Doctors appointment went great. He was very pleased with his work! So much so he had to show us the xrays.
He put 3 screws in which he will NOT remove. This is surprising to me but he said there is no point and the head of screws are buried deep.
Looking at the xray, the bone is knitting together very well and fairly quickly. He said the osteotomy is filling in well. He wants me to start putting weight on just my toes. As much weight until I feel pain. I am also looking for a recumbent bike to use for PT. He wants me to start with o resistance and not push knees up very high.
I am working on using crutches as well as the walker. I am also practicing on going up and down the stairs.
I will say, I over did it yesterday and my tail bone for some reason is still sore as heck. I need to watch it and find a happy medium or I could get myself in trouble.
I am also working on cutting my down on my long lasting medications. I only take those at night after I get done working for the day.
I finally took a shower the other day as well. Very very wonderful. It felt good and I don't feel or look quite as scroungy as was!!
I ALSO FINISHED MY NEW BOOK!! It wasn't as good as I had hoped but it was alright. I am going to start another Dan Simmons book "The Terror". Its about a failed Alaskan expedition in the 1800's.
Take it easy and I will talk to you soon.
About Me
- Greg Gilbert
- I am a 49 year old Father of two boys and married to the most patient person in the world. I currently am an International Account Manager for a privately held manaufacturer.
Selfie
I am Sick
3 comments:
Hey Greg,
Every doctor is different in their "preference" about taking screws out or not. I insisted my OS take mine out when I had continued problems...because the screws can, from what I had been told, make "black holes" on the MRI and make them unuseful if one does have continued problems like I did. So I insisted he yank them out before they grew in place so much that they might not come out (which is always a possibility, too). I think the earliest I've heard of them taking the screws out is at about a year post-PAO...mine came out 11 months post-op, which was my 4th hip surgey and 3rd post-PAO already. (yeah, i know...lucky me)
It is GREAT things are going so well for you! As far as the knee "buckling," I've read before that is a feeling that one might get because of the rectus femoris being injured/etc. That is ONE of the muscles they "reflect off" during surgery and re-attach. You might want to discuss that with your OS if he didn't cover all that stuff with you (mine didn't either...I read about everything myself in books and on my op report). I would recommend, from a patient's perspective, to keep a close eye on things and document any issues you experience so if needed, you can refer back to your notes with your OS.
Also, the thigh pain you have, if it is lateral then it could be meralgia paresthetica...but if it is anterior, it could be a referred issue from the rectus femoris (which is where it runs...from the hip, down the front of the thigh, to the knee). I know all of my (many) issues weren't all that common and I certainly don't want to scare you (sorry if I have) but I won't go into anymore details...just recommend watching things.
Keep moving forward, one step (literally) at a time! And remember: SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE!
Let me know if I can help in any way...I've got LOTS of links to all this stuff if there is something particular you need to find.
SHC
Oh, by the way...as far as screw removal (known as "hardware removal" or HWR) was good it was done in my case because I have needed numerous repeat MRA's since my PAO 3 years ago, although inconclusive, and wound up with a total of 7 hip surgeries on mine...5 of which have been post-PAO.
But like I said, my issues were not "common" and, as my new OS has stated to me, was just my "dumb luck" to have them all.
A 'lil inspiration...
http://congenitallychallenged.wordpress.com/2009/06/05/keep-walking-tall/
Post a Comment