Do you ever wonder if you have the wrong diagnosis?
Do you have bothersome, painful or debilitating symptoms that have persisted for months or even years?
Have you been diagnosed and treated with X, Y or Z condition yet still don’t feel better?
According to statistics compiled by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an astonishing twenty-five million Americans suffer from rare illnesses or conditions, many of which go undiagnosed for years. I should know, it happened to me….
If Your Treatment Plan is Not Working, You Could Have the Wrong Diagnosis
If Your Treatment Plan is Not Working, You Could Have the Wrong DiagnosisI spent over ten years undergoing countless treatments for what eventually became debilitating hip pain after repeatedly being given the wrong diagnosis. It wasn’t until I was seen by a “super specialist”, Dr. Robert Bully, at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC that I finally obtained the correct diagnosis and got the treatment (albeit a drastic one) that actually worked.
The photo of me above was taken February 3rd, 2015, exactly two years after a 7 hour derotational osteotomy surgery was performed to correct a congenital hip disorder that was finally diagnosed: femoral retroversion. It was a rare condition that I had never even heard of during the ten years I spent searching for answers to my hip pain. My femoral head was rotated 22 degrees “off” what was normal and was pressing into my pelvis. My degree of retroversion was considered severe and the orthopedic abnormality was causing hip impingement, a mechanical issue that was causing early joint deterioration, chronic pain and a large labral tear. By the time my condition was finally correctly diagnosed my hip pain was so severe that there was no position I could be in that was comfortable–I was in pain sitting, standing, walking and lying down. With age (I am now 38-years old) and without the surgery my hip would have continued to deteriorate prematurely from the pressure of my femur pressing into my hip socket. The only way to fix the problem was with a derotational osteotomy where my femur (leg bone) was broken in half and the shaft then rotated to put my femoral head in the “normal” position.
The surgery left me with a broken leg, a rod, screws, a huge scar on my hip and on crutches for over 6 months. But as I stood on my new and improved leg just the other day, I couldn’t help but think of what my life would be like today if my hip was not fixed. How could I have gone on in chronic pain for the rest of my life?
Although my particular condition was rare, my story is not. Statistics show there are millions of people suffering from fixable and treatable conditions that have simply been given the wrong diagnosis. A particularly disturbing study published by the Mayo Clinic found that patients were either given the wrong diagnosis or the true cause of illness had been missed in roughly 20 percent of patients who underwent autopsies after dying in the intensive care unit.
If it weren’t for my husband (who happens to be a surgeon), finally insisting I go to the Hospital for Special Surgery and be seen by a “super specialist”, my hip pain would have continued to increase as it had done for over a decade. No doubt my quality of life would have continued to be greatly affected. And, because the pain ultimately became severe enough that it began to change my outlook on life, it was also affecting the lives of those around me. Sadly, this same scenario is happening to millions of other people.
What if the Doctor is Wrong?
The Wall Street Journal published an article titled “What if the Doctor is Wrong” that really struck a chord with me. If you happen to have an “outside of the box” health problem an otherwise excellent and caring doctor or alternative health care practitioner can easily make the wrong diagnosis. The well-meaning folks in your neighborhood quite possibly may have never even heard of your condition in the first place! This was exactly what happened to me….
It’s Hard to Diagnose a Condition If You Don’t Know It Even Exists
Please know I am not blaming the doctors or any of the other health care practitioners I saw for repeatedly giving me the wrong diagnosis; I blame myself. To this day when I tell people in the medical or health care community about my femoral retroversion and the derotational osteotomy I underwent to correct it the problem all I get in return are blank stares. Even my husband had never heard of femoral retroversion nor the surgery (and he is a surgeon!) until we went to the Hospital for Special Surgery.
For over ten years my instinct—and the terrible pain in my hip— told me something was wrong with my hip joint. But, because the initial x-rays and MRI’s never showed anything wrong with my hip and because the pain eventually spread to other parts of my body, I allowed countless doctors, surgeons and alternative health care practitioners to treat my symptoms will-nilly. I wasted hours, days, months and years not to mention thousands of dollars with multiple treatment plans for the wrong diagnosis. Every time I went to a new doctor or alternative practitioner I left with their opinion as to what was wrong. And a treatment plan. I always left with a treatment plan.
I take full blame for following through with the exhausting number of therapies and treatments because when I look back, I have to admit that I don’t recall anyone who treated me as being 100% confident in their diagnosis. I was always given an opinion as to what was wrong (such as facet joint disorder, SI joint dysfunction, iliopsoas bursitis, hip tendonitis, etc.) and then I was given a new treatment plan. And trust me, as much as I understand the psychological burden that comes with being sick and in pain as well as the desperate need to hear a diagnosis, the reality is, the wrong diagnosis can often be worse than NO diagnosis.
Keep in mind, an opinion that leads to treating the wrong diagnosis can spell disaster.
What is the Difference Between an Opinion and a Definitive Diagnosis?
It’s hard to put my finger on exactly what the difference between an opinion and a definitive diagnosis would be because it has been my experience that most health care professionals do not like to tell you that they can’t help or that they don’t know what is wrong. But, if you pay close attention there are most certainly clues, the number one being confidence.
If someone is treating you and they do not seem completely confident of being on the right track then a red flag should be raised. If you are not a good judge of confidence then you should just point blank ask a few simple questions such as:
- “What are the chances that this is the wrong diagnosis?”
- “How many times have you seen XXX condition in your practice?”
- “Have you had good success treating XXX condition?”
- “How long does it typically take for your patients with XXX condition to feel better with your treatment plan?”
Is the Wrong Diagnosis Linked to a Growing Interest In Alternative Medicine?
In my opinion, patient frustration with mainstream medical treatments and the annoyance of the whirlwind doctors office visit has contributed to a growing interest in seeking help from alternative health care practitioners.
The public in general seems to have become increasingly suspicious of mainstream medicine these days. And trust me, I totally understand. I am not only high suspiciousm but I downright disagree with a great deal of how modern medicine goes about treating chronic disease (typically by suppressing the symptoms.) I am also the first to admit that I run (not walk!) as far away from Big Pharma as my legs (rod, screws, and all!) will carry me. Another huge problem with our modern medical system is that doctors are under enormous amounts of pressure to keep office visits short; if your symptoms don’t fit the “mold” and your doctor doesn’t have the free time to do his own research then chances are high you could very well leave with the wrong diagnosis.
It has been my experience that in comparison to mainstream medical doctors, the alternative health care practitioner will spend considerably more time trying to get to the root of the problem. Many will also do their own research if your symptoms don’t seem to be aligned with a common diagnosis.
But, I do think we might all be losing the forest for the trees when we steer entirely clear of doctors (especially the “super specialists”) altogether.
The diagnostic tools modern medicine has to offer today are incredibly sophisticated and highly advanced. For the record, my condition was only able to be diagnosed after 3-D C.A.T. scan, which then had to be read by someone familiar with femoral retroversion.
Whether or not you ultimately decide to treat your condition via mainstream medicine/ surgery, you will undoubtedly have the highest percentage chance of treatment success if you utilize the modern diagnostic tools available, many of which require an Rx by an M.D.
It’s not that I am not a big believer in alternative therapy either. In fact, those of you who know me and know about my diagnosis with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 1998 know I made the decision to treat my MS naturally with an anti-inflammatory nutrition program (you can read my full story HERE.) Knock-on-wood, so far the natural nutrition approach is working very well for me and my MS has been stable for over 15 years without any help from the pharmaceutical companies. So, again, I am by no means against alternative or natural therapy. But, the initial diagnosis of my MS came from a medical doctor and it came from another “super specialist” at that. Ultimately, it was my personal decision to treat my MS naturally, but had I been given the wrong diagnosis from the beginning, I feel confident my health would have been compromised significantly. Luckily, MS has actually been the least of my worries over the years.
Regardless of what your treatment approach might ultimately be, obtaining a diagnosis by working together with a mainstream medical doctor and an alternative health care practitioner might be your best bet.
Are You Wasting Time, Money and Life Treating the Wrong Diagnosis?
The sharp pain in my right hip joint started in 2000 when I was 24 years old and pregnant with my son. I gained 25 pounds during the pregnancy and all of the pain was initially blamed on the pregnancy weight. Looking back, that explanation was the first of many red flags to come. My son, Blake, was born 7 pounds 15 ounces and I quickly returned to my pre-pregnancy weight. My half moon belly was gone, but the pain stuck around. At times it would get somewhat better, but it was never non-existent. Never.
After my son was born my hip pain continued to worsen bit by bit with each passing year. Not only did it worsen, but the pain started to “spread” down the back of my leg, into my lower back, deep in my glutes (if you have ever had piriformis pain you know exactly where the term ‘pain in the A_ _’ is surely derived), down the front of my thigh and even into my shoulders and neck. Deep hip joint pain compounded with full body pains eventually became an albatross that weighed me down physically, mentally and emotionally.
The pain was too persistent to ignore and so I searched (and searched, and searched) for a treatment…
Between 2001 and 2007 I had eight different x-rays and six different MRI’s along with numerous other evaluations and physical exams by local orthopedic surgeons, sports medicine doctors, rehab medicine doctors, etc. I completed ten different physical therapy sessions in addition to weekly medical massages, active release therapy, acupuncture, rolfing, chiropractic care, spinal decompression and 10-weeks of the Egoscue Method. As the pain increased year after year I became more and more desperate and was willing to shell out increasingly larger sums of money. I went to pain management doctors for injections, bought a tens unit and spent hours in biofeedback sessions. I attempted countless relaxation techniques and even tried hypnosis. And don’t get me wrong, I am not knocking any of these therapies because I know each and every one can be effective for certain conditions. Although you may laugh at the idea of hypnosis and though I certainly cannot explain how it works, I watched Marc Savard hypnotize my husband right in front of my eyes in Las Vegas and I know it is a real phenomenon. I also know that some of my husband’s bariatric patients have used hypnosis to help with pain, weight loss, stress and more. The point is, all of these therapies can and have been used to help people. But they just were not helping me.
Looking back, I realize not one of the doctors or therapists who treated me ever actually diagnosed the problem. Everyone who treated me was acutely aware of my symptoms and I was given umpteen different treatment plans. But nobody really knew what in the world they were treating. And neither did I.
One of the last straws was when one doctor tried to imply the pain I was feeling was “imagined” and that maybe I would be better off seeing a psychiatrist. But at least that doctor didn’t try to set up a treatment plan!
But the question then became, what more was there to do?
Use Your Intuition
Time and time again I have heard so many people say they had a gut feeling their issue originated in X, Y or Z origin of their body. For me, I knew my problem was in the hip joint. I don’t know why I allowed so many people to let me think otherwise, but that’s what happened.
Once you think you have identified the origin of your problem, you can work on finding a specialist who can provide a diagnosis. For me, I knew I needed an orthopedic surgeon. The ironic thing is, I had NO intention of undergoing hip surgery. I just wanted to know what the problem was because in the back of my mind I actually thought I would be able to devise my own alternative treatment plan using my fitness and nutrition background. My thinking was definitely a bit “skewed” but anyway, that’s what I thought at the time.
What to do next?
Avoid the Wrong Diagnosis in the First Place
If you want optimal health care and optimal health there is simply no way around it: you absolutely must become your own health care advocate. That means researching like crazy to find out who the specialists are. And you have to remember, there is no doctor on earth who will care as much about your personal pain as you and your family. This may sound awfully harsh, but coming from a doctor’s wife I know the strains doctors are under these days and I also know doctors have their own personal lives filled with their own personal problems. The sad reality is, there just aren’t enough hours in the day for the typical doctor to spend researching and learning about all the different congenital disorders, diseases, and conditions that plague people. You truly have to take your health into your own hands and take the proper steps to achieve a diagnosis.
Once you obtain the right diagnosis (and trust me, you will know when you’ve gotten to a “super specialist”), the next step is to decide whether you want to get a second opinion. After that you need to research everything you can about treatment options. Make sure you understand the risk / benefit ratio of whatever the treatment option might be. And if your issue is an orthopedic one like mine, realize that a full recovery is going to take an enormous amount of self-driven rehab and time. Having realistic expectations (which I admit, I most definitely did NOT have when I underwent my surgery), is essential if you want to keep your head in the game during recovery.
Have Hope!
The photos taken below of my leg were taken right after the surgery. I was in so much excruciating pain that I couldn’t even fathom how I would ever walk normally again, much less dance, jog, ski or do any other activity that I had once loved. It took me six months just to walk again, during which time I sank into a terrible depression. I spent hours upon hours doing daily physical therapy and months would go by with barely any improvement. To be honest, I was in such a low place in my life that it really was hard to think positively, but my husband was a Saint and day after day he reassured me that if I kept working at it I would eventually get better. I managed to hang on to a sliver of hope and I truly worked harder on rehab than I have ever worked in my life. Ultimately it DID pay off.
Today my hip pain is gone, I can ski, dance and run (not just jog, but run!) once again. And less than a year after the surgery I filmed my first fitness video, Full Fitness Fusion. Filming a workout DVD was something I had dreamed of doing ever since I was a little girl watching my mom do Jane Fonda. I used to think, “I bet I could do that!” I just would have never thought I would have had to have my leg twisted (literally) in order to do it. But I will forever be thankful to my husband for pushing me to get to a “super specialist” and to my surgeon, Dr. Robert Bully for doing the impossible. My life would not be the same without these two doctors.
P.S. What are the Most Commonly Misdiagnosed Illnesses?
Struggling to find a diagnosis? Learn the most commonly misdiagnosed illnesses HERE.
I feel like I could have written the first part of your post. I believe I have something going on with my hips. Pain became an issue during my second pregnancy and never fully resolved. Pt and a regular exercise program made things better but not totally pain free. I’m also incredibly self conscious of my lower body posture. Several members on my mother’s side of the family have hip issues, causing some to have total hip replacements as early as 50 years old. I was diagnosed with the same piriformis issue, and the doctors only solution was to give injections and recommend pt. I said no to an injection, and asked for an MRI. Nothing came of that. I got in shape and my pain improved, but is still a problem. I am considering a second go round at the doctor as I write this, which is what led me to reading your article. Have you had any complications from your osteotomy, or persisting pain that seems related to it?
Hi Kat, Oh gosh, my heart goes out to you because the hip pain problems really affected every area of my life (including psychologically). I just couldn’t deal with the 24-hour pain and could not find a single position that was comfortable. For me, the surgery was a Godsend. I don’t even want to try and imagine what my life would have been like today had I not had the surgery =( I will be honest, the recovery was incredibly difficult and painful and it took A LOT longer than I had thought. But if you saw what I can do today you wouldn’t believe it. I have absolutely no pain doing anything any other normal person would do. The surgery was like a miracle for me because I didn’t think I would ever be “normal” again. And I can’t say enough great things about Dr. Buly and Hospital for Special Surgery. I would not have that surgery done unless I went to the Hospital for Special Surgery (there is one other place out in Colorado that does it, but my husband and I still recommend HSS as our first choice). It is NOT an easy surgery to do and so you really want to make sure you go to the best. Please do keep me posted. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
After hours of scouring the internet for femoral retro version stories I am in shock to find this page. My story is so similar to yours. I was always very athletic since a child but have been in debilitating pain for 5 years. At 27 years old I suddenly had horrible pain in my back hip and leg. For five years I was misdiagnosed with mechanical back pain, SI joint dysfunction, piriformis syndrome, facet joint dysfunction, L1-L5 compression, IT band dysfunction and sciatica. I have seen countless doctors, physiotherapists, chiropractors, accupuncturists, psychologists and even a neurosurgeon. After completing 10 months of full day rehab treatments for a back injury and tired of the pile of drugs they were prescribing, I was told there was nothing else that could be done and the pain was in my head. I kept going, living everyday in agony, pain eventually spreading right down my leg to my foot. I started to limp this year and my knee started hurting so I reluctantly started physio again, where my therapist told me it’s not your back and it’s not your knee it’s your hip. She told me to keep fighting for a diagnosis and for the first time in five years I felt validated. I went to a MD who told me my hips looks fine, no one is going to scope my hip and asked me what I want. I stared at the wall, worked up the courage and looked her in the eye. I said I want a diagnosis, I want someone who knows about hips. She reluctantly sent me to a sports medicine professional who works on hips and knees of athletes. That specialist recognized the problem was beyond her and sent me to a specialized orthopaedic surgeon. A hip injection was initially used to diagnosis the hip as the problem. in Canada we wait up to a year for medical imaging so I paid for the tests to be done immediately. I will never forget the day the orthopaedic surgeon told me “I know what is wrong with you”. He sees this problem in athletic people by the time they hit their twenties the problem becomes obvious, at least to him. I thought how could this be possible it took me five years to find this one guy who immediately knew what was wrong? The literature is available, it screams that hip problems in young people should not be ignored, and hip impingement is a common phrase, but why is femur rotation so un-talked about? I was overcome with relief at my diagnosis, until he told me I have femoral retro version, hip impingement and at 32 years old the only way to prevent further damage and a full hip replacement would be to cut my femor and rotate my leg. I am currently waiting to see an even more specialized surgeon who can do the surgery. wait times in Canada are crazy long, I’m still waiting to see the last guy and it’s been 8 months since I started again seeking diagnosis for the second time. I will see the specialist surgeon in a few more months and get on a lengthy surgery wait list. Hoping two years from now I will be able to use my leg again. Your story makes me cry, I cannot believe how similar your situation was. And it gives me hope, that one day I will stop waking up at 4am crying in pain, one day I will walk and run and be A regular thirty something year old. From the bottom of my heart thank you for sharing this. To anyone else going through this I’m so sorry 🙁
Oh Marie! First I apologize for the lengthy delay getting back to you, we have been traveling and also took our son to college so I am only just now getting a chance to finally answer comments. My heart goes out to you as I vividly remember the nightmare I went through for YEARS and YEARS. At one point I thought I was going crazy because nobody could tell me what was wrong. I will say though that the surgery absolutely changed my life. Before the surgery I could not find a single comfortable position—sitting, standing, lying down, walking, EVERYTHING I did hurt. It very much affected me psychologically because I couldn’t exercise without pain (and exercise has always been one of my biggest outlets) and to be honest, I just didn’t have coping tools to deal with the pain. I would highly recommend going to the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC if at all possible as the surgery really is a big deal and you absolutely want to have a highly skilled surgeon. Also, while you are waiting for the surgery following the anti-inflammatory diet we promote on the blog and in our books will help control the pain. I would also highly suggest medical marijuana for both pain and inflammation. Unlike opiates that work only on pain receptors, marijuana works on pain receptors AND inflammation—so you get a one-two-punch that is highly effective and considerably safer than opiates. And finally, I would also recommend trying to do some strength stabilizing and core stabilizing exercises as the stronger you are the more strain you will take off your hips. I know this is a long road for you but my story should absolutely give you hope. I truly do feel like a new person and will forever be grateful to my surgeon, Dr. Robert Buly. He absolutely gave me my life back. Please keep me posted on how things go. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
Warm hugs,
ivy
I got my surgery 8 weeks after my 5 year road to diagnosis. The first month was very difficult, it’s been 11 weeks now. I am almost walking again with physio everyday, my brain shut off the ability to use the leg immediately so it’s a slow process to get it moving. The metal implants are infected so they will likely be removed but my femur is only 75% healed, have to wait for full fusion to undergo removal. Anyone planning this surgery be warned, yes it is major and 10/10 painful! This page was the only place I found any patient experience that has had the procedure, which helped me prepare mentally for how challenging this would be. Looking forward to getting the metal out and moving on with my life! Thanks so much again for making this post XO
Thank you so much for sharing your story Ivy! There is some paucity of information and high-quality evidence on the best management of femoral retroversion related impingement and it is incredibly helpful to hear success stories. I have always been incredibly active, competed in national level track and field, teach several yoga classes a day, and running close to 10miles a day (plus biking), however after my first injury (severe disabling impingement) with radiographic and clinical evidence of femoral retroversion I am left mentally and physically in a mess. Did you try physio prior to surgery? How long was your recovery after surgery? Can you run now?
With so much gratitude,
Keight
Hi Keight, I am so sorry for the lengthy delay getting back to you. I have been swamped ever since the launch of our book and I am just now trying to catch back up on comments from weeks ago. But my heart goes out to you. I completely understand what you are going through. I don’t think I have ever had to face anything as physically or psychologically challenging as my hip ordeal. I tried EVERYTHING before having the surgery (and I mean EVERYTHING.) And then I spent a full year doing at least a full hour of rehab every day. But it was so worth it. Today I am pain free and I can not only run I can leap and do cartwheels too (I was a dancer and gymnast when I was young). The surgery was a Godsend for me and I honestly don’t know what I would have done without it. I can’t stress the importance of going to the best surgeon though. I don’t think I would even consider having such a surgery other than at Hospital for Special Surgery.
I know there is not a lot of info out there on femoral retroversion, so please do let me know if you have any other questions. I will do my best to try and help you. I’m so sorry you are going through this but I hope my story gives you hope.
Hi Ivy, I’ve just read your story on getting a diagnosis of femoral retroversion and i just needed to say how much I can relate to your story. I was diagnosed 2 days ago with the same condition and am ecstatic to finally have a valid reason for my pain and now have a concrete plan in place. Because I’m nearly 50 and arthritis has set in, I will be looking at a hip replacement and I’m ok with this as now I get to call the shots on when I’ve had enough.
Unfortunately my youngest daughter has inherited her mum’s hips and after 5 years of trying different things ranging from endless and costly physio to having 2 arthroscopic procedures, she had the same surgery as you just a week ago today. She’s doing surpringly well but has as you know alengthy recovery ahead of her. She’s 17 now and the surgeon has told us that she will need a hip replacement somtime during her forties.
Also like you, I’m not angry with anyone specifically, it’s not a well known condition.
Oh Mel, I am so sorry to hear about you and your daughter. But thank you so much for sharing your story. I really need to do a bigger article on this because I have gotten a surprising number of emails from people who have the same condition who have SO many questions. I think maybe more people might have femoral retroversion than the medical literature acknowledges. Unfortunately, most doctors (even orthopedic surgeons) are not aware the condition even exists. Getting the right diagnosis can be incredibly difficult. Yes, your daughter will definitely have a tough road ahead with recovery BUT she is young and I believe that as long as arthritis has not set in that the surgery will prevent her from needed a hip replacement. My husband is a surgeon and we discussed this in depth with my orthopedic surgeon at HSS and I think having the surgery will have saved me from needing a replacement in the future. However, if I was 50 years old I think I would have just done the replacement instead. A derotational osteotamy is NOT an easy surgery. I don’t think I could have gone through it if I was much older (I am 41 years old now). My hospital roommate at HSS was about 50 years old and she had a replacement rather than the surgery I had and she was doing MUCH better, much quicker, than me. Hip replacement surgery has come A LONG way, and as long as you have a great surgeon and do your rehab it should totally get rid of the pain and change your life. Please keep me posted on how you and your daughter both do. Wishing you both speedy recoveries.
I was just diagnosed with femoral retroversion, and I have been trying to decide if I should get the surgery or not. It’s hard to make a decision when there is such little information about this type of surgery on the internet. Is there any way we can email each other so that I can ask you some questions about it? I would message you on one of your social media accounts but I don’t have any. Anyway, thanks for writing out your story, and hopefully you see this even though it’s been a couple years since you posted on here. Thanks! 🙂
Hi Jennifer, I am so sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you, we were out of town and I am just now trying to get caught back up. Anyway, I TOTALLY understand where you are coming from with trying to make a decision. I am lucky my husband is a surgeon (not an orthopedic surgeon though) and he was a HUGE help in guiding me to the best place and the right decision, for me. Here is the thing, I was in MAJOR pain before the surgery and had issues with my hip for YEARS. Before the surgery, my pain was so bad that there was no position I could get in that was comfortable (including sitting or lying down)—the pain was constant. I was also becoming very limited on my physical activity because of the pain. So for me, I really think I had no choice but to have the surgery. Having said that, it was a MAJOR surgery (over 7 1/2 hours) and it was over 6 months before I was walking (I also had a complication) —BUT then 7 1/2 months after the surgery I filmed the FullFitnessFusion.com workout video! The surgery was truly life changing. I would however only have it done by a specialist. I cannot say enough great things about Dr. Robert Bully at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC. I hope this info all helps? Please do let me know if you have any other questions. I am happy to help in any way I can. I remember so vividly what it was like to be going through what you are going through….
Hi there,
I am a professional athlete who has had hip troubles for the last few years. Because femoral retroversion is rare, I’ve been having trouble finding personal stories about those who have had the surgery, let alone a story where they are trying to return to activity. If there is any way we could talk, I would greatly appreciate it.
Hi Jamie, oh my gosh! I totally know what agony you are going through. Feel free to text me at 561-906-2855 and I can try to point you in the right direction. I honestly almost lost my mind dealing with trying to get a diagnosis. I will say though, the surgery I had (a derotational osteotamy) at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC was the BEST decision of my life. My surgeon, Dr. Robert Buly did the impossible —he cured my hip pain. It was so bad leading up to the surgery that I couldn’t even sit without being in pain. Hopefully this helps a bit to give you hope and encouragement—but I am also happy to chat with you…
I am going through something very similar right now. After 2 1/2 years of hip pain and 2 surgeries, i consulted with Dr. Buly after doing research of my own and he diagnosed me with femoral anteversion. An osteotomy might be in my furture but I need to lose about 20 lbs first and see if that helps with the pain. I am so glad to have found this website .
Hi Joan! I am SO sorry for just getting back to you now. We were on a week long vacation cruise and then it seriously took me a week to just catch up from being gone and not answering emails, etc. Anyway, Dr. Bully is a genius surgeon and I would trust him with anything he recommends. I cannot imagine what my life would be like if he hadn’t fixed that awful pain. It was truly making me crazy. I so empathize with you and your pain and I know how terribly depressing it can be. Without a doubt the less weight you carry and the stronger you are the better it will be for your joints. But at the time I had my surgery I weighed 115 pounds (I’m 5 feet “6”) and I really wasn’t carrying any extra weight but I was still in terrible, terrible pain. However, losing weight BEFORE the surgery and getting stronger (core training is SO incredibly important for your hips) will definitely make the recovery easier…if surgery is ultimately what you need to do. Our Clean Cuisine book is an anti-inflammatory program that will definitely help you lose weight (weight loss is not the focus of the book, but it’s the #1 “side benefit” of following the program). Also, just reducing systemic inflammation should in and of itself help your hip. Please do keep me posted on how things go. I wish you the very best.