Tips to Prepare for Labral Repair & Hip Impingement Surgery
Hey Guys!
I wanted to share my tips for preparing for labral repair and hip impingement correction surgery. If you've read some of my prior posts you may have seen that when the surgeon went into my hip he actually did not find a tear; my tissue was perfectly intact.
So even though I didn't get the labral repair, my prepping for surgery tips remain the same because that is the surgery I was preparing for. Also, as far as recovery, I'm still following the same protocol as someone who did get a labral repair because I still underwent a surgery and I still got the extra bone growth shaved down to address the hip impingement.
Okay so here are my Surgery Prep Tips:
Enjoy Life :) I decided to get my surgery before the start of summer because that worked best with my work schedule, but I was sad about having to miss out on many summer activities. I love the summer. So I did as many fun things as I wanted to do before the surgery so I wouldn't feel as sad about what I would be having to miss during recovery.
WORKOUT! Surgeons call this pre-hab. Strengthening the muscles surrounding your hips and legs as best you can will only help you during recovery. The muscle memory will still be there when you start physical therapy and start walking properly be there. During my first two weeks of PT, my PT asked if I was athletic because I was able to do the exercises better than she expected I guess lol
Eat Healthy. A few months prior to surgery I tried to kick my health stuff up a notch. I've already been trying to be more intentional about what I am eating over the past few years anyway, but 2-3 months prior to surgery I was trying to revv up my Vitamin C and Vitamin D. I drank green juices a few times a week, took a multivitamin each day, tried to eat a proper serving of vegetables each day, lowered my alcohol intake (probably a month before surgery), and tried to drink enough water each day to make sure my body was hydrated going into surgery.
Create a Peaceful Recovery Space. I knew I was going to be in my room majority of the day for a few months. So I decluttered my space and re-organized and/or added things that would be peaceful to look at (ex. my plants & candles)
Put Important Things within Reach. All of the things I would need, I tried my best to put within reach of my bed. I received a "grabber" in my hip kit from the hospital to help me grab things within reach since I wasn't able to bend or twist much.
Consider a Mini-fridge & Microwave in Room. I live in a 2-story apartment with the kitchen on a different floor than my bedroom so a mini-fridge in my room was essential. In there I had a brita water pitcher, fruits, and other things I wanted to snack on.
Consider a Removable Shower Head. I had got one, but didn't use it because I tried to install it the night before and I couldn't get the old shower head off. And then when I went to shower after surgery I was able to do so with help from my mom so I just let the removable shower head go, but install it if you can because it would be really helpful.
Ask Surgical Team about Hip Kit. So the social work team at the hospital handled ordering items to help me with recovery such as a shower chair and a raised toilet seat. They also told me that I would receive a Hip Kit from the hospital the day of surgery. This Hip Kit is VERY important because it includes items to help you reach for things and put on your clothes and shoes since you aren't supposed to bend much. BUT when I was done with surgery they were saying goobye and I was like "wait where is my hip kit?" They were looking at me like HIP KIT?!?! So apparently someone didn't communicate with the OT department who was responsible for putting the kit together and they had to put it together last minute because I wasn't leaving without one. If they don't provide one, you can order one online.
Stock up on Gatorade and Meal Prep. The gatorade has a lot of electrolytes to help w/ recovery (they even had me drink one the morning of surgery). I had my mom to cook for me, but even she got tired of cooking lol. It would have been nice if I cooked as much as I could and froze the meals to have them ready to go.
Get Ice Packs. I had a small ice pack, but needed to order a bigger one during my first week of surgery to cover my thigh and hip at the same time.
Have Things to Do. You may get REALLY BORED. I definitely did. So I made sure to have things ready to keep me busy. Books to read, shows/movies to watch, games to play, etc etc.
I hope this is helpful and if you have anything to include from your experience or have any questions feel free to comment 😊😊😊
Hip Arthroscopy & Osteochondroplasty (w/ a plot twist)
On May 4, 2023, I went into surgery to receive a right hip arthroscopy with possible labral repair and an osteochondroplasty. In simple words, the doctor made small incisions in my thigh and inserted tools with cameras at the end (for a minimally invasive surgery) in order to see if I had a labral tear. He also shaved down extra bone growth on my femoral head (the osteochondroplasty) that was causing me to have a hip impingement (medically known as a femoroacetabular impingement).
The past few years I JUST KNEW I had a labral tear. I had an MRI in Jan 2022 that showed a labral tear in my right hip and had most of the symptoms associated with it. BUT my post-surgery paperwork says the doctor reported I had NO LABRAL TEAR. LIKEEEEE!!! PLOT TWIST!! REEWINDDDD!
I need to ask him about this during my follow-up appointment next week because I JUST read it in my paperwork when I was looking for the proper spelling of the surgery for this blog post lmao. I was NOT expecting to read that.
My mom told me that after the surgery the surgeon told her that my cartilage was 100% intact, but it didn’t click to me that it meant I didn’t have a labral tear. The doctor did tell me that he has had cases where there was no labral tear in real life although the MRI showed one. But I was ADAMANT that I had one because whenever that part of my hip got aggravated, the pain was on another level. I couldn’t walk on it; I couldn’t even clench my thigh muscles because it would hurt that badly. And it would get aggravated so easily.
My theory is that the hip impingement was the cause of all these symptoms, but I’ll see what the doctor thinks at my follow-up appointment. I’m PRAYING it was the hip impingement because if it was my ACTUAL hip dysplasia causing these symptoms, I’m out of luck since I am not an eligible candidate for the PAO surgery which is the only surgery I know of to address symptomatic hip dysplasia. (Also that surgery and recovery time is odee and I’m thankful my case isn’t severe enough to warrant that). ANYWHO, I will only know once I fully recover from this surgery and get back into my normal daily activities. Wish me luck y’all!!
