Re: Avascular necrosis (AVN), osteonecrosis

daveyj wrote:
I was recently diagnosed with AVN and arthritis in both hips. I'm at
stage 1. At the time of diagnosis only the left hip was painful,
(excruciatingly so). I went through aquatherapy and chiropractic
because sciatica and bursitis flared up at the same time and made it
more difficult to diagnose. These other problems have been relieved
but now the right hip is becoming painful.

I'm planning on undergoing core decompression

Mark my words: when they discover why this works in some people, it isn't going to be anything about 'decompression'! The mechanism will be marrow stem cells regenerating the bone in the dead areas and stimulating revascularisation. I say go for it, but be prepared for hip replacement if it fails. Also, while the bone is regenerating (if it does), be prepared for a lengthy minimal or reduced weight bearing period. When the new bone starts resorbing the dead bone the interface between the two can be much weaker than either they dead or the living bone areas, and this can lead to fractures which can themselves disrupt blood supply to the bone.

in July with an
orthopedist who's won awards and I've been told is the best hip
specialist in this region. My experience with him has inspired
confidence and trust. I'll ask my questions to him before I have the
operation but I'd like to hear from people with a patient's
perspective.

Have you had surgery done on both hips at once? Did your doctor
recommend it or advise against? How long did you use crutches after
the operation?

Did you have the procedure done on both hips at different times?

Yes, bilateral hip replacements done two years apart.

Besides the advantage of having one good hip during recovery, were
there any others?


You'll really appreciate that one good hip when trying to get up and down off the raised toilet seat! But for core decompression, it's probably not going to be anywhere near as problematic a surgery as the gigantic 'split you open and hammer a titanium rod down your femur after we bore out your acetabulum' surgery that is hip replacement.

If I can, I'd like to get it over with all at once, endure a little
more pain and use crutches for a few more weeks at one time rather than
going through the procedure a second time.

For core decompression, yeah, go for it. It'll prevent you getting cold feet and putting off the second procedure if you find the restrictions too burdensome. I'd probably give the same advice for hip replacement, too: better three months of severe mobility problems than six months of just moderately severe mobility problems.


Thank you in advance for your thoughts. Please mention this post to
any person you know who's had this problem and might not know about
this forum.

I'll report on my experience after the operation.

Please do, and let us know how well it turns out down the road.

Regards,

Ari



--
spammage trappage: remove the underscores to reply

I'm going to die rather sooner than I'd like. I tried to protect my neighbours from crime, and became the victim of it. Complications in hospital following this resulted in a serious illness. I now need a bone marrow transplant. Many people around the world are waiting for a marrow transplant, too. Please volunteer to be a marrow donor:
http://www.abmdr.org.au/
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.

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