My Right Hip

Fight Negative Press with Facts

myrighthip — Mon, 10 May 2010 14:43:26 +0000

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

myrighthip — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:34:16 +0000

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

myrighthip — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:27:40 +0000

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

myrighthip — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 16:43:26 +0000

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.

I am still, however, a work in progress. My operated leg is still weaker and less flexible than my other side, but the differential is decreasing, and my wife still detects a slight limp. I occasionally feel a clicking in my hip, which apparently is loose tendons rubbing against body parts. But my hip no longer buckles, as it did prior to surgery, and my confidence in resuming activity is growing.

The second day of playing tennis, for example, I was more comfortable pushing off on my operated leg and putting my full weight on it when stroking the ball. I was crawling around the garage roof yesterday fixing our bicycle hoop, which is something I would definitely not have tried a month ago.

One of the downsides of the surgery, in fact, is that I no longer have a good excuse for not doing chores, like gutter cleaning, etc. The price we pay.

Back to Hospital for Special Surgery

myrighthip — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 14:15:41 +0000

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.

I have been religiously doing my lateral leg lifts. They are still no fun, but they are effective. My gluteus maximus, the big but muscle that wraps around to the side of the hip, is definitely getting stronger, and making it easier for me to get up from the mat in Aikido or do standing poses in yoga. I still do not have the same range of motion on my operated side, but it is getting better.

Lateral Leg Lifts

myrighthip — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:48:19 +0000

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.

I did, and they help. Every morning for the past four weeks, I have strap a five-pound weight onto my ankle and lift my operated leg 40 to 50 times until I cannot do any more. I have much greater strength in my leg now than I did before. Surprise surprise.

I guess I thought that I did not use the muscles on the side of my leg as much as I do. After all, how often do you lift your leg sideways. But apparently, those muscles are recruited all the time, especially when you bend forward or sideways.

I have found getting up and down from the mat in Aikido much easier since beginning my morning routine, and the side-bending poses in yoga are much more accessible.

Let’s get lateral.

NYT Cautions About Hip Resurfacing

myrighthip — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 12:41:33 +0000

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

myrighthip — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:44:18 +0000

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.

My strength felt good on the mat, but rolling on my operated hip was a little awkward. I am trying to make a class this weekend and will try to remember to update quickly.

The better I get the less I post. That is a good thing.

Slow and Steady

myrighthip — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:40:32 +0000

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. The Yoga exercise that is most difficult now is Warrior 3. You balance on my leg and put you torso, arms, and other leg parallel to the ground. I don’t seem to have the strength or flexibility to fully support myself. All the exercises that require bending over the operated leg are also challenging, but they are getting slightly easier.

NYT Blogs on Hip Resurfacing

myrighthip — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:17:51 +0000

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.