Tiff-Dysplasia: ONE MONTH POST-OP

Thursday, October 22, 2009

ONE MONTH POST-OP

I CANNOT BELIEVE IT HAS BEEN ONE MONTH!!!!!!!!

I have officially hit the one month mark although it really seems like longer, I guess that is what sitting in the house day after day will do to you.

Sitting here thinking about the past month, it has been a lot easier than I originally thought it would be I think my friends, family and WESLEY have played a huge role in my cheerful recovery. They have kept me grounded and my spirits high ;)

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
* I can get out of bed and go to the bathroom all by myself
* I can take a shower and get dressed by myself
* I am now using only crutches
* I can get up and down the stairs ( not the normal way) I have to sit down and schooch up and down the stairs mostly because I don't want to risk falling.
*I have lost 21lbs ;)
* I can lift my leg up to about 90 degrees and put it straight out in front of me
*I can sit in a chair for about 4 hours max (before surgery about 2 hours was max)
* I have gone to Target 3 times ;)
* I get out and about around 4 times a week
* my friend Shirra and her mother took me to the fair
*I have been on a date with Wesley!!!!!
* My incision is almost scab free, I have started putting Vitamin E oil on it
* Muscle spasms have started and at times can be pretty intense so I take a 750mg Vicodin which seems to help
* I attempted to lay on my right side last night, that lasted around 15 minutes and I realized that was a bad mistake after doing it, ooooo how I long to lay on my side but I guess that will come soon enough.
* I have hung out with my co-workers three times in the past two weeks!!!

I would like to thank all the friends and family who have made this recovery as painless as possible. I have gotten out quite a bit in the past two weeks which has truly helped raise my spirits.

Here is my incision at one month post-op!!!!!

I will update again soon!!!!!!

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HELPFUL DEFINITIONS

Hip dysplasia
Hip dysplasia is a congenital condition in which the ball and socket joint don't fit together the way they should. In my case, the socket is too shallow, which causes uneven pressure on the joint, a premature breakdown of cartilage and early osteoarthritis.
PAO surgery
involves cutting the pelvis in a few places and screwing it back together in a way that makes the socket joint less shallow and more accepting of the ball joint. It's meant to preserve the hip and prevent further arthritis and pain. A PAO is not a hip replacement, which is not ideal for people my age because they only last 10 years or so and require additional surgeries for revisions.
Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI)
previously termed acetabular rim syndrome, is a major factor in early development of osteoarthritis of the hip. This syndrome is caused by abnormal contact between the osseous protrusions of the acetabulum and the femur during hip joint movement.1 In patients with femoroacetabular impingement, repetitive microtrauma from the osseous impingement leads to recurring irritation, degenerative changes of the labrum, and ultimately irreversible cartilaginous damage. Femoroacetabular impingement tends to involve young, active patients and can be debilitating. Femoroacetabular impingement is often bilateral, but may be symptomatic on only one side. Femoroacetabular impingement is diagnosed and classified into two types, pincer and cam, by the clinical and radiologic presentation. However, most cases of femoroacetabular impingement are a combination of the two subtypes.Pincer impingement is caused by acetabular overcoverage with normal femoral head sphericity. The pincer effect is the linear contact between a normal neck and an overcovering acetabular rim, which can lead to labral damage. Pincer impingement is more common in middle-aged women with abnormalities of acetabular morphology.
Hip Labral Tear
The other name of hip labral tear is Acetabular Labral Tear. Labral tears frequently takes place in the front and top segments of the labrum. Hip labral (labrum) tear is a medical condition within the hip where a sort of cartilage takes place. The damage to the cartilage inside the socket of the hip joint makes your thighbone less stable inside the joint. Because of this complication the fluid may leak from the joint which may result with a friction in your hip. The cartilage is important for the hip joint for stability. The cartilage cushions the hip joint providing mobility to a person by giving autonomy and flexibility for movement.
Heterotopic Ossification
is the process by which bone tissue forms outside of the skeleton. Heterotopic ossifications will develop in 10% to 80% of cases with varying severity after surgery or trauma to the hip and lower legs. About every third patient who has to face heterotopic ossification following total hip arthoplasty (replacement) or severe fracture of the long bones of the lower extremities will develop pain and dysfunction resulting from extensive heterotopic ossification. Heterotopic ossification jeopardizes functional outcome, impairs rehabilitation and is costly because of secondary surgical procedures. Pain first arises a few days after surgery with calcified structures appearing as blurred contours on x-rays at 3 to 6 weeks postoperatively. Patients with heterotopic ossification after a previous hip arthoplasty are at greatest risk of developing additional heterotopic ossification, with incidence between 50% and 90%