that my body kept going for so long with a wrecked hip without telling me about it until it was so bad it actually needed replacing.

Do give it a go, and I hope it gives you many months of relief.

Abigail

I got have a new hip doctor said it was to late for me to have injections as Only last days if that

Lilymary

@Abigail , at least your surgeon was realistic about it. That will save weeks, if not months, of the waiting list for the treatment, self isolating beforehand, then a review six weeks after. You can cut out all that malarkey and move on to the next stage. I wish my surgeon had done the same. Might have had my new hip last year in the brief spell between lockdowns when they were doing surgery.

Abigail

Yes I didn’t go till I was desperate I can’t walk mutch but still working at moment I don’t no how can’t for mutch longer thanks for reply xx

Jaceyduck

Hi everyone, I had the hip injection and although it helped with the pain when not mobile it didn’t reduce the pain when walking as much. I went to see the consultant again the beginning of this month June and he said that thr was now the only option. Since then I’ve had a call from the hospital to offer me the operation on 4 th August! So it’s all systems go now. Am just cone in process of organising carers to come in to look after my husband who is unable to weight bear and is hoisted. My stepson will stay with him while I’m in hospital but I’ll probably need carers in for him for quite a while when listening to the stories of recover.

Thanks Lilymary for your posts about your recovery, and from others who are posting here it really helps me to get prepared for what to expect. Love the humour as well. I’ll start to post on here myself now I’ve got a date as it certainly helps to read all the information and advise. Hope you are all doing well after your operations. Take care.

Henrietta

Hi Jaceyduck, I'm just following your thread if that is ok as I'm in a very similar position to you but have my first apt with consultant on 21st of July. I'm encouraged to hear how soon your treatment is being planned as I envisaged a further year plus on a waiting list, due to covid backlog.

Lilymary

Hi @Jaceyduck , sorry I missed your 21 June post. I’m also sorry to hear your injection didn’t give much relief, but wow, great to have such an early date for THR. That’s great news.

If you follow the thread “15 July Hip Replacement Club” (I think that’s the title) the lead up to surgery is described in a bit more detail than mine, as I started the day before I went in for surgery and the pre-op stuff is a bit of a blur. But I was really reassured by how well everything was put in place for me to cope as soon as I got home in the way of equipment, district nurse to remove stitches (strokes) after 2 weeks, etc. This will be part of the pre-op assessment.

Luckily I have no dependents so I hope you can get enough cover to support your husband - don’t underestimate how little you will be able to do for at least the first week or so when you get back, and it’s important that you protect your new hip for at least 6 weeks (assuming you have “traditional” surgery). You will also feel extremely tired for the first week or two, although tbh I’m 9 weeks in and still dealing with fatigue, but I don't think I’m typical by any means.

do keep us posted on here, it looks like the joint replacement surgeries are really getting going again now, which is brilliant, but it’s so helpful for future patients to hear the experiences of others. Everyone’s journey will be slightly different, so it all helps.

Lilymary

Hi @Henrietta , I think NHS waiting times are still about a year, although it may vary by region. But at least the queues are moving now,

Jaceyduck

Hi lilymary and Henrietta, just an update, I’ve been in touch with social services about getting carers in to look after my husband while I’m in the recovery journey and expect this to be at least 12 weeks or more. I’ve now got my pre assessment date for July 14th and have been told to socially distance for two weeks prior to 4th August (op date) and have an appoint 5 days prior for Covid test then have to totally self isolate stay in house etc. Henrietta hope you get a date asap I’m scared but hope this op will let me have my quality of life back again. Hopefully taking my little granddaughter out further, walking my dog further and feeling more normal again. I feel like I’ve aged 10 years with the constant pain!! I’m going to post my recovery journey on here because reading your recovery lilymary and others has really helped. Just wish I could fast forward the next few weeks to be posting I’ve got a new hip and am now recovering. Take care everyone x

Jaceyduck

Hi again lilymary and all other forum members, I’m hoping I will be offered a spinal anaesthetic for my operation with lots of sedatives do you think this is a choice or do the hospital have a preference. My op is at a Nuffield hospital.

Lilymary

Hi @Jaceyduck , good to know the system is starting to swing into operation for you (no pun intended). Apart from the additional support for you and your husband, it sounds pretty much like what I went through. Are you having to do the MRSA cleanse? It’s less of a faff than it sounds. My hair really liked the stuff they gave me!

I gather the spinal bock is pretty standard now, (I had it, it’s odd, but fine), but they will probably give you a choice about how much sedation you want. I know some who asked for only mild sedation. One friend was listening to the Archers on her headphones all the way through and was rather annoyed that they finished half way through an episode! She felt pretty relaxed about the whole experience.

Me, on the other hand, a few friends had given me more info than I was comfortable with about the surgery so I just told them to pump me full of sedatives 😅. I came round as they were wheeling me out of theatre into the recovery room, blissfully unaware of what I’d just been through. It’s up to you really. I think you probably get over the effects of the anaesthetic sooner but that was the least of my concerns.

i decided to manage the fear by simply not thinking about what was about to happen. It worked a treat. I highly recommend it. Just let the medics get on with it and the nurses will sort you out afterwards.

Cazbaz

@Jaceyduck, I also had spinal block with sedation, I remember the injection, which didn’t bother me at all, the next thing I knew I was in the recovery room, took back to my room and having lovely ham sandwiches within the next couple of hours, lIke you I was in constant pain for ages with my arthritic hip and I was just so pleased to have the op I didn’t even think about it. Hope all goes well (which I’m sure it will) and keep us updated.

Henrietta

Thanks Jaceyduck and Lilymary, it will be helpful to follow your progresses. I also feel like I've aged 10 years over 12 months. The prospect of a 12 week recovery is not too bad so long as that is all it will be.

I had a total hysterectomy and oopherectomy TAH BSO and had 12 week recovery then. I'm on my own now though so will need to organise things or just leave things for 12 weeks. I hope I won't need carers in to help for more than a week at the most.

Jaceyduck

Hi lilymary I’ve not had my preassessment yet so haven’t received the mrsa cleanse yet, I go for it on 14 th July so I’ll let you know. Henrietta let us know what your consultant says when you have your appointment with him.

lilymary yes I’m hoping for the spinal with lots of sedation, don’t think the Archers will do it for me,! Glad to hear you are doing so well with your gardening and walking so far.

Henrietta

Just a quick update, The consultant recommended hip replacement and has added me to list as said I would only get a few weeks relief from injection as OA quite advanced and bone rubbing on bone.

Lilymary

@Henrietta , it’s good that he’s put you straight on the list rather than wasting time on treatments that won’t work for you. Hope you don’t have to wait too long for a date