by BJ Armstrong

What is a Hip Replacement? This is what I had done in March. Why? Well, I was standing on a chair outside, painting the foundation of my house. The end was too high to reach, and as I stretched out too far, thus losing my balance, I fell onto  a rock embedded in the ground. My son (who lives next door) heard me yelling and came running. May I stop here and say "we have a wonderful ambulance service. They arrived in a short time and rushed me to Cleveland Community Hospital.)"

Hip replacement, or arthroplasty, is a surgical procedure in which the broken part of the hip joint is replaced with a new artificial part. This artificial part is called the prosthesis and improves the hip joint again. Although you will be able to resume most activities, you may have to change how you do them. You must learn how to bend to avoid putting stress on your new hip.  In addition to pain medication, you will have to take antibiotics and blood-thinning medication to help prevent blood clots from forming in the veins of your thighs and calves.

Dr.  Rickie Hutcheson used a special glue or cement, to bond a ball in the hip joint to the existing healthy bone.

This is referred to as a "cemented" procedure which usually takes 2 to 3 hours. Research has proven the effectiveness of cemented prosthesis to reduce pain and increase joint mobility.

On March 18, I was transferred to Lifecare for Rehabilitation. The next

three weeks included having a physical therapist (PT) to teach me exercises that help increase range of motion and to strengthen muscles around my new hip. An occupational therapist (OT) taught me how to do daily activities in ways that would be safe for my new hip. I also had to begin to strengthen my new hip by doing exercises in bed. Bed exercises can help prevent circulation problems, strengthen muscles and improve range of motion.  Of course, an artificial hip doesn't work in quite the same way as a natural hip. You need to move differently than you did before surgery. This helps to prevent the new hip from popping out of place (dislocating). Also, you need to protect your new hip by following precautions (avoiding certain positions and movements). This allows the hip to heal and helps keep it from dislocating.

I'm home now, trying to recover. Home Health comes 3 times a week and I'm exercising every day. I'm using a walker to get around and walking daily. In time, I should be able to return to most of the activities that I enjoyed before. I received lots and lots of cards. And many, many friends came by to visit and pray with me. Thanks everyone. I had letters from my special little children at school, which I miss tremendously. All of this challenges me to get well real soon.

April showers of Blessings to everyone for their concerns, cards, visits, gifts, and prayers!!!

May I be up and walking real soon, on the road to recovery!