Questions about hip replacement

distantshores

Hello I have finally accepted that it is now time to have a hip replacement as it is now impacting on my back and knee. According to the report I am stage 4 in the right hip but not in agony and am able to continue to function. Anyway the operation is booked for the end of November so have time to get the house ready.

I have just had the letter/report with the date. I noticed that I will be given an infusion of an antibiotic before the operation. I have spoken to someone else who had hip replacement last year and they said they did not have antibiotics. Is this normal? Or is it because I am over 70? It is on my record that I have had recurrent UTIs so maybe that is the reason.

I thought that you had to wear the compression socks for weeks but apparently I will only have to wear one on the operated leg until discharge. Is that usual?

Thanks

Trish9556

Hi @distantshores

Many of us here have had hip replacements with our experiences of the surgery and recovery all being very different.

I think the best person to speak to about your questions regarding the antibiotics and use of surgical stockings/compression socks would be your surgical team. I have always had a dose of antibiotics prior to all my surgeries as a precaution against infection.

Personally, I had an Epidural with a dose of antibiotics and had to use my surgical stockings for 6 weeks post surgery injecting daily for 4 weeks with blood thinners.

As I said, we are all different and everybody presents with different issues. Our surgeons are also very different in the way they do the surgeries and the time in hospital and recoveries all being very different.

If you do a search on hip replacements on here you wll be able to see how very differently we have all been treated and all recovered.

Good Luck

Trish xxxx

shacklock25

I had a hip replacement three weeks ago with a spinal block. I was given antibiotics after the operation (Doxycycline, as I am allergic to penicillin and others). They did upset my stomach so was glad to come off them. I didn't have to wear surgical stockings at all but was told to take low dose aspirin for a month. However I have had to stop taking them as they made me feel dizzy. I was off painkillers three days after the operation and it's just a bit sore around the wound due to bruising. I am walking for twenty minutes twice a day plus doing all my exercises. My arthritis was end stage and I couldn't straighten my leg out in bed or stand up straight. I can do both now. You have to sleep on your back for six weeks which I find difficult asvI normally sleep on my side, but you just have to make the best of it. I see the physio on the 19th and hope to go on to one crutch then. I was very nervous about the operation but it wasn't as bad as expected..It is a long recovery process of three months but you keep improving hopefully each week..Hope all goes well for you.

distantshores

Thanks. The antibiotic that I will be given is ceftriaxone which I had never heard of but have just looked up and it seems it is given for a lot of things including UTIs so maybe that is the reason it will be given. I will discuss it at the preop assessment. I would rather have doxycycline as I have taken this many times before as a malarial prophylactic and for UTI.

I am happy with taking aspirin and not blood thinners. I made it clear that I would not be able to inject myself with anything. I am very nervous about the whole thing and have managed to put it off until it can no longer be left and the other hip will probably need to be done as well. I know the recovery period is long and I am not a good patient but will have to follow advice. It does seem odd that there is no standardised process and that each surgeon is different.

KC1

Hi so glad you’ve got a date for your operation.

As Trish says we’ve all had very different experiences with THR, depending on hospital, consultant etc.

I had a THR 9 days ago. Spinal anaesthesia with antibiotics for the operation. I’ve worn surgical stockings since and I’m taking blood thinners in tablet form and will do for another 4 weeks. I think the stockings will stop when I go back next week.

A few people have previously listed the things they’ve found helpful to help with their recovery. I found it helpful to have what’s called the ‘dog lead’ which helps you get you lift your leg into bed for the first day or two. Some haven’t needed to use it, I found it was great, I’m not using it now. I also have a small cross body bag which I’ve used for all sorts of things - carrying small items upstairs and/or between rooms, keeping a few basics to hand etc. The pick up stick/helping hand is an essential along with the long shoe horn and raised toilet seat. Others may have other thoughts too.

as you prepare your home it’s worth thinking about things that are usually on a lower shelf that you use regularly that you might not be able to reach. Move those things up or put on your worktop/ cupboard top if you don’t mind a bit of clutter for a few weeks post op.

keep going with your exercises between now and your operation they do make a real difference.

Take care, Karen

Trish9556

@distantshores

The blood thinning injections are really easy - I didn't think I would be able to do it but I did. They are preloaded so all you need to do is remove the cap, hold a piece of skin and just jab it in, replace the lid and put it into the sharps bin. You hardly feel it. The antibiotics will be injected into you as a single dose and not taken orally.

The world would be a very boring place if we were all the same and everyone did things exactly the same way :)

trish xx

sarach

I had my THR 6 weeks ago. As others have said it seems everyone is different. I injected blood thinners for 10 days then moved I to aspirin for 28 days. The strange thing I had that is completely different to everyone else's journeys is that I had to wear a surgical stocking on only my non operated leg for 6 weeks!?

It's honestly the most amazing op to have completely life changing and blows my mind how much you can feel a difference immediately.

I was gowned up by 7am and in theatre by 9am. Was super nervous but all staff were amazing. By 12pm I was in recovery waiting for the feeling in my legs to come back (I had spinal block and was sedated) I was advised this was the best option as nausea is less likely and movement will happen quicker. As soon as I could physio had me up and walking along with doing stairs! By 7pm on the same day I was at home (just in time to watch England in the euro semi final!!) I was very lucky to have next to no pain in my recovery, along with no bruising.

Good luck!!

distantshores

Interesting to read different experiences. I have been told I will only be wearing a surgical sock on the operated leg for the first few days and then aspirin for 6 weeks.

@sarach I definitely won't be going home the same day! I live on my own and there is no way I could do that. The bathroom is downstairs so I am going to sleep on the sofa as I am too afraid to go upstairs on my own. I am extremely anxious about the whole thing and had hoped it wouldn't have to be done but nearly 14 years after diagnosis it looks as though there may be no choice. The end of November is sufficiently far away for me to be able to brush it aside but as the time approaches I will be really stressed and might be tempted to cancel. Amazing you were able to go home the same day.

I was booked to have it done on 5 September but I turned it down. I am going to Greece mid September and want my holiday before it is done. It is quite odd really as it is stage 4 but I am still able to go to my exercise classes (Zumba Gold, Dancefit, Dancercise and Nordic Walking) but it is walking with poles that is becoming more difficult and it is beginning to impact on my knees and back which it wasn't before.

@KC1 There is enough clutter and I am not very tidy or organised. I am putting things in place and trying to get a bit more organised. I think that the team from the hospital come and fit the raised toilet seat and things to go under the chair.

The surgeon did not look too impressed when I said I would be sleeping on the sofa but that is what I will do. I don't expect to get much sleep at first anyway. Has anyone else slept on the sofa after the op?

distantshores

@sarach I have just read your other post and see that you are considerably younger than me so that is probably why you were able to go home the same day. Unfortunately the older you get the longer it takes to recover. 34 is very young to have a hip replacement.

Trish9556

@distantshores

If you are planning on sleeping on your sofa, it will need to be big enough for you to sleep on your back, flat, and not too low to get on and off of. You won't be able to sleep on your side for at least 6 weeks post op.

Do you have a handrail on both sides of the stairs? I got a 2nd one fitted about 3 months before my surgery and it was a godsend for getting up and down stairs using one stick on my good side and the hand rail on the operated side. Without that I would have struggled immensly, both before and after surgery.

trish xx

Janlyn

@distantshores I too live alone and had my op on a Saturday afternoon and was told I could go home at 10.00 in the morning. I did say I was a bit scared of going so soon and they said I could stay as long as I needed. I went home on Monday afternoon and felt much more confident about getting to the bathroom and back and managed to get up and downstairs, albeit slowly.

Sleeping is difficult at first as it isn't usual for most of us to sleep on our backs. I found getting into and out of bed difficult too and I was very slow with everything. For the first couple of weeks I went to bed late at 1.00am thinking I would be tired enough to sleep but I wasn't. I got used to getting up at 5.00am and sitting propped up on the sofa and found even after a coffee I went into a deep sleep for a couple of hours. Looking back I seemed to be over the worst and coping so much better after a couple of weeks. I never had a raised toilet seat or raised furniture as my surgeon said the risk of dislocation is low with how they operate. He prefers us to get used to coping then when we go out we can manage with public toilets, cafes and other people's homes. But best to follow your own surgeon's guidance there.

I would say try to organise as best you can but don't worry about changing your mind when you get home. Some things may well be easier than you fear. I do understand how anxious you are about it all but after having my hip replaced December 2023 I have just had a trip to Greece and one around Scandinavia in the last few weeks. I managed so well and realised how difficult trips over the last few years had become and how much pain and discomfort I had been in - it had come on over a number of years and I had got used to coping. I feel very grateful to have got my life back and if I had to do it all again I would have done it earlier.

I was given injections, which I dreaded, but actually managed, although I was glad when they were finished, and aspirin. I had been dreading the stockings as I really didn't know how I would have got them on, but I wasn't given them - maybe as I live alone. Regarding antibiotics I'm really not sure but I think I will have been given them in the hospital cocktail as they are really keen we don't get infections which can go to our wound site.

If you read some of the diaries on here you will see we've all been scared but seem to bounce back quicker than we thought we would.

Take care and ask any questions you have along the way.

sarach

@distantshores

My bathroom is also downstairs and I was equipped with a commode for my bedroom. Made life a lot easier, take your time with stairs or as suggested get a 2nd handrail.

I really do hope all goes well for you. Xx

distantshores

@Trish9556 I have a handrail on both sides of the stairs - I had it fitted last year. I think the sofa is OK - I can lie flat on my back. I will ask if they can put something to raise it up a bit.

@Janlyn the surgeon said they might keep me a bit longer as I live on my own. I'm going to Greece on my own mid September and have chosen carefully where to stay so I have easy access to things. I have also booked the catamaran to go from one island to the other so I don't have to go up and down stairs on a rocking boat! My sister has had both hips replaced and we flew to South East Asia 5/6 months after the op.

@sarach - I don't think I'll get a commode as someone would have to empty it and I don't like the idea of that.

It's the op I'm terrified of and the immediate aftermath if I survive the op. I'm terrified of hospitals and operations. Might have to get some sedatives in the week before.

shacklock25

Sarach. I had my hip done three weeks ago and I was terrified of the operation as I've never been in hospital before. I also have a lot of allergies. However, it wasn't as bad as I had feared. The anaesthetist was lovely. I had a spinal block and didn't feel a thing when he did it. I had asked not to have sedation, but my blood pressure was up and the surgeon said it could cause more bleeding when he opened me up. So I agreed to light sedation and I was fine. I must have slept because when they said the operation was over I couldn't remember it happening. I thought I'd only been in there for a few minutes but it was an hour later. They took me to the recovery room where I stayed for half an hour. I was a bit shivery but that's all. When I got back to the ward they made me a cup of tea, and then I waited for the anaesthetic to wear off which took about three hours in all. It wears off from the stomach downwards. I had my lunch and then in the afternoon the physio came and asked me if I could feel my feet which I could and when I stood up they were fine. She gave me a walking frame and I walked round the room. The next day she had me walking up and down a step with the crutches. For me the worst part was having to take tablets such as antibiotics which don't normally suit me. But they weren't too bad. I didn't need morphine at all although they gave me some. My pain wasn't bad at all, and within three days of the operation I didn't need any more pain killers. My leg is still swollen and my ankles but that can happen after the operation. I am now walking half an hour a day in installments (ten minutes each time) plus doing all the exercises. My stomach has recovered from the antibiotics and I'm eating well. It is a long recovery period but each week there is improvement. Before the op I couldn't straighten my leg out and now I can, and I can also stand up straight which I couldn't before. So don't worry too much. I'm sure you will be fine.

KC1

my biggest worry, as others will testify to, was a fear of dislocation. Everyone who responded to my concerns were so positive and supportive it really helped me gird myself for the operation.

One of the things I’ve noticed about us ‘hippies’ is we all wished we’d had the operation sooner rather than later. Even just 11 days post op the difference pre and post op is amazing. No limp, no pain just a bit of tenderness where the wound is but that’s decreasing each day.

I was concerned about stairs. I have ones that go around a corner and double back on themselves. The stairs on the turn are narrower at one end and can be tricky to navigate. I only have 2 short sections of handrail so the physio showed me the 2 crutch method for getting up and down. I was nervous the first couple of times and I still am careful and take my time but I feel less anxious now.

As others have suggested go at your own pace, with what you feel comfortable with and ready to do. It sounds like you enjoy life and would like to enjoy it even more. Find your inner brave.

All the very best to you