UKC

I have just been diagnosed as having arthritis in my hip.I am fairly sure that alpine climbing will be a big no no but will rock climbing be okay. Also what will the recovery timescale likely to be?

In reply to clp123:

If you have no complications, you could be climbing after 12 weeks. What makes you think that you could no longer do Alpine Climbing?

In reply to clp123:

As Geoff says no reason to think alpine climbing is a no no. I continued with no problems. For rock climbing return to climbing can be very rapid but that entirely depends on the state of your muscles immediately BEFORE the op. It's to your advantage to have the replacement sooner than later - though from experience I know it's hard to commit yourself to a fairly big operation while still being able to function, albeit with pain. My return to rock climbing was six weeks - with the blessing of the surgeon who is a climber himself. Others on previous threads on the subject have been given far longer recovery periods by their surgeons. Seems it's very much up to the personal views of each surgeon. A quick search on here will throw these threads up and I'm sure they'll answer a lot of your questions/worries. One thing for sure is it will NOT hold you back in any way - on the contrary.

In reply to clp123:

Get it done sooner rather than later! My mum had her hip replaced when she was 48 and after a year or so of strengthening the muscles again she still does yoga, pilates and skis. Her doctor didn't recommend doing any of these activities but because she was young (for a hip replacement) she recovered quickly and the muscles around the hip came back stronger than ever!

In reply to clp123:

You don't say what age you are which can have a bearing on the timescales.

I'm 54 and had a full replacement on my right hip last 25th Nov. Here's my timescale:
Mon 25th: 1130 went in to hospital; 1330 went in to theatre; 1515 out of theatre; 1600 on ward.
Tues 26th: 0900 physio - five minutes on zimmer frame (physio asked if I'd been doing my standing exercises to which I replied I did a 40 mile bike ride on Sunday) straight on to crutches and told to walk around the ward as much as I could. 1300 physio returns to show me how to tackle stairs. 1400 surgeon says I can go home. 1700 get picked up by my wife.

Next two weeks was the hardest as you have to lie on your back to sleep and let the muscles knit back together. By mid December I could lie on my non-operated side (I used a pillow between my knees to stop me doing sudden movements in bed).

After two weeks I only needed one crutch indoors but used two outside as people notice it more. Was walking round the block (about 2 miles!).

By Christmas I didn't need crutches indoors and only needed one outside.

5th Jan was 6 week follow-up appointment with surgeon who gave me the all-clear to ride a bike again but I decided to stay just on the turbo trainer to begin with. Could lie on my operated side.

By mid to end Jan I wasn't bothering using a crutch at all.

Feb went outside on the bike for the first time and have been building up mileage/fitness ever since. I can now comfortably tie my shoelaces on the right foot which was a real and painful struggle before the op.

As for what you can do, my surgeon reckoned I'd be able to run again - I've done short stints like running for the train which I simply hadn't been able to do for several years.

Summary: Get it done! The short term inconvenience of being laid up for a few weeks is nothing compared to the gains you'll get afterwards. Think of it like going to get a tooth taken out - you know it'll hurt but once the socket heals up it's never going to bother you again.

In reply to clp123:

Thanks everybody all very positive I was thinking of delaying it for as long as I could but I have decided to just go for it

In reply to clp123:

Do you know if its replacement or resurface? Good luck anyhow.

In reply to Bob:

Did they give you an idea of how long before it would need redoing? I know they used to wear out after a while, but don't know if things have improved since my inlaw had hers done some while ago

In reply to toad:

They last at least 20 years, as a rule, but there are exceptions. And, of course the data is based on hip replacements that are 20 years old. While not a huge amount has changed in the interim, some (but definitely not all) of the modern devices might be expected to last longer.
It's important to discuss with the surgeon what sort of activity you will be getting up to - there are devices that are better for active people. Jon likely knows more about this aspect than I do.

If your surgeon says that you will be severely constrained - run, don't walk, to another surgeon while you still can!

In reply to toad:

Fifteen to twenty years. But it's a guess really as I suppose it depends what you do and how the bones around the implant react or deteriorate. Also I had what they refer to as a triple (see the shot here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hip_replacement ) : tungsten insert in to the femur; ceramic ball screwed on to the top of that; plastic socket inserted in to the pelvis. The idea is that if ball or socket wear out then it's easier to replace.

The main difference that I was able to determine is in the size of the ball and socket. A natural femur head is between 40mm and 50mm in diameter whereas the artificial ones are much smaller, typically around 20mm. The size of the head is a trade-off: a smaller diameter wears better but is more likely to dislocate; for larger diameters it's the opposite. I think surgeons tend to settle on one size that gives them (and the patients) fewest problems down the line, my surgeon stated "we use 28mm here".

Even though at the initial consultancy he winced when I said I'd done a lot of fell-running he still said that I'd be able to run again. I know one local runner who is back on the fells who has had both hips and a knee replaced. Quite how long all that lot will last ...

I think the usual post-op regimen is an x-ray every five years. Reminds me - can't wait to go through the security scanners at airports!

In reply to clp123:

As others have said, there is no reason why this should hold you back.

I had mine done in late 2012 when I was 31 years old as a result of an accident in the alps. Jon, who has replied above, very graciously gave me some excellent advice which did much to reassure me that the operation would not mean the end of my outdoor pursuits.

Due to circumstances I had a slightly longer recovery than some others on here; basically a year of doing very little. However, I have skied 80 odd days this season with no problems whatsoever and intend to climb in the Alps in the summer. There are a few concessions that I have made, for example not doing big drop offs etc on skis, but these are relatively minor.

You don't mention your age but, if you're young, then I would look at the various options for more active people. I had a mid head resection which is someway between a resurfacing and a full replacement and allows for more activity. Most hip replacement patients are older and 'recovery' for them is returning to shopping in Tescos and playing with the grandkids. Definitely worth finding a surgeon and a procedure that understands your future intentions.

Feel free to PM me if you want any more info.

In reply to pneame:

On the subject of different types of prostheses, resurfacing is popular in the UK but not in France. My initial choice was a resurfacing but I had to go with a THR here. An advantage of a resurfacing is the larger diameter which apparently gives more range of motion. A disadvantage is the metal-to-metal nature of it which has issues (more or less) with metal residue in the body. This might well be overstated but Geoff will know more about that.

One of the big problems with THRs is that of dislocation. The THR that I had uses a type that is more and more popular in France for active people and is known as 'double mobilité' and is virtually impossible to dislocate (I've tried and failed!). It has a double cup that the ball sits in and has a much larger range of mobility.

There is also the nature of the operation to consider - exactly where the incision is and whether it is minimally invasive or not - a 7cm incision against a 20cm one - there are advantages and disadvantages of both.

I can only reiterate, get it done sooner rather than later. It is after all only the muscles that need nursing back to health - the joint is already 'run-in' and ready to go - and obviously if they are in good nick immediately before the op then they will require less convalescence afterwards.

In reply to jon:

I've had both hips done, one a resurfacing the other a full (ceramic) replacement. In both cases I was climbing again (without falling) after 5-6 weeks. Since then I've pulled sleds in Alaska, climbed North Face of the Droites etc so don't worry about not being able to Alpine climb. Again I would say don't wait too long. You are better going into the op as light and fit as possible. You will need to push very hard at the rehab to get maximum benefit, e.g I was walking 8 miles with stick within 10 days of my last op.