VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Mike Harrison]

I'm waiting to hear when surgery to replace my left hip can be scheduled. It could be as soon as a couple of weeks from now.

If anyone here has had this procedure, what might you share about your experience (expectations, issues, etc.) and how your ability to work may have been impacted leading up to and after the procedure?

Comment here or privately; whichever makes you more comfortable.

Many thanks!
_________________
Mike
Male Voice Over Talent
I have taken leave of my sensors.

[todd ellis]

hi mike - not me, but my mom (she's 70). she has recently had both hips done (separately) and the recovery was pretty quick. walking with a walker the next day, progressing to a cane & on her own within a few of weeks. she says hips are a LOT easier than knees.

for what it's worth.
_________________
"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

[Bruce]

The surgery and its results get better every year. My mother-in-law had both knees done a few years ago separately, and she said the pain was less two days after surgery than before the surgery. I also know an 80-year-old doctor who played golf one week after hip replacement. Mostly I hear walking is easy soon after, but I have not heard much about what it is like to sit erect for long periods of time after surgery. You'll have to let us know.


B
_________________
VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

[Bob Bergen]

There are so many different techniques in hip replacement. If your surgeon does the lesser invasive type, which is what my mom had, she was up walking the afternoon of the surgery. Not as many surgeons do this type, and there are several factors that qualify a patient. But if I had to have a hip replacement, this is what I would do.

[vkuehn]

Apparently in both hip replacements and knee replacements, they used to go in and "chop out" the entire joint and do a full replacement with a new manufactured joint. People younger than 55 were not considered candidate for replacement because the lifespan of a mechanical replacement was about 15 years before it wore out.

Today there is a lot of movement to "relining" the existing joint, taking out the cartilage or whatever wears out and putting in what you and I might call plastic. Get it done at age 40 and then if it wears out you can have a repeat surgery later. I am amazed how quickly people are up and about with the older traditional replacement, but the new "re-lining" process has you up and about even more quickly.

This new style surgery was available in some other countries before it was approved in the U.S. Younger people who wanted the new re-linement were getting it done in Europe when we in the U.S. were still limiting the process to the traditional full replacement. There is a phrase for that: medical tourism.

My daughter works in architectural planning for hospitals and I have heard some tales about the struggle in getting these surgeons to understand the new facility needs to be designed to assume they will be doing the new relinement surgery in the future rather than the current full replacement.