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What kind of mobility can I expect with an antibiotic spacer in my hip
Joint Replacements | Last Active: Aug 26 2:26pm | Replies (282)Comment receiving replies
Hello - so good to hear from you but not about the difficulties you have been having, I've had a bout of c diff years ago so can remember how miserable that can be. Your body has been a real battleground for such a long time, I'm truly hoping that the antibiotics are successful in getting rid of every last bit of infection. And congratulations on being free from crutches, a walker and a cane. That is a real victory
I had my THR on April 10 - two weeks ago. There was no sign of infection but a culture is being grown to see if anything shows up. My Infectious Disease doc put me on the antifungal medicine Fluconozale for at least three months just to be safe. The side effects are quite uncomfortable. But I don't ever want to go through this again so will trust his direction.
I am on six weeks of non weight-bearing to allow my hip to heal. I had full mobility with the use of my walker so the restricted mobility is difficult. Back to the walker and a wheelchair. Pain from the hip replacement is more than what I expected but tolerable with pain meds, I'm headed in the right direction!
Wishing you the best!
Replies to "Hello - so good to hear from you but not about the difficulties you have been..."
@janelaine so glad to hear your new hip is doing well!!!! Non weight bearing status is so hard to do but it is extremely beneficial when you have had problems in the past. I am also glad your ID doctor is doing the 3 month antibiotic regimen...it helped me more than once. Your pain is probably more intense because this is not the first time they have been in their messing around. I can't remember were you a hip spacer or no hip?? Praying for complete healing for you and hopefully this hip is the best one!!!!!!
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Thanks @janelaine. I'm glad to hear your THR is going well so far. I think I'm seeing treatment options much the same as you, after what I've been through, I'm not nearly as concerned about medical side effects from antibiotics as I am with finally getting rid of this once and for all. Levaquin, one of my new oral meds, apparently has serious risks of joint damage...and I was strongly urged by my infectious disease doc to discontinue that med immediately if I experienced any new joint pain (I am being very conscious of this aspect, but no problems so far). He also said I'd probably need to stay on the vancomycin pills to hold down c diff, my thoughts were like "if two antibiotics are good, three are better!"
Hang in there! Being able to move forward from using each assistive device was always a big victory, but I feel ditching the walker for the cane and/or crutch was the biggest of all (even more so than leaving the cane to walking unassisted).