Two weeks post-op...

Update...

I am now 17 days out from my 3rd and hopefully final surgery on my right hip. As I stated in my last post, the doctor feels very confident in a full recovery now - as do I!! I haven't had a lot of pain with this surgery, which no pain is always a good thing. I have even been to the gym quite a bit. Last night I did 9.25 miles on the bike in 35 minutes with a resistance level of 7!! Not bad considering everything!! I can not wait to get back to running, mountain biking, and tennis again.

I had my 2 week post-op on Thursday, June 18th. The doctor is very pleased with my progress and could not believe that I was walking without a cane! He reiterated just how large the heterotopic bone growth was. He showed me on the x-rays that it was actually covering the head of my femur bone! Holy crap - no wonder I could hardly lift my leg without getting pain and the snapping feeling. He said he could not believe how fast my body grows and repairs bone. He had never told me this before - but he said that at my 6 weeks post-op for the PAO the bone fusion was further than normal. He said that if I were to ever break my femur bone, it would probably heal very, very quickly. When I told my mom this her response was, "Renee, this is not a challenge!!"

I asked the doctor when I could start running again. His eyes got really big and he said "Hmm, I have never had anyone ask me that at 2 weeks post-op." He said that I could start trying to do everything that I want to do. I have to "practice driving" for a little while though, as that movement from gas to brake is still pretty weak. As it is, my husband is being very protective and is refusing to let me drive to work yet, so he has been bringing me to and from work. I could get use to having a chauffeur!

The only thing I am "dealing" with now is tiredness (gotta get back into the routine) and itching. The itching is driving me crazy!!! The doc put me on Indomethacin after this surgery as a precautionary measure to heed off heterotopic bone growth again. I finished up the medicine on Saturday, but am still having problems itching. My body is starting to look like a scratching post for cats! I wake up in the middle of the night because I am so itchy. I am hoping that the medicine soon works out of my system and I stop looking like a dog with fleas.

I start back to PT tomorrow. I am looking forward to it since now with the extra bone removed, I should be able to lift my leg and do the exercises. Plus my physical therapist have become friends - it's hard not to when you see this person 2-3 times a week. Plus I think you should at least be nice with the person who has to touch your bum (to feel the muscles).

I feel a lot of hope from this surgery. I truly feel that this will be the last chapter in the right hip PAO!!!

3rd Times a Charm...

I am home from the hospital. I came home Saturday morning. I am hoping that the third time is a charm and that is was my last surgery for the right hip. The doctor said that he pulled a piece of "bone" (heterotopic - scar tissue formed into bone) from me that was a little larger than his thumb. Let me tell you - he has chunky fingers. He said he was very surprised at just how large this bone was and feels that it was the cause of me not getting fully recovered and all of my pain. Wow!!! What a relief to hear that - I can't wait to start PT - to really test things out.


I am off of work for two weeks, although I will be working from home. This recovery it already a lot different from the first and second surgeries. I am able to be full weight bearing and I cam walking around the house unassisted. It feels so nice to be able to walk around the house and do the stairs. Since it is June and the weather is gorgeous, I am taking advantage of sitting outside. This is totally different from last time when I couldn't do the steps and was confined to the spare room that Doug made into a sitting room for me.

This is where I am recouping today. I am checking emails from work, resting, and doing a little knitting. I am pretty sore still. I have a huge bandage with at least an inch of gauze packed in it over my entire right hip. I am to leave that on for 5 days. I can't wait until Wednesday when I can remove it - it is so itchy.

I feel pretty good about the recovery from this one already. The doctor had me start on the stationary bike one day after my surgery to keep things moving. It is so funny to go to the gym and see the looks I get for walking in there with a cane. I seriously want to lift my shorts leg and say - look I just had surgery, so please stop starring. I requested to get my hardware from my hip. The doctor said I should receive it in 2 weeks as it has to go through pathology. That should be interesting to see the 5 screws that held me together for nine months.

Thank you to everyone for you prayers, well wishes, and good thoughts as I went through surgery. Now it is time to recover and close this chapter!!

New Surgery Date

I went to the surgeons last Thursday for my pre-op appointment. You know pre-op for the June 26th Surgery, right? Wrong! It turns out that my surgeon has to have hip surgery (ironic I know). His surgery is on June 20th. There is no way he would be able to perform my surgery just six days after his own! A lot of his surgeries are very time consuming, so they are all pushed back until July - September. My surgery is only three hours long and the doctor wants to get this hardware out because of the post-op infection I had so they wanted to squeeze me in before his surgery. My new surgery date is Friday, June 5th!!! AHHHH - that's right, this week!! I am freaking out a little. I had so many things planned between now and June 26th that I have had to cancel.

For this 3rd and hopefully final surgery on my right hip they are going to be removing the hardware, doing a scope to fix a possible labrum tear, and removing a heterotopic ossification.

Heterotopic ossification — Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a process by which the soft tissues around the hip harden into bone. This complication is more common in males than in females, and more often affects patients with other muscle or bone conditions. Patients with HO may experience hip stiffness, or may feel no discomfort at all. Patients who are known to be at high risk for HO may be given medications or radiation therapy after surgery to prevent HO from occurring. Borrowed from: http://www.uptodate.com/patients/content/topic.do?topicKey=~l/K..Sw6LW_v63G

If you have read my previous posts, you know that the doctors thought that I had a snapping Psoas tendon. However, the ultrasound and x-rays reviled that the muscle and tendons are getting "caught" on this extra piece of bone. Boy, I'll tell you if it was going to go wrong - I think it has with this RPAO. I really hope that my LPAO won't have so many complications!!!

So these next four days are going to be pretty busy trying to to prepare for this surgery!!! Wish me luck!!!