An Assessment Of My Artificial Hip
[ Tuesday April 9th 2024 at 3:55 pm ]
The surgeon I was assessed by today was as friendly as his picture makes him out to be. I felt heard and understood. I was able to have a conversation with him. I felt this doctor was invested in helping me by the types of questions he was asking and his facial expressions while listening to me and thinking about what I said. By his body language he understands that feeling like I am going to vomit from the hip pain was very debilitating for me. All this works in giving me confidence that a doctor is trying their personal best.
As well the surgeon acknowledged that my original referral from my local hospital emergency department on February 19th became lost and the decision I took on March 20th to reach out to his medical secretary was reasonable and understandable. I said to him I would not have done this if my referral had proceeded normally. The emergency department doctor at my local hospital on February 19th had wanted me to be seen on an urgent basis. The surgeon didn't think I acted unreasonable after waiting 4 weeks before advocating for myself.
When he moved my leg the artificial hip feels smooth. This suggests the hip hardware is doing okay. I will come back to this in a minute. He was pleasantly surprised by the strength I have maintained in my legs. I responded to this by saying that I've earnestly tried my best. I don't remember the exact words he replied with. His response was the realization that I am not the 99% receiving a monthly disability benefit and that I am trying (as best as practical) to be engaged in my life.
Then the doctor made a statement that we needed to actually help me fix whatever has gone wrong. At this moment the surgeons suspicion is that a ligament or tendon in my left hip is slipping and giving me the sensation that my artificial hip is "teeter tottering" inside of me. He explained his reasoning to me. I know enough hip anatomy to understand what was being said to me. I am willing to consider that I misunderstood what my body was doing. The surgeon did this in a way that didn't leave me feeling cornered and didn't leave himself trapped in a diagnosis. I'm happy for any doctor to admit they don't know or it doesn't make sense.
He wants to help me. The best way is to look at my hip on MRI. He is ordering an MRI of my left hip to be performed at my local hospital. But this itself could be problematic. My left hip has been operated on six times. He is concerned that there are already artifacts of previous surgeries and an MRI might not do any good. But an MRI is a prudent step none the less. After explaining that I've experienced false negative MRI imaging I asked if he would also read my MRI as a second set of eyes in the hopes we don't miss anything important. He is willing to do this. He readily admits his x-ray reading skills are stronger. But he is willing. With how he presented himself today I have confidence he would ask another doctor to look at my imaging if he is unsure.
The plan for follow up is that I will make an appointment for 2 weeks after my MRI date through his medical receptionist. He is willing to talk me through any new information the MRI brings to light. Since he is so engaged I am going to come prepared to my follow up appointment with a series of photos of my right knee joint. I am going to ask if he will at least consider assessing it. I am sensing there is enough of a relationship that exists to discuss with him. My sense is that I've already won this surgeon over by advocating for myself and he simply wants to help me.
The surgeon wanted to keep the hip diagram chart I brought with me and the page I prepared for my April 3rd 2024 pain management appointment. Both were well received. The hip diagram did for me what I needed. I was able to get this doctor invested in helping me and asking me effective questions very quickly. In other words it felt like a team effort today.