Patient Stories

Daniel

I am a 35 year old male who was diagnosed with hip dysplasia around 5 years ago. The diagnosis was only made after I injured the hip playing sport, which I initially assumed to be a muscle injury but did not clear up, and turned out to be a tear in the labrum where the cartilage had grown to compensate for the shallowness of my hip. Up until then I had led a normal life, with only minor pain when I walked long distances or exercised hard (which I put down to unfitness).

Initially I tried physiotherapy, which was not successful in alleviating discomfort, then surgery to clean up the tear to try to lift the symptoms. However the pain has continued to worsen and after further scans and consultation, the surgeon has recommended that I have PAO surgery (initially only on my symptomatic hip although both are dysplastic). He believes that due to my age and the fact the the surfaces of the labrum are not yet badly worn there is a good chance of success.

It has been interesting to read the stories of other patients on this website as I look for information to support my decision. I am terrified of major surgery and a long recovery period, especially as I have two very young children at home and will not be able to support my family while I recover (according to the surgeon, for 6-8 weeks I will have severely limited mobility). Currently my hip is a nuisance rather than debilitating, but the opinion of the doctors who have seen me is that it will only get worse with time until I need a full hip replacement.

I would love to hear stories of people who have been in similar positions to know whether it makes a real difference, or indeed people who have not had the surgery until it was too late, to know what the alternative is if I do not go through with it. Will I really get the benefit, given that I am not yet in severe discomfort? How much better will it be to have a PAO vs. a hip replacement? My mother has had both her hips replaced in her 60s and neither operation seemed anything like as major as the PAO… so as they say, is the juice worth the squeeze?

Any thoughts and opinions would be most welcome, and of course if I do go through with it I will keep my story up to date…