The saga of my hip....

So, long story short, I've had torn cartilage in my hip for the past 8 months. It happened when I had GYN surgery and was under anesthesia. It's painful as all get out. It catches when I sit, but is especially painful when I get out of a sitting position as the frayed end of the cartilage gets caught between the socket and the hip bone.

I saw a specialist at Stanford last week, who does arthroscopic hip surgery. (There are not many docs who do this...only like 11 in the nation). He said I was not a good candidate for the arthroscopic hip surgery, less than 20% chance of success. He recommended a total hip replacement.

Now, I knew I had arthritis in that hip ... I found out after the cartilage tear. It was totally asymptomatic before the tear. But, according to my orthopedist, it's not that bad. He doesn't think a total hip replacement is necessary. He wants to save the hip. I'm all for the least invasive method possible. But...

So, what do we do? The pain is horrid...often debilitating at times. There are times I literally have to lie down for an hour or more, even on pain pills, to get the pain to subside enough for me to be able to walk. It's affecting every area of my life. I'm not a whiner. I have a high tolerance for pain but this thing is knocking me out.

So, today, the ortho and I decided to try a cortisone injection into the hip. If it works, it relieves the pain and buys me time. If it doesn't, well, then we'll figure out a plan B. The injection has to be done at an outpatient surgery center because it's guided by fluoroscope. We'll set it up for early next month.

Wish me luck.....