Fight Negative Press with Facts

Smith & Nephew held a news conference over the weekend to counter some of the negative press over hip resurfacing. Check it out.

There is Hope

I am coming up on my six-month anniversary of surgery. I now take advanced Yoga classes, which is not something I did prior to surgery. I am bicycling 8 miles each way to work a couple times a week, which is something I did before but now I am faster. (A new bicycle helps.) I also am back to taking Aikido classes and not struggling to get up off the mat after I am thrown.

For all these things, I can thank hip resurfacing surgery.

I Buried the Lead Yesterday

My bad: I should have mentioned that yesterday, on my ride to work, I fell on my operated hip–and I did not even think about it until later in the day. As I was approaching my first red light, I kicked my left foot out of the clip in order to maintain balance when I came to a stop. For reasons still unknown, I tilted to the right before stopping and my right foot stayed connected to my pedal. I landed solidly on my right elbow and hip. My right elbow still hurts. The hip feels fine–my bicycle is fine, too.

Thanks for asking.

Checking In

Posts to this blog have declined as the condition of my hip improves. Last week, I went out on three bicycle rides, each a little more or less than 20 miles. This weekend, I went to an advanced Yoga class and played tennis twice–not hard-core singles but fairly easy back-and-forth rallying. Today, I bicycled 7.5 miles to work, which means I have a 7.5 mile return trip.

Back to Hospital for Special Surgery

I returned to the scene of the operation on Friday. A neighbor had his hip replaced, not resurfaced, at the Hospital for Special Surgery on Wednesday, so I stopped by for a visit. He’s in his mid to late 60s but looked like he was much stronger than I was two day post surgery. He did not have any of the nausea, dizziness, or headaches that I had, and was having no problem walking around on crutches. Needless to say, I was jealous.

Lateral Leg Lifts

I blew it. During the first couple months of recovery, I did not religiously do lateral leg lifts because they were boring. When I went to see Dr. Su for my three month follow up, he detected a slight limp and recommended that I resume them.

NYT Cautions About Hip Resurfacing

The New York Times weighs in on the debris created by metal-on-metal bearings. Let’s just say that the hip resurfacing listserv will be going a little crazy today.

Aikido Class, Four Months after Surgery

I forgot to post here that I went to three Aikido classes last week. I guess it is good that I considered it relatively uneventful that it did not merit a mention. I went slow in the classes and practiced with people who would not throw me around too hard.

Slow and Steady

My strength is continuing to improve. I have been doing with the lateral leg raises with a 3 or 4 pound weight since my appointment with Dr. Su a few weeks ago. I had avoided that exercise because it is boring, but it does targetthe muscles on the side that were cut open during surgery. Flexibility is also much better, but the progress is gradual.

NYT Blogs on Hip Resurfacing

NYT readers sent in some unusual questions, and the surgeon did not give the clearest answers for a lay audience, but the piece is worth reading nonetheless.