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My mother just had hip replacement surgery performed and it was not an easy procedure for her to handle. It wasn't just the cost that was difficult but the slow and painful recovery that followed. She was also laid out for a long time as you can imagine someone who just had hip replacement would be.
My mom had her hip replaced because of a rare condition from which she was suffering. She was experiencing quite a bit of pain for months prior to receiving the news that she would need a hip replacement – weeks before she ever even had it checked out actually. She came down with avascular necrosis, but she didn't show any of the signs of having the disease which is why I took so long to realize what her problem was.
Avascular necrosis is usually a condition which either scuba divers, alcoholics, the extremely old, or some types of athletes get, and believe me, she didn't fit in to any of those categories. It is basically caused by a lack of blood flow to areas of the bone.
The bone actually starts to die because it is deprived of life giving blood, but because it is happening inside of the bone, it is very, very difficult to diagnose. For her, the necrosis did enough damage to make her need a hip replacement. Her hip was simply all weak and rotted out inside.
Replacement procedures has grown by leaps and bounds in recent generations and that made it a lot easier. Even so, it was months before her mobility of returned, and my mom needed many rather strenuous and difficult sessions with a physical therapist to bring about the progress. She still walks with a slight limp today, but it is a marked improvement from where she was.
Her hip replacement was a success, but it will still burden her without much relief. Because of the pin in her hip, she will always set off metal detectors at airports, so she carries a doctor's note to inform the security personnel of the situation. In addition, she is not as active as she used to be because of the hip replacement surgery. She has nowhere near the movement that she used to have prior to this condition, and can easily tire doing the smallest of things.
Finally, she has a complaint common to people who have major surgery. She can really feel it when the weather changes. Her hip replacement lets her know. Although this seems like no big deal, she can actually tell when a storm is on the horizon, she can feel sore and uncomfortable all day, and sometimes the pain persists for days on end.
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