Diagnostic and Therapeutic

I went and saw the Orthopedist Wednesday. We decided to try a Lidocain + Cortisone shot in my hip to confirm that the pain I was having was coming from the joint and not from the surrounding soft tissue. I got in that afternoon, had the shot, and yes, 90% or better of the pain was gone. AMAZING! So, that's what it would feel like if I got a total hip replacement?

Sign me up!

So, in April I'm scheduled to get a new hip. And in the process, I hope to get back to walking w/out a limp, being interested in walking more than 10 yards at a time, getting in and out of the car w/out wincing, and getting back on the horse. In the meantime, I'll keep swimming so I have a good start for my rehabilitation post-op.

My X-Ray shows the arthritis. You can see how the lines are parallel on my right (normal) hip, and how they diverge in the left hip. Apparently the deformed socket (acetabulum) and the missing cartilage on the femoral head are pushing the head of the femur out laterally. So, although the injection is making my hip feel better, it's only a short term pain reliever, not a fix.

And this is the most likely brand of implant that will be used. It's a modular one, making it easier to fit my deformed hip so everything can be aligned properly. When I asked about getting the rest of the hardware removed, I was told that the more muscle and tissue that was dissected away, the more loose and prone to dislocation my hip would be. And besides, when they were taking my screws out in December, the plate was well contoured to my bone, there was bone growing over it, and good thick tissue on top of that. Making it unlikely that the rest of the hardware could be giving me any trouble. After getting the injection, I'm inclined to believe that.