The Harmonious Hip: June 2013

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Laptop Down!

No new posts lately due to a faulty laptop. And whenever I seem to try to drag myself to the desktop, one of my precious offspring is on it. So....I've been slacking. Sorry. In happier news, I'm still workin' and I'm still runnin'. More and more and more. I'm like the little engine that could. Some days I backslide and some days I'm chugging up that ridiculously steep hill and praying that I'm somewhere near the top. Kinda like life, huh? Stay tuned for more updates...and if anyone has any laptop advice, I'm all ears!

What is Hip Dysplasia?

You may hear about babies or pets with hip dysplasia, but it can affect adults, especially young women. Hip dysplasia is an abnormal condition affecting the hip socket, oracetabulum, and the thighbone, or femur. In someone with hip dysplasia, the hip socket is too shallow, or the femur is in the wrong place. Doctors check for hip dysplasia in babies before sending them home from the hospital -- it's an easily treatable condition in newborns. But if hip dysplasia isn't detected and corrected at an early age, the health of the hip will deteriorate over time because of its misalignment. Depending on the severity of the situation, this could result in pain, osteoarthritis, difficulty walking or an inability to walk. It can also contribute to a marked deterioration in a person's basic quality of life. It's not just dogs and babies, y'all!

Periacetabular Osteotomy (or PAO)

PAO: The Mother of All Hip Surgeries... A procedure that cuts the hip socket out of the pelvis to allow the socket to be repositioned and then screwed back into place. This allows the ball & socket to move fluidly, preventing further cartilage damage and preserving the joint in patients with faulty hips. The PAO preserves and enhances the patient's own hip, NOT replacing it with artificial parts like a hip replacement. The hip may still develop arthritis over time, even when the operation is successful. However, PAO is still the preferred treatment in young adults to postpone the need for hip replacement as long as possible.