One of my friends has two new hips - one is a better one for riding, tho than the other. She is so happy to be out of pain she has a whole new life.
However - you will not fall off. You will not fall off. You will ride very conservatively and have a suitable horse for taking care of you, who you will lunge before riding if you are at all in doubt - (I hope!)
None of my business, but I’d find another doc who does the minimally invasive anterior approach and get a second opinion before you have the surgery. “Maybe” your doc thinks that’s what’s best for you because that’s the only method he does and he’s not trained in the other approach, which requires a years training, and specialized equippment. On the other hand, you might have a hip problem that requires traditional surgery.
I sought out someone who did the anterior approach. There were only two docs in Maryland at the time. I needed no physical therapy, they cut no muscles, I could feed the horses in six weeks, drive in two weeks, and ride in four months.
Best of luck to you.
Hi Bank of Dad–I appreciate the info and will consider it. I do think, though, that I will likely end up sticking with my current surgeon and his recommendation.
Although he calls his procedure a posterior approach, perhaps he does something a bit different because he has done the same procedure on several people I know personally and they’ve recovered very quickly. He is very experienced and is the surgeon that many others refer patients to when they have a difficult or unusual case. He does about 500 hip replacements and resurfacing surgeries per year so he can probably do these in his sleep. I feel very confident that my hip is in safe hands; I’ve done a lot of checking around and I haven’t heard of anyone else I would feel as confident with. I’ve also met with him a bunch of times while I tried conservative treatment, so I know him and he knows me.
He told me that I would be on hip restrictions for 6 weeks, be able to take full care of my horses any time after that, and be able to start riding at 3 months. I know 2 others who haven’t had any problems following his recovery protocol, although one had to wait a little longer than 3 months to be able to comfortably sit astride.
But, I do appreciate the suggestion. I know I will be behind the anterior approach people for the first few weeks, but I think I will end up at the same place shortly thereafter.
[QUOTE=Bank of Dad;5989825]
I could feed the horses in six weeks, drive in two weeks, and ride in four months.[/QUOTE]
I did posterior, was driving and doing total care of my own horses at three weeks and started riding (lightly) at four weeks. Did a four-day, three-hours-a-day (in the saddle) horsemanship clinic (including hauling my own horses) at nine weeks.
I suspect the reason he prefers it is because he hasn’t done as many of the anteriors. Also, they do require a special type of operating table.
Since the surgeon is the one doing the cutting & pasting, #1 priority is for him (or her) to be comfortable & knowledgable with the chosen method/style.
OP is correct; she will get to the same place either way, but it will take longer with the posterior and there are more post-op restrictions than with the posterior/lateral approach.
OP – I would be very curious as to why your doc feels the PL approach is better for you than the A. Did he give specific reasons? Feel free to PM me with the answers if you prefer.
I’m in the process of doing some research for my 2nd hip replacement, which is why I’m asking…
After watching my dad’s experience, a question I would ask is which prothesis the surgeon has chosen and why - not so much because you know the answer about what is best, but because it will get him thinking about it a bit.
My dad is unusually tall and thin, and the hip chosen for him originally has a higher rate of dislocations than others. For his specific circumstances, it wasn’t the ideal choice… and they had to do it over with a new device after he had multiple dislocations.
His circumstances were special, so it’s not likely to be an issue for you. But his wife the nurse wished after that she had asked the surgeon before the first surgery instead of after the 3rd dislocation. 
It was obvious in retrospect that a different device would have saved everyone a lot of trouble.
I’d be REALLY clear on one item…
There is a TRUE posterior approach that was done when hip replacements first came out. They were not as good a surgery as modern posterior lateral (through the abductor) or anterior approach (spares the abductor).
If your surgeon is doing a TRUE posterior vs. the traditional posterior lateral, I would get a second opinion.
And yes, in the end you get to the same place about the same time.
Regards,
Medical Mike
Equestrian Medical Researcher
www.equicision.com
Bi-lateral hips - and knees - and still riding
I have had three knee replacements and two hips, the most recent done three years ago. I had a bone density test done to confirm I don’t have fragile bones. Two years ago I started riding again, with gentle horses and a knowledgeable instructor, and I am now back on the trail. I have a bomb-proof Fox Trotter (though I can post on my Mustang), and the only thing I would still like to get is a saddle with a narrower twist. The dressage saddle I ride puts too much pressure on the psoas ligament but I can go three hours before needing to get off and rest.
My orthopedist’s only instruction when I told him I was riding again was “don’t fall off”. <g> So far so good. Oh, I am 74 years young.
[QUOTE=BackInTheSaddle74;6006864]
The dressage saddle I ride puts too much pressure on the psoas ligament but I can go three hours before needing to get off and rest.
.[/QUOTE]
So THAT"s what my problem is!!! Riding in a treed saddle hurts like the dickens - and right in that area, too.
Am currently demo-ing treeless ones. I got off of one a couple weeks ago and somebody said ‘how do you feel?’. Am also getting used to a gaited horse so was more concerned about what she had been doing. I had to think a few minutes and then realized that nothing hurt!
Riding after hip replacement… It’s not taboo. IF a complication were to occur, then dislocation would be the most likely, especially for women. Our ligaments are more flexible than men’s. So dislocation is of a higher concern in general for women than men… regardless of activity.
The type of procedure you have can help offset this. Not all surgical approaches are alike as others have mentioned. 90% of surgeons in the US perform some type of posterior or anterior lateral approach. These approaches require the soft tissue that supports the joint to be cut or detached. In many cases permanently. The implants today help offset the loss of soft tissue support due to being designed for increased stability (reduces risk of dislocation). But the Anterior Approach avoids the detachment/cutting of the supporting ligaments. By retaining these, you have extra support for keeping your hip in its socket. The benefits of Anterior Approach are quicker recovery, less pain, and reduced risk of dislocation. It’s a newer technique which started in France and was brought to the US by Dr. Joel Matta, who went on to advance it. Surgeons don’t learn this in med school. They are trained afterwards, usually once they are already practicing. Most surgeons perform the technique they originally learned. It’s their comfort zone and what they do best. Plus most surgeons who do Anterior Approach use a specialized table to achieve the accuracy and positioning required…not all hospitals can afford that equipment. Some surgeons perform the technique “table less”.
All the techniques for hip replacement get good results. So if you are considering it, or had replacement using a posterior technique, don’t worry. No matter the technique, It’s one of the safest procedures you could have. Very, very low incidence of complications and has good outcomes both short and long term.
Personally, I wouldn’t choose any option other than Anterior Approach if it were me. But finding a surgeon who can do this procedure is the difficult part since only 1 in 10 are currently trained in the technique. Plus as with any surgeon, you want to find one who has done the exact procedure you are getting (using that exact technique) many, many times prior to you. For anterior approach this means at least 50x or more, not to mention should be doing hundreds of replacements in general. Don’t be the guinea pig.
Anterior Approach patients require little or no rehab. All the other techniques do. Patients who have had both hips replaced, and have had Anterior Approach on one and the traditional version on the other, prefer the Anterior Approach.
Your range of motion after surgery is mostly based on the strength of your muscles and flexibility. This can be increased by working on it prior to surgery and maintaining it post-operatively. Most hip implants today offer as much or more range of motion than a healthy joint, so the limiting factor is you. All the years you baby your hip or knee because it hurts makes the muscles/ligaments tighten up and contract. Which makes your pre-hab and exercising afterwards important if you want to reverse the clock so to speak. And please don’t smoke! It retards the healing process after surgery.
Pubmed is a good resource. You can also check out OR Live if you are brave and want all the gory video details. You can find surgeons via the locator tool on hipreplacement.com.
As to a fall after hip replacement… yes, this could be bad. It all depends on the what ifs. The quality of your bone, the strength of the supporting muscles, the impact & direction of the fall… there isn’t a guarantee that it will just be ok. Most implant manufacturers consider riding a risky activity. Where as the majority of riders get along just fine, as you’ve read from above posts. In a worst case scenario, the femur or acetabulum can fracture or chip. The outcome of this would be a revision surgery. The stem is not likely to go through the pelvic bones -it is embedded in your femur and not attached to the cup/socket, there for its not one piece, but two and would separate. If the hip dislocates, it can fracture the implant (cup portion) or acetabulum. On the bright side… luckily implants have advanced and there are ways to fix these things through revision surgery and rehab, could be 3-6 mo before normal. Where as decades ago this could have meant a wheel chair.
DM
Had left hip replaced at 41 and right hip replaced at 50. Was out and about 2 weeks later about 6 week recovery. Wonderful to get my life back. Then I took a fall this summer age 60. Deer spooked a horse while on a trail ride. Should have landed on my feet but landed on left hip and stem went through and shattered pelvis. Femur and implant were fine.
Great doctors rebuilt hip and pelvis. 5 months out still in PT and walking with a cane. Doc says if I ride again not to fall. My thoughts are I could have done the same thing carrying a load of laundry down the stairs. I know I hope to be riding this spring!
Good luck to you!
KarrotKreek, you gave a perfect description of my surgery. And I watched it on OR Live several times before I had mine. I even considered going out to Dr. Matta if there hadn’t been my guy here in town who trained with him.
SarahRose, you are one brave lady. At least I know it can be fixed if broke!
I WORRIED ABOUT FALLING ``` THEN I FELL = HIP FINE ` ROTATOR CUFF TORN COMPLETELY !
I WORRIED ABOUT FALLING AND AFTER FOUR YEARS OF UNEVENTFUL RIDING, I ADDED A YOUNG HORSE AND SOME SPOOKY WIND GUSTS = VOILA’ MY FALL :eek:
BUT DID NOT TOUCH MY HIP TOOK THE FALL ON MY OPPOSITE SHOULDER … PROTECTED MY HIP COMPLETELY !!! :yes:
JUST TORE THE $HIT OUT OF MY ROTATOR CUFF. :eek:
THR IS EASIER THAN ROTATOR CUFF REPAIR ``` REALLY IT IS ~~~
KEEP RIDING IT KEEPS ONE SANE ~~~ :D:yes:
Is hip replacement same as broken hip? I broke my hip in 2009 right at the point below the ball of the hip. It broke completely through. I began riding in March, 2010 and have not had any issues but I am not sure if this is the same issue you are dealing with. Sounds like hip replacement is much more invasive and a longer time to heal?
I have a friend who is 71, has two new hips (one of which was problematic–infections and the like–so had to be redone.) She competed at I-1 on her flighty Arab last year.
My husband, also 71, has 2 ceramic and titanium hips, and was skiing 16 weeks post the second one. His surgery was the same as Bank of Dad is mentioning–no PT, no big deal. He doesn’t ride any more because it never really was his thing, and we retired his horse at about the same time as HR #2. But he is a pretty aggressive skier.
Another thing to consider, btw, is having an epidural rather than a full general anaesthetic for the surgery. Doing this for his 2nd hip made the whole recovery process much more pleasant. (And he’s a great big weenie, doesn’t remember a thing about it.)
bucked off
Got my first hip in 2008, started riding in 2014, but had my right hip jacked up in a from the horn stirrup as legs were still in bad shape. Took a nasty fall in jan. 2015 bucked off. Hip OK but cracked a horiZontal process off my c7 neck bone, took 3 months for that to heal. just this week had the anterior approach hip done on the right side. I am hoping to rehab to the point of riding normally. Since my January buck off from my normally gental horse i purchased one of those blow up vests the puff up when you leave the saddle. also a helmut (duh) and a barrel racing velcro set up as I do not intend to buck off again…68 years of age, male. The anterior approach is the ONLY way i would go having had both. I was up walking next day 24 hours after surgery. went home 30 hours post and am walking up to quarter mile here on day 12. Feal great. even though I had the left hip done there was too much osteo arthritis in the other to get my legs into a normal position. So what i did was make a pair of kiddy stirrips to ride in. This led to me being a little unstable in the saddle so I was easy to buck of ole paint.
Ride!!! I just had my spine repaired, with two rods and a self bone graft. My surgeon operates on fancy sports guys (NFL, NHL) and they go back to their teams and beat the crap out of each other post-op.
I fully intend to ride again! 7.5 months to go!!! And in the meantime, I will take good care of the other parts of my body, eat good food, and do lots of bone strengthening work. I will not ride the babies, super greenies, or idiopaths anymore. But I will ride, otherwise what on earth is the point of getting fixed?
Go ride! You’ll do just fine!
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