Hip joint replacement

SillyJilly

I’ve recently been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in both hips and lower back. I’m affected quite badly in one hip and find walking difficult. Surgery was not suggested at my GP appointment. What has been other people’s experience with this? Is it something you yourself have to push for?

noddingtonpete

Hello @SillyJilly and welcome to the Online Community. We are a friendly and supportive group and I hope that will be your experience as well.

Yes keep pushing - it seems the only way to get some treatment - ask why surgery is not an option.

In the meantime have a look through the following from our website.

https://www.versusarthritis.org/news/2021/november/ways-to-help-manage-hip-pain/

and

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis-oa-of-the-hip/

I hope that you get some treatment soon.

Best wishes

Peter

Trish9556

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/64187/hip-joint-replacement

Hi @SillyJilly

Have you been diagnosed via a physical examination of your hips only or have you had it confirmed by x-ray's? If no x-rays have been done you need to push your GP to have these done and then you have to push for a referral directly to a physio, msk team or indeed direct to Orthopaedics. If your GP refuses you need to see another within the surgery or change surgery. Unfortunately there are too many GP's who don't recognise arthritis and a lot of us, including me, have been told 'Mrs B you have arthritis, you should be used to living in pain, theres nothing I can do'.

I had my first one done last year after going through the tick box exercise of referrals to msk team after xrays and then to a surgeon. If you are in England, you can currently choose any hospital in the country for your treatment and my physio referred me to our local private hospital, paid for by the nhs, which was the hospital with the shortest waiting list of a couple of months instead of a couple of years.

There are lots of threads and advice on hips and hip surgery if you search on the magnifying glass and we are all willing to help and answer any questions you may have.

Good luck

Trish

Bryony

Good advice from Trish.

However although supposedly being able to being able to choose any hospital in England it isn't as simple as that. You'll probably only be given up to 5 on your e-referral, the most local ones. If you want one outside that area it can be difficult. Different areas use different booking systems, even when under the same ICB (integrated care board)

I discovered this having chosen to go a bit outside my area (but still in the county I live in). In my case this was for knee replacements, and I wanted to have the option of partial knee replacements, which in my immediate area was extremely unlikely due to very few surgeons being trained in it (only do circa 7%, compared with the area I chose which does circa 45%). I was treated as a third-class citizen as a result - seen as a nuisance increasing their waiting lists, and they went to very great lengths to try to force me off their lists - delay after delay after delay. They eventually won - I've had to go elsewhere and start at the bottom of the waiting list again, because I ended up with zero trust in them due to their deliberate delaying tactics over 2 years.

Also in my area it seems almost impossible to learn the actual waiting times. We just get told the median times for orthopaedic treatment, not for hip or knee replacements specifically, and they bear no relationship to the actual waits. My GP practice is in despair over this.

Bryony

Just to add. Yes, you often have to push for this. Interestingly, research has shown that joint replacements are often discussed at an earlier stage of osteoarthritis with men than with women.

Trish9556

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/732487#Comment_732487

@Bryony

I read an interesting article in the March Versus Arthritis email on the inequality of the Gender Pain Gap and women with arthritis linked below.

Seen but not heard: how the Gender Pain Gap affects women with arthritis | Versus Arthritis

Maybe we should all print this out and hand it to our GP's!

Trish

Bryony

Thanks for highlighting that recent article.

jen_1709

I recently saw a MSK specialist after MRI X-rays and ultrasound . Mild osteoarthritis in left but moderate in right . I’ve been put onto a waiting list but I’m pushing for an operation as soon as possible as struggling to walk, some days worse than others . Had pain since 2022 . Don’t leave it as may get a lot worse .