Re: Re: Leg Length/Pelvic Tilt

[Guest guest]

Harriet:

You might look into seeing Dr. Mont. They do a complete gait analysis

prior to surgery if they think they need to. It is done because it helps

them decide if there is anything else going on that they need to address in

the surgery. I arrived a day early to have the tests done. I believe it

took about 3 hours.

Hope this helps.

Lois

C+ 3/27/03 Dr. Mont

Re: Leg Length/Pelvic Tilt

Thanks Edith,

I feel pretty certain that all my aches and pains are related to

having a bad hip and a bad gait. I am a bit confused about what

doctors have told me, but I think they have at least implied that

everything would get better if I went ahead and had the surgery.

All of the pain is in different joints. And I too have wrist pain.

I had a test for RA but it was negative. I have an appointment set

up Dr. Vail in NC in July and hopefully he will explain things a

little better than others have.

All the best,

Harriet

In surfacehippy , " ecrow " wrote:

> Hi Harriet,

>

> Welcome to the group and you do indeed sound like you have some

serious

> health hassles.

>

> When you say you are hurting from head to toe down one side, is

this each

> joint or do you have more of that bursitis in other parts? Have

doctors

> given you a reasonable explanation of why it is down your thigh

and why the

> body is reacting in this fashion out of the left hip?

>

> Other areas of the body do get upset about any joint not

functioning as it

> should. My left hip was fused and as a result my left knee, right

shoulder,

> and a lot of spine were damaged along with worn areas on the right

hip, left

> ankle and believe it or not left wrist........never been able to

quite work

> out how left wrist fitted into the story.............. maybe just

getting

> out of chairs etc.

>

> Most of these areas have slowly settled with a lot of work done to

> strengthen them and easing of the stress placed on them. I may

still be up

> for a right hip replacement and my back will never be happy but it

functions

> much better now............ The big thing is how much damage you

have in

> real terms. i.e. if xrays are showing extensive cartledge damage

in various

> joints, that doesn't repair too well but the pain may be eased if

you use

> different angles post op and so back onto the reasonable cartledge

zone of

> the said joint and strengthen the muscles to carry more weight

around the

> said joint. I am over 50 too and noticed that this seemed to be a

signal to

> my body to develop extensive arthritis like symptoms even in the

tendons

> around stressed joints.

>

> So the trouble with leaving all these things until bone on bone is

happening

> big time in one hip, is you may have created extensive damage

elsewhere

> attempting to live any sort of life. Then the road back is far

harder, far

> more expensive in terms of correcting gait, sorting out muscles,

even

> finding them etc.- well if emails to this forum are anything to go

> on............ Which really does make me wonder why so many report

that

> their OS said to wait until everything is a mess to have a hip

replacement.

> Then again they only replace the joint, the patient gets all the

hassle with

> fixing the body up around it.

>

> Edith LBHR Dr. L Walter Syd Aust 8/02

>

>

>

> > I'm interested in all the recent discussions on leg length. I'm

52

> > and have bad OA in my R hip due to a slipped cap femoral ephysis

when

> > I was 12. While painful I don't think I'm anywhere as bad off

yet as

> > most of you have described yourselves pre surgery. I'm not bone

on

> > bone yet. My R leg is slightly shorter (less than 1/2 " and my

pelvis

> > tilts up on the left side. It's pretty obvious when I look in

the

> > mirror. I have pretty severe bursitis on my left side,

sometimes it

> > hurts if my husband just places his hand on my thigh. Actually

my

> > whole left side hurts from my head to my neck to my lower back,

down

> > to my toes.

> >

> > I've been given the impression by a few docs that all this would

go

> > away if I get my hip done. My fear is that they won't. I'd check

> > into a hospital tomorrow if this was certain. Was wondering

what you

> > all thought.

> >

> > I was scheduled to have a THR this May until, thank God, I came

> > across this website.

> >

> > I have tried some heel lifts, but can't say that it helped. I

don't

> > know if they were fitted correctly. Anyway, I would appreciate

any

> > and all advice.

> >

> > Thanks,

> > Harriet

[Guest guest]

Hi,

Dr Vail has been mentioned here before so hopefully he will sort things

through for you a little better............ It is difficult sometimes to get

definitive answers from doctors for, believe it or not, they really cannot

know how our bodies will respond 100% of the time and in this day and age of

people feeling that they can sue on the basis of feeling mislead they tend

to be even more cadgy............who could blame them. In my own experience

taking the pressure off joints will help them recover but how much they

recover and how long that takes depends on how much damage has been done and

how much effort you put into recovery. And of course the longer you leave

it, the more damage you do and so it goes on and on...................

BTW just to cheer everyone up.......... last night on TV here a woman turned

up who discovered 18 months after continually complaining of pain after a

bowel op that the surgeon had left a pair of 8 inch surgical sissors inside

her.........The sissors were jammed down against the bottom of her spine so

one can imagine how difficult life was for this poor person............. It

took the 18 months for her doctors to get around to finally accepting she

had enough pain to xray her........... only 24 hrs to do the op to remove

said sissors........... suddenly I am glad I have had my hip constantly

xrayed...........smile. And believe it or not, it is highly unlikely she

will get anything other than the free op to remove the sissors............

Laws have been changed here to make it near impossible to ask for

compensation for negligence of this nature.

Edith LBHR Dr L Walter Syd Aust 8/02

> I feel pretty certain that all my aches and pains are related to

> having a bad hip and a bad gait. I am a bit confused about what

> doctors have told me, but I think they have at least implied that

> everything would get better if I went ahead and had the surgery.

> All of the pain is in different joints. And I too have wrist pain.

> I had a test for RA but it was negative. I have an appointment set

> up Dr. Vail in NC in July and hopefully he will explain things a

> little better than others have.

>

> All the best,

> Harriet