Managing Hip Bursitis Pain

Well thank you Pam! Your kind words made my day!

And yeah as we age and these joint and back problems develop, we get a pretty good education on anatomy. I do it out of curiosity, and also what to expect during recovery.

So far so good with both knees, right hip and left shoulder replaced. All four surgeries greatly relieved the pain I was in. The shoulder recovery was longer even though it was an anatomically-correct procedure. Patience was, and is, a virtue in post-op recovery.

All the best!

Joe

I'm so sorry Pam. Hopefully you can get some good direction after your visit with HSS.

It's hard to rebuild strength, and I admire you for the hard work you've done. You are the type of person who just doesn't give up. Good for you Pam.. You are a great example for all of us!

(Please let me know how the visit with HSS goes.)

Joe

@mnsansei how much colchicine did you take? Newly diagnosed CPPD after over 10 years. I started .6mg daily and it didn’t help my chronic Pseudogout at all after 4 weeks. I asked for increase in dose and doc stopped it and started plaquenil a week ago. It might take 6 months to work. I too can’t take nsaids but I’ve had to sneak 600mg every now and then. It’s the only thing that works. I’m afraid this doc , even though he was the only one that took the time to look at my old X-rays and found the crystals, May not be an expert on treatment.

@jonijean On Day 1 I took 1.2 mg and after that, 0.6 mg/day on my local nephrologist's advice. The rationale is that half of the colchicine taken is eliminated from your body in about 24 hours. So before taking the 0.6 mg on Day 2, you have 0.6 mg left in you (and, of course, are back up to 1.2 mg after taking it). If you take 0.6 mg at about the same time every day, it will be like starting from scratch every day.

If my calculation is correct, if you take 0.6 mg on Day 1 and every subsequent day, you will plateau at about 0.6 mg on Day 5. I wonder if your doctor would let you give my nephrologist's dosing strategy (1.2 mg on Day 1 and 0.6 mg per day from then on) a whirl.

I take 0.6 mg colchicine every day. I get fairly good pain relief.

The only OTC analgesic I take is tylenol (even that is more limited that most people are allowed to take). Generally speaking, it is not worth taking tylenol. I am not familiar with plaquenil but google suggests it would be okay for me to take. I'll keep that in mind in case colchicine quits working.

Good luck.

My comment to you is so late. I saw this while looking for a specific prior read. If you are still in pain and being diagnosed w/ bursitis and not had an MRI then insist on an MRI. If a tear and not bursitis is the correct diagnosis, then yes, you are in so much pain and walking w/ a cane/walker, perhaps a limp and life has slowed down. A gluteus maximus/minimus tear is so painful and the remedy available, a gluteus medius transfer is a consideration, but a difficult decision. I too was treated for bursitis for 2 years and it was a spine surgeon who ordered an MRI because he saw he walking and suggested that I might have a tear. And yes, a full thickness gluteus medius tear with fatty infiltration and atrophy. I've met w/ three orthopedic surgeons, all not well versed on transfers, but all suggested not a good idea. But I figure, I've got nothing to lose, so still am considering.

My right hip bursitis is getting to the point I may have to consider doing something about it.
FWIW on Friday 06, 26, I had a cyst of some sort excised from my left thumb. I could feel it both times he cut. When the lidocaine wore off I had no pain of any knd.

@heyjoe415 I also find ICE to be much better. I can't tolerate the heat. I have back pain and Trocanteric Bursitis of the right hip. I also cannot take NSAIDs. My stomach won't tolerate them and I got strong pain in Kidney area. Strangely enough NSAIDs did not help the bursitis pain at all. Only thing that does is Tylenol and exercising (stretching, selected strokes swimming).

@dmoreci Thanks so much for your reply.

While ice reduces inflammation and reduces pain, most people think heatn is the best way to treat muscle spasms, small ligament and tendon sprains.

Heat does relax a muscle, easing the pain of a muscle strain or tear. But heat draws blood to the affected area, and inflammation. I prefer ice under all circustances, as initially unpleasant as it may be.

There is a reason that very well paid pro athletes usually follow a game or intense workout with an ice bath.

Joe