Muscle Repair - My Perspective

10.5 months since I had my abductors re-attached to my leg.  I'd like to say that I had wild dreams of strutting down the street in high heels by now, but I think we all knew that wasn't going to happen!  My more modest dream of just walking without my stick is yet to materialise too.  I'm still hopeful though.

I think the recovery from the muscle repair took much longer than any of us thought.  Six weeks on two crutches and then a further few weeks on one crutch did nothing for my residual muscle tone (and metabolism!).  If possible, I seem to have lost a little more function as my quadriceps muscle has taken to doing EVERYTHING and now I can't stop it from taking over.  After 10.5 months I cannot lift my operated leg from a lying position and I was just able to do so prior to the muscle repair.  So.... I don't know what happened there?

The way I see it, right now, I am no better or worse than I was prior to the muscle repair surgery.  I'm hoping that in time, with continuous exercise, something might improve.  I've already accepted my stick as one cool accessory (I can get the last packet of pasta from the back of the massive supermarket shelves with that bad boy lol!).  My funky walk is something else - I'm disappointed that it doesn't seem to be evening out, but as long as I don't catch my reflection in a window or mirror, I'm mainly okay with it.

Anyways, as is becoming my mantra - I am still in NO PAIN.  That I am so so thankful for!

I have heard that some muscle repair surgeries can actually induce pain in the muscle due to scar tissue formation.  I either have massive nerve damage and just can't feel it (possible considering my (in)ability to notice how far advanced my osteoarthritis was?) or the repair did go well and scarring was minimal.  I'm going to go with the latter, psychologically more optimistic... ;o)

Related posts of interest:

• Ultrasound Results
• Injection fun
• 6 weeks, now walk

Memorable day

This is the date 5yrs ago I had my triple pelvic osteotomy.

This is the date 1yr ago I had my x-ray/CT scan that announced my osteotomy had failed.

If you asked me then if I'd be sat here 5yrs later with a bionic hip, I'd have said you better be kidding me cos I'm not going through THAT again! But here I am, 7mths on with a new hip and better than I ever was after the osteotomy.

If I knew this was going to happen would I have still had the osteotomy? Yes. The joint needed to be put in a better position and it did give me 3ish years pain relief, better than nothing and having an artificial hip at 27 right? Yes.

Having two major hip surgeries before the age of 32, not ideal. But better than living with osteoarthritis at age 32 (or indeed, 22 when I first noticed something was amiss).

Feeling very reflective this evening, but not in a bad way :o)

No rest for the pain patient

I've just this weekend returned from a glorious weeks holiday in Spain. It was bliss - the heat was great, the food was better, and I was off my feet for most of the week! Normally being off my feet would help any hip aches and pains, but not this time. And arriving back into the beginning of autumnal UK weather yesterday has left my hip joint screaming at me (because I can't think of anything else that could have set it off? I haven't been out anywhere except the supermarket).

I'm beginning to think that I might have a bigger problem that anticipated. I know I will just have to wait until I see my orthopod and there's no point in speculating until the point where I wind myself up mentally. There's not much to be done about it right now - except rest and light exercise (time to put the dancing shoes away til next time eh? ;o)). It's in these moments that I just want to ask him to resurface or replace the joint because I'm fed up to the back teeth of the constant ache (inbetween the severe pain of putting your full weight through the joint when walking). I'm stubborn and refuse to use an aid - it has crossed my mind, but I also know that its a slippery slope to becoming dependent.

I was given a 70% chance of my PAO (periacetabular osteotomy) working out for me long term - 4 yrs on and I'm thinking I may fall in the 30%. I was informed that the procedure of reshaping the femur head in addition to the PAO has only been done in a handful of people in the world and in the last 5 yrs (prior to my surgery in 2005). But the PAO couldn't have been done without reshaping the femur head as it had aquired a strange compressed ovaloid shape, presumably from the hip socket being so shallow and flattening it slowly over time. Also, if I didn't correct the postition on the socket within the pelvis, I might not be eligible for a resurfacing in the future as often a hip dysplasia requires the resurfacing ball and socket combined with a pin (see picture). As far as I know the pin to to aid stability and allow bone growth into that area, thus covering the prostheses better.


Fingers crossed something can be done when I visit my orthopod. The way it feels right now, I'd probably agree to anything!