Any other hip bursectomy patients out there?

[BarryG]

I was hoping to compare notes with anyone else who's had their trochanteric bursa removed. I had a fairly involved hip/ITB procedure in February (details on my blog) which included removing my chronically inflamed bursa. I'm wondering how quickly others have been able to return to repetitive motion exercise (running, cycling, swimming, etc) after the procedure. I experience a fair amount of inflammation in that area when I try to do so, and wondering what kind of recovery timeline others have experienced?

[Lorrie]

However, I had both ischial bursas removed, but did had bursitis in the same bursa Barry asked about before, yet that went away after a steriod shot. I would like to compare notes with anyone who had either of this surgery done as it is rare to find anyone to converse with on the same or similar experience. My left side had bursitis since mid. Jan. and went through a few Dr.s before getting help. MRI showed nothing. By the time I had an appt. with a 2nd surgeon, it was large enough to be felt through buttock fat so that is luckily for me there was evidence rather than just my saying so. 1st surgery was Sept. 13th, I had developed bursitis from favoring my right leg for 6 months, and 2nd bursectomy was Dec. 5th. My side from surgery in Sept. still hurts often. I, like Barry, would like to discuss timeline in your experience in recovery. Thank you, email if you you'd like!

[threescrews]

Hey Guys,

I haven't had bursitis of the hip but i have had bursitis in my knee. I had my bursa surgically removed and recovery following the procedure was speedy. Before the surgery i was having a lot of trouble kneeling but now i'm fine. I went back to playing sport probably 3-4 weeks following the op. I realise hip's are quite different when it comes to surgery but my surgeon told me that once a bursa is removed it grows back because the body needs the cushioning support that it gives. This means that if you're prone to developing bursitis it can re-occur? I'm not sure if it's the same for hips or not but may be worth checking out?? Hope that's of some use.

Cheers

[Lorrie]

I feel like working out again (1 side anyway) the side that just got operated on a month ago on Sat. I'm not sure on my left, but am doing a little everyday, making sure not to do the same exercises back to back. Mostly hurts when I sit on it for a couple hours straight. But, my surgeon did say the 1st side was more difficult of a surgery. I'm sure I'm weaker on that side also, as I had bursitis 8 months before surgery on that side, only 5 months the other, but since the 1st was taken care of and had pain on the other side still, I couldn't get back into exercising until the other got taken care of. Now, no excuses so I'm going to do my Eliptical machine every other day starting 5 min. then 10 next week and stay at that until I have no pain before increasing to 15-20 next month.

Anyone else have any hip surgery comments on pain when sitting? thanks!

[Hekate01]

I was told i had hip bursitis, but didn't have it removed instead they did a z-plasty on the IT band to lengthen it to stop the rubbing. I am 5 months post op, but i have got recurrent pains which had gone completely until a month ago. But i also have the same pains in the opposite hip too. I am dying to return to snowboarding or just a good active lifestyle. I do some gym work which i couldn't of done before the surgery so that's good news, but the strength and stamina isn't there yet. I still get pain sitting down so i think stuff it, i might as well be active if it's going to hurt anyway, and hopefully my mind will be off it. I have a new appointment to see my consultant who is dismissive sometimes, when i try to tell him the pain is still there but different and more in the buttocks and opposite hip. Are these still bursitis pains or something different now??

[Lorrie]

Hi Hekate,

I first got my busitis on the side of the hip first, then came the hip joint area shortly after. I got mine from moving back & forth coaching soccer once, walking back & forth for a couple hours, then rested it for 6 weeks before it went away taking 3 ibuprophen 3 times a day. 3 years later, same thing (only worked at an arena during ice skating when the judges needed darkness) so I was going back & forth shutting curtains constantly (short on day employees) my mistake this last time was that I didn't rest it. I kept working, but never did that kind of activity constantly again, but not laying around until it went away, it got to the point I couldn't stand on that leg anymore. When I did rest it and got a cortizone shot in the side hip (only the side at first since my 1st Dr. didn't think I had it both places saying I'd have pain in another area if I did, but he was very wrong), only the bursitis on the side went away.

My advice to always tell your Dr. what's going on, but after that I don't think they stress with bursitis resting it enough. 2nd most important is stretching, because too tight muscles can aggrivate bursitis, too. Perhaps you are getting it in the ischeal bursa, which is very hard, if not impossible to get rid of since you have to sit to eat, walk to the bathroom & so on--you can't put your hip in a sling. I got it my other side from favoring my bad side and standing on it more, which took 5 months of doing so before it set in. Sounds similar to what your experience is.

Good thing you have a Dr. that knows what you have, my MRI's showed nothing and took me seeing 3 different Dr.s before I got any help. By then, the bursa was so large you could see it under certain clothes and my Dr. could feel it and I have a few inches of fat there, too. Had to have a bursectomy then.

I still have pain in the side that got so weak, which was my original question in the post, but heard of others with joint operations saying they had pain off & on over year. I just am slowly doing a bit more, since I'm not living a daily active life yet. Just doing some squats a couple times every few days, using my eliptical machine, and doing other calisthetics every other day and resting. Hoping that when I get stronger there will be less pain. I even lie down after I digest to avoid pressure from sitting. So far, the 1st side I had surgery on hurts more than my 2nd side, but the weak side hurts so I'm trying to work through it, slowly though. I wouldn't work through any pain undiagnosed though, you could be aggrivating it and/or making it worse?

Hope this helps you out!
Lorrie

[Lorrie]

Since my pain got worse, I went to my doctor. I had an MRI that actually showed my problems; I believe because I asked the tech if I could lay on my stomach due to the pain. She said normally they don't let people do this (my other 2 times they did not) but since they were doing the lower hip/buttock area and my breathing wouldn't interfere (if it did they said they'd stop and do over) and it worked. Showed I had atrophy to my tendon & upper hamstring from lack of use, a lot of scar tissue and a little busitis coming back. Great. I took oral steroids and my pain was alleviated by 75%. I've been doing some upper hamstring/tendon strengthening exercise provided by yogajournal.com but was supposed to go to PT. I didn't, because the bursitis could become inflamed from how pushy PT's get on forcing too much too soon. I plan on using my physioball to strenthen my hamstrings when I feel I'm ready. As of right now, the gentle leg lifts I'm doing, I've been seeing progress.

Good luck to everyone out there & please post your updates on your progress-thanks~

[Hekate01]

Hi Lorrie, hope things are going well for you. I have now bought an ellipitcal trainer so i can use it as often as i like now. I'm due for an injection a cortisone one in the joint, but only on waiting list and i will be contacted 4-6 weeks before i'm due, which is gutting as i would rather have it sooner than later. Has your PT done a clam exercise with you? Mine has and it's the only exercise that really really hurts me both in the bursa area and buttocks.

[LMS]

That exercise & the same muscles would really hurt & send my muscles in a spasm, my PT mentioned that we don't use that specific muscle enough and that's why, for people like us, it trends to spasm.
She showed me a modified version of the clam exercise & another that can be done instead as it dosn't aggravate these muscles as much.

The modified version is done with a pillow between the knees & when you bring the knee up, don't hold it for more than 3 secs. Rather do a slow & controlled open & close movement. The moment you feel the movement not as fluid, stop & rest. It can be as little as a slight jerking movement when going up or down. Apparently that's a sign that the muscle is tired. When I was showing her the movement, I couldn't even do 2 before the slight jerking happened. The reasoning for the pillow is to give your muscle a break & get to the main part of the exercise instead of taking the long "scenic" route, sort of speak.

Ihave an awsome PT and is taking her time to address each muscle concern that is affecting the progress of my hip. A couple of months ago I was crying & wincing in pain because of having muscles in constant spasms affecting the buttocks, greater trochanter & groin. All pains that I've had for over 2 decades. The pain is almost gone now. But comes back like a yo yo as I'm learning how to walk properly. And the best: no meds! How cool is that?!

The other exercise, I was told is just a step below the clam but works the same muscles, is when you're on your back, knees bent and with a theraband around the knees, you open both knees apart to 10 & 2 o'clock. Again it's a controlled & fluid movement.

I found doing these two exercises really helped instead of doing the regular clam exercise.

[Hekate01]

Thanks for the advice over the exercises, i'm going to try them both seen as the clam just puts me out for hours!! Glad your doing so well, and there's light at the end of the tunnel. No meds sounds too good xx