My dad broke his hip...

[mattl]

Some here know of the saga with my 94 y/o father, well last night through no fault of his own he fell and broke his right hip. They are going to do a partial hip replacement Sat. morning, hoping all goes well. He has several health issues, CHF, and mid stage Kidney failure, but is pretty tough overall. I think they are planning a spinal block rather than full anesthesia.

From what I hear recovery time is fairly short, any one care to comment? They said he'll be up walking the second day. It was a clean break just below the ball that fits into the hip socket and the Dr. felt that the blood vessels feeding the bone were cut too and the bone would die if they just put pins in.

Not looking forward to the recovery period, but it's better than the alternative.

 

[sudsmaster]

If he was still walking at 94 I'd say he's been doing damn good.

Don't know about the current state of hip replacements. I'm a little surprised they are preforming one on someone his age, but they must feel he's a good candidate. I assume you got a second opinion?

The positive aspect is that chances are it will last the rest of his natural life.

 

[xraytech]

sounds like the way you are describing it your father has a nice clean easy to fix intertrochanteric fracture. If your father has osteoporosis that could have caused the fracture thus causing him to fall.

As for recovery time it depends alot on his existing condition. There can actually be a fairly high mortalitly rate to a hip fracture, it can be common for those in poor health before a hip fracture to not make it. It sounds as though your father was healthy enough to begin with that it should go fairly well, It can take a while for him to become fully ambulatory again,but he may end up always needing a cane or walker. After having surgery like that and being fairly bed ridden for a while be sure to watch for signs of a DVT or a PE. Look for discolorations of the extremity, swelling, cool to the touch for the DVT and difficulty breathing for a PE

 

[panthera]

Matt,

All the best. You've posted about your dad at times and I am deeply impressed by how you've worked with him. That's what being a good son means.
I'll keep my fingers crossed - for all of you.

 

[autowasherfreak]

I will say a prayer for your dad. I hope he has a speedy recovery.

 

[iheartmaytag]

Here is hope for a speedy recovery

Many of our Older adults actually don't fall and break their hips. Many of their bones/hips become so brittle that they break and cause a fall.

My Uncle had a hip replacement several years ago, though he is only in his 70's his recovery was very quick. He said the therapy was torture, but was thankful for the opportunity to keep mobile.

 

[toggleswitch2]

Light, love, peace and a rapid recovery to him.

Ditto to you for your pure heart, good soul and all that you give to him and do for him. He may not always realize it, but from where I sit, you are one in a million.

And may his sponge-bath nurse be a real cutie that brngs a smile to his eyes.

Fondest regards!

 

[countryguy]

Two years ago my grandmother who was 99 yrs old at the time (and still living on her own in her own house) fell and broke her hip in the middle of the night. She couldn't get to the phone so she lay on the kitchen floor for almost 12 hours before the lady that came twice a week to do her cleaning, etc. found her. The doctor operated and inserted a pin. She now walks with the aid of a walker. I think she probably could walk without one but she is extremely hard of hearing as well as almost blind so the walker gives her security.

Good luck with your father as well as yourself.

Gary

 

[ronhic]

Good luck to your dad...

....and I hope both the operation and recovery go well.

My aunt had both hips replaced about 20yrs ago.

Last year, at 72, she slipped in the laundry at home and fell very heavily on the right side completely shattering the right hip. It took her 2 months in hospital and another few at home before she was able to do things properly again and she now walks with a cane at home and a walker when out.

Your fathers sounds much more preferable if I had to choose...

 

[syndets2000]

My Mom broke hers ...

...last year, she is 75- she had a partial replacement, just the ball, & the nurses actually had her up & walking the next day- she went through alot of pain, & hated physical therapy, but she pushed herself through it, & even though she walks a bit...gimpy, she does ok- I think the quicker your dad gets on his feet to get through this, the better off he will be-it is difficult not to ...HOVER over ones aged parental unit...

 

[maytagbear]

So sorry to hear this, Matt

I hope he heals well and quickly.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[abcomatic]

Matt

I am so sorry to hear this news. My mom did that a few years back. Just make sure he eats when he is finished with the hospital. I wish you all of the success in the world. Gary

 

[travlincub321]

hope all is well

 

[mattl]

Thanks to all!

After a LONNNGGGG day Sat. all is going well. They had him up walking today, less than 24 hours after surgery.

Lots of little issues created delays, but to be honest it was just his Family Dr. being very careful. First issue to deal with was the Plavix/Aspirin he was taking, but blood-work indicated it was a non issue. Then the troop of specialists came through. The new cardio team ( his cardio guy of many years retired last month) wanted a scan of his heart, told me is cardiac function was at 30%, but they cleared him for surgery. The the neurologist had to stop by, for what ever reason, and the nephrologist. All said OK, and surgery was to be late Sat. morning -- to me that means 11 AM or so. Well after delays on top of delays, he got in at 5:30 PM. Took all of 45 minutes, and all went well. They used a spinal block, the the cardiologist said it really didn't matter if they used general, which is news to me, his old cardio guy always insisted on spinal whenever possible.

In recovery the nurse and I looked over the surgical notes and she indicated it looked like his cardiac function was about 43%, certainly better that the 30% noted earlier. BP was pretty stable during surgery, always a worry. Ortho guy said no restrictions on activity, but to expect a 7 to 10 day hospital stay.

Now comes the recovery, and the issue that develop with any hospital stay for him. The first few days he's pretty coherent, but I noticed the early signs of trouble today. 3 or 4 days into a stay he gets a full blown case of sundowners, if any of you experienced it with a relative you know it can be hell. Last year I had to run up to the hospital at 2 AM to calm him down. I think it stems from him being out of his familiar environment. Luckily after a few days it passes, but it's still hard to take.

The surgical nurse was telling be about her grandfather who broke his hip at 107. He had it repaired and all went well, but he didn't bounce back and went downhill quickly after that. I asked what they do if they can't get clearance for do surgery, and she indicated that eventually there is not choice in many cases, and surgery has to be done. The Dr. said my dad's case was pretty typical, a sharp break at the hip ball. Since the bone was sheared off he was sure so were the blood vessels the fed it. Without surgery the bone would die and create more problems.

Anyway, thanks for the encouragement and kind thoughts they are all much appreciated.

 

[westingman123]

Chin up!

Last January my Mom tripped and broke her asatabular bone (the socket the hip ball fits in). Her Ortho let it heal without surgery, and 3 months later she was 100%. She's 86, and it was an ordeal for her. There's hope! I'll be praying for a speedy and full recovery.