My mother was in surgery for two hours this morning. My sister and I were in the surgery waiting room when the surgeon made his appearance to give us news of the operation. He performed a total hip replacement, with a metal-and-plastic ball joint, and the upper part of the femur reinforced about 5 or so inches down. Apparently during the first surgery there was a hairline fracture of the femur too small to be seen by human eye or x-ray, and this was what was the cause of the new fracture. The reinforcement he performed on this occasion should prevent a recurrence (fingers crossed).
When I challenged him about letting her rest for a few days, he stood his ground like a man and explained why it was necessary that she be moved upright as soon as possible after the surgery: to prevent the possibility of pneumonia and death.
We finally got to see her about an hour and a half after the surgery. She was pretty doped up, feeling no pain, and rather crotchety. Frankly it's the first time I've seen her absolutely pain-free for the last few weeks.
So - - we shall see. Hopefully she'll be given enough time in hospital this time to allow a better bit of recovery.
Too much inactivity also raises risk of pulmonary embolism arising from the lower extremities also. Activity might not be comfortable, but is surely gives better odds of a good outcome!
ReplyDeleteYah, that's what the doctor indicated to us; it's nice to have confirmation, though. Thanks!
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