Thread: Broken hip :(
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  #21  
Old 04-14-2024, 10:37 PM
Todd Todd is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 14
So sorry to hear about your accident. I broke my hip in a Nordic ski race crash in Feb 2020 and had a total hip replacement the next morning. My break was bad - the femoral neck had a vertical fracture with several pieces of bone and the surgeon thought that screwing it back together wouldn't be a long-term option. I was 63 at the time and had no arthritis or other hip pain. My surgeon used a lateral/posterior incision because of the severity of the break. This means the surgeon cut my gluteus medius muscle (part of my butt) and that made my recovery longer.

I did PT for 3 or 4 months but because of when it happened (about a month before the pandemic shutdown), much of my PT was via Zoom and that wasn't ideal. I started riding a stationary bike after about 4 weeks and I rode outside after 12 weeks. By about mid June (~4.5 months), I was riding several times a week and feeling ok. I also walked several miles most days. I limped for what seemed like a long time and used a cane until about August when my PT told me to ditch the cane and focus on not limping. I had a setback in November when I put too much weight on the repaired hip on a hike and had pretty severe pain in my femur, especially down near the end of the titanium spike. This took about 6 weeks to go away.

Since then, I've returned to regular riding during summer and Nordic skiing in the winter. I wish I could say that I'm as good as new and that I can do all my previous activities at the same intensity and duration but I can't. I still have mild to moderate pain in my hip area during and after some, but not all, strenuous biking and skiing. It's slowly gotten better over the four years, but it's not completely gone. Extremely steep hills where I have to stand for long periods or pushing a big gear seem especially likely to give me pain. Fortunately, the pain subsides overnight and I'm usually good to go the next day.

I wish you the best in your recovery. Because you are younger than I was when I had my break, your recovery time may be faster. My advice is the same as most of the other folks: take it easy, do your strengthening exercises/PT, remember your motion restrictions for the first 3 months or until your surgeon clears you. Hang in there, you'll be back on the bike!
Todd
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