A couple of questions regarding Cam Impingement & Labral Tear Surgery.

[ACofSydney]

Hi,

I am a 27 yo female who has had hip pain for the past three years. Originally (incorrectly) diagnosed as weak glute but after seeing an osteopath, earlier this year who actually knew his stuff & refferred me to my GP for an MRI, was diagnosed with a CAM impingment & 15mm labral tear. I have had X-rays and an MRI and am now booked in to see John O'Donnell for surgery at the end of September.

As I am in Sydney I am flying to see JO & have the surgery on the one day. I am just wondering if anyone else has done this and if so, how long until you could fly back home? How long are you usally on crutchers for after the surgery to shave the bone & repair the tear? How long should I be expecting before I can return to work doing computer work?
Also, I know this is a strange question but there are so many going through my head, but how do I organise the crutches? Will I be given some from Melb or will I need to bring my own from Sydney?

I do realise I can ask the drs office this, but I don't want to bother them with my trival questions that I can ask on the day, but want to know now!

Thanks for your help.
A.

[Vixen]

Hi AC,

I had the knife from JO.

1. Yes other others are doing the meet and knife in one day. ( good option I reckon )

2. I had similar to you and I was on 2 sticks for about a week and one for the 3rd, walking stick for the 4th and limp for about the 5th.

3. PC work............tricky, for me sitting was not humorous, it depend SO much on what you had done but I would say maybe 4-6

4. Bring your own pegs.

I am in Melb and 9 months post knife with JO, so feel free to ask any questiions.

[ACofSydney]

Thanks Vixen. I hope it doesn't take that long to get back to work. I think I will go a little stir crazy if I have to be at home for that long!

Thanks for the offer to answer any questions, if I have any more I will ask!

Cheers,
AC

[Vixen]

Universally the recovery time is longer and more problematic than most people think, the surgeons definately underestimate the time required to get over a scope.

[kjwilkin]

Hi there,

I think you should definitely be asking these questions to your surgeon's office, particularly in terms of flying and how long you will be in hospital for. Also important to ask how much time you should have off work. Your employer will respect you a lot more if you have an idea before having the surgery.

Would definitely take your own crutches. You'll probably be able to buy them more cheaply than hiring them. It all depends on how long you need the crutches for.

Good luck with your surgery.

[farmgirl]

Hi AC. I am too going for the scope with JO from Syd. Mine is June 29th. I am going to bring my own crutches but have not figured out where to get them yet. I will post when I do. I was told by Amir Takla (physiotherapist that works in conjunction with John) that I could fly within 4-5 days. I am flying on the 6th day post op. I have also scheduled an appointment with John to discuss the surgery 3 days afterwards. Gale, Johns secretary, said that most people do not remember what he said even the day afterwards. My biggest frustration is not being able to call and talk to John himself when I have questions. I understand he is extremely busy but the secretaries said he does not do call backs. I was told to fax my questions in, which I will do. AC, are you doing any pre-op physio or massage? I'll keep you posted on how things go. Good luck.

[ACofSydney]

Hi Farmgirl,

Thanks for your response. It will help to have someone who is going through the exact same thing keeping me updated... if you don't mind?!

At the moment I am not seeing a physio, massage etc but I am thinking of getting personal training from my gym to help in the lead up to surgery and will most likely see the osteo who figured out my problem in the next month or so. I would be interested in which physio you will be seeing in Sydney if in the same region. I live on the North Shore?

I can understand your frustration with not being able to speak to the surgeon before hand. One thing I think I will do is to see Dr Andrew Ellis (offices in St Leonards) before I fly to Melbourne to ask any other questions I may have. It was Dr Ellis that referred me to see JO as he was the specialist I have seen a couple of times, but he is no longer doing the surgery in Sydney. He has also said that he would be more than happy to see me for my post op appointments. Maybe you could try to get an appointment to see Dr Ellis or ask the questions of the Dr who referred you to JO?

I wish you the best of luck with your surgery.

Cheers,
AC

[farmgirl]

Hey AC.

I'd be happy to keep you up to date. I love that this forum is here for people to share their experiences. It really helps to have the support and to be able to ask those little and big questions from people who have been through similar procedures.

I was given two exercises by Amir Takla to prepare for the scope. They are supposed to strengthen the deep hip rotators. He also gave me a bunch of restrictions including no squatting, no kneeling, no twisting, no heavy lifting, and no breast stroke. But I have hip dysplasia so what I need to do and not do may be different than what would be recommended for you. Amir is fantastic...but if you do not plan to go to Melbourne before to op he recommended Errol Lim at the Bone and Joint Clinic:

http://www.boneandjoint.com.au/

Amir also has a massage therapist on his team to get people ready for surgery - Phil Boland. I called Phil and he did not know of anyone in Sydney. However, he said when I found someone he would be happy to go over his method with them over the phone. I did get a recommendation from my sports med doctor (Tom Cross) for a massage therapist. Her name is Amanda Foulkes. You can find her details at:

http://www.in8health.com.au/contact.aspx

I just found out about Errol and Amanda so have not seen them yet.

Pre op prep usually includes bike and swimming work also. Look for posts from Vixen to see what she did. She also had a scope with John and had Amir and his team for pre and post op physio. I would be careful with just seeing a personal trainer who doesn't have any knowledge of hip issues. You definitely do not want to do anything that could aggravate your hip.

Good luck and keep me posted too.
Anja

[Vixen]

I would be careful with just seeing a personal trainer who doesn't have any knowledge of hip issues. You definitely do not want to do anything that could aggravate your hip.

Spot on.

I would stay well away from personal trainers and any advice from a gym, very likely to have you doing stuff that will aggravate your problem.

[Joeyjoe]

Hi AC. I am too going for the scope with JO from Syd. Mine is June 29th. I am going to bring my own crutches but have not figured out where to get them yet. I will post when I do. I was told by Amir Takla (physiotherapist that works in conjunction with John) that I could fly within 4-5 days. I am flying on the 6th day post op. I have also scheduled an appointment with John to discuss the surgery 3 days afterwards. Gale, Johns secretary, said that most people do not remember what he said even the day afterwards. My biggest frustration is not being able to call and talk to John himself when I have questions. I understand he is extremely busy but the secretaries said he does not do call backs. I was told to fax my questions in, which I will do. AC, are you doing any pre-op physio or massage? I'll keep you posted on how things go. Good luck.

Hi Farmgirl,

I just had my surgery with John on May 18th. He returned my call on the saturday night after I had some post-op questions. So yes, he does return calls! And he went through everything in detail