Leg and hip pain gone

[Tailgate]

Hopefully, for good.

Symptoms: walking a couple of blocks produced hip pain that subsided after resting a couple of minutes. A lot of fatigue and weakness in thighs and calves.

Diagnosed with Peripheral Vascular Disease showing moderate blockage of the iliac arteries in both legs.

Procedure: femoral catheterization and 3 stents placed, opening the arteries back to normal. Had this done 3 days ago as day surgery.

Results have been wonderful. Today I went with my DW to the grocery store and successfully navigated the whole trip without a moment of leg pain or fatigue. Going back to the gym end of next week.

I initially thought it was arthritis or early signs of needing a hip replacement. The pain was centered at the hip joint. PCP ordered xrays that showed arthritis but she went a step further and ordered a CT scan. At the CT scan the blockage showed up. Then met with vascular Doc for the solution. Doc said he has seen some unnecessary hip replacements performed when he believes the overriding issue was circulation.

So, I'm sharing this just in case someone has hip or leg pain and leg fatigue that goes away after a short rest and reappears when you get moving again. Get your circulation checked. It can make all the difference to you.

 

[street]

That is great news.

 

[omni550]

Wow...glad they figured out the cause and that you''ve had a quck

 

[aja8888]

Great news!

 

[cooch96]

“Unnecessary hip replacements”. Egads, that’s a scary phrase.

Thank you much for the heads up.

 

[audreyh1]

Yeah, thanks for the heads up!

 

[Red Badger]

Thanks and a promised follow up to members here.

DW has similar conditions when walking (assorted leg pain and fatigue - subsides some after short rest). Gonna chase this down for her as well and hope for same. Might not pan pan out, but def worth the hunt.

 

[donheff]

Interesting. I had hip pain over the last couple of months that was making it very difficult to walk, although biking for 20 miles was painless. I got Xrays that showed very mild arthritic changes. Then it went acute and I could barely sleep, let alone walk or ride. An ultrasound guided cortisone shot directly into the hip space knocked the pain completely out. So now I am waiting to see if the acute flare was stopped cold or comes back after the cortisone shot wears off. If I have further problems I will look into peripheral vascular disease as a possible factor.

 

[eytonxav]

Sounds like you had a good Dr to uncover a problem like that.

 

[Maenad]

That's great news! Earlier in my career I supported a production line making catheters and stent delivery systems for your condition. It still gives me warm fuzzies to know I had a small part in helping people like you.

 

[SheitlQueen]

Thanks for this info. Been suffering with hip pain and figured it's arthritis. Not bad enough yet to go to the doctor, but will keep this info in mind when I finally get forced into going.

 

[SheitlQueen]

Interesting. I had hip pain over the last couple of months that was making it very difficult to walk, although biking for 20 miles was painless. I got Xrays that showed very mild arthritic changes. Then it went acute and I could barely sleep, let alone walk or ride. An ultrasound guided cortisone shot directly into the hip space knocked the pain completely out. So now I am waiting to see if the acute flare was stopped cold or comes back after the cortisone shot wears off. If I have further problems I will look into peripheral vascular disease as a possible factor.

Had the cortisone shot in the knee a year and a half ago. Took about a week or two to totally take affect, but pain free since. Hope it goes well for you too!

 

[Rianne]

I have knee/hip pain every so often. Try to strengthen muscles by treading water in the pool about 3/week. This helps. I fear the unnecessary knee/hip/back surgeries and will give several months, if not longer to see if it heals on its own. It usually does. I can live with the periodic pain.

My friend has back pain and was DX with a stenosis. She immediately started thinking surgery, got a surgeon on board and started planning. Thankfully, a joint/back specialist steered her out of that direction pretty quickly. Her abdomen is totally out of shape. She does not do ab exercises. It's so important to keep muscles strong to support these weaknesses as we age.

 

[Tailgate]

OP here... there is a lot of info online about PAD or PAV, whichever you want to call it. Here's a link from the American Heart Association.

Some of the symptoms listed are severe (gangrene?). Mine were not nearly as severe but were troublesome.

Day 5 after the procedure and zero pain or fatigue. Monster bruise at the cath site but no tenderness or soreness.

 

[michelek]

OP here... there is a lot of info online about PAD or PAV, whichever you want to call it. Here's a link from the American Heart Association.

Thank you for the link [emoji254]

 

[googily]

I wish that had been the reason for my years of pain, which I always figured was because of my back and probably hip arthritis. But I turned out to have almost no arthritis and instead a big tear in my hip labrum and a bump on the femur head. Got both of those fixed in February and now am just working on fixing the decade's worth of compensations I contorted my body into to try to lessen the pain.

 

[Carpediem]

I recently started having hip pain that I thought might be a pinched nerve in my back. However, I can take 2 Tylenol and 2 Ibuprofen and the pain will go away for several hours, possibly the rest of the day. Could it still be a pinched nerve if meds make the pain go away? It seems to be worse after I've been standing for awhile.

 

[michelek]

I have knee/hip pain every so often. Try to strengthen muscles by treading water in the pool about 3/week. This helps. I fear the unnecessary knee/hip/back surgeries and will give several months, if not longer to see if it heals on its own. It usually does. I can live with the periodic pain.

My friend has back pain and was DX with a stenosis. She immediately started thinking surgery, got a surgeon on board and started planning. Thankfully, a joint/back specialist steered her out of that direction pretty quickly. Her abdomen is totally out of shape. She does not do ab exercises. It's so important to keep muscles strong to support these weaknesses as we age.

Core strength is a key factor in aging well!
Sit-ups and planks are good exercises for core, but no one likes doing them unless you are Jane Fonda. A less well known therapy is Equine Assisted therapy which means horseback lessons with trained assistants is fun and effective! Riding a horse is possible for even the most severely handicapped people. It strengthens the core in ways that ordinary life can’t. The horse has three people around it and the rider on top. Facilities are accredited by PATH. Most are run mainly by grants and volunteers. The horses are older and gentle. It’s a wonderful way to get therapy!

 

[haha]

Interesting. I had hip pain over the last couple of months that was making it very difficult to walk, although biking for 20 miles was painless. I got Xrays that showed very mild arthritic changes. Then it went acute and I could barely sleep, let alone walk or ride. An ultrasound guided cortisone shot directly into the hip space knocked the pain completely out. So now I am waiting to see if the acute flare was stopped cold or comes back after the cortisone shot wears off. If I have further problems I will look into peripheral vascular disease as a possible factor.

This is medical question which I am therefore not qualified to answer. Nevertheless, for two reasons I think this is much more likely to be arthritis or even a muscular imbalance around the hip than peripheral vascular disease. For one reason, the cortisone injection into the hip would likely not improve blood supply to that area, and two, if arterial supply to those muscles were compromised, pedaling would hurt just as walking would hurt.

But riding a bike, you are not pounding the joint. Much of your weight is transferred from your butt to the seat to the wheels. Walking, with every step all your weight goes onto one leg, thus onto one hip joint.

Anyway, if it were my condition I would rather deal with hip arthritis than PAD.

Ha

 

[badatmath]

My pinched nerve pain did not go away with my heavy duty painkillers . . . so thinking maybe not that carpediem. . . . Maybe I am a wimp of course! But it took weeks to recover fully and also a shot in my spine. Also there was notable loss of function in my hand (could not hold a pen) etc. (I had issues in my neck radiating down my arm). Years later 2 of my fingers are still numb. Can't say how hips would be affected. . .

 

[ohyes]

So, I'm sharing this just in case someone has hip or leg pain and leg fatigue that goes away after a short rest and reappears when you get moving again. Get your circulation checked. It can make all the difference to you.

Thank you for sharing. I am printing this out for DH and urging him to check with his M.D. He has had similar symptoms for a couple years. Everytime I yell, "Time for a hip replacement!!", he reacts poorly. This is encouraging.