 |
| New Xrays June 2025 |
 |
| Right Femur Nov 2022 |
 |
| Right Femur June 2025 |
My annual physical in May 2025 with comprehensive blood tests showing all normal except slightly elevated PSA no doubt due to testosterone therapy, and my free testosterone was high, so I am reducing dosage back to 25mg. Kidney function looked good.
My wife and I went on a one week chauffeured tour of Ireland. Lots of walking and stairs. Navigated it all but with significant pain. I did miss out on many sights as touring Ireland can require walking significant distances. I was able to secure the use of a wheel chair at two venues and when arriving at the airport from gate to baggage claim. Walking from ticket counter to gates at airports was challenging as wheel chairs were scarce and unavailable.
We were able to secure airline seats in Business Class front row so I had enough leg room to avoid bending my knee for long periods.
Have increased aspirin to three 325mg tablets per day. It is helping.
The big event is my visit with my Orthopedic Surgeon. Both femurs Xrayed to compare with 12 months previous.
Right leg experienced additional compression. The right femur shortened by addition 3/8 inch. Now the right leg is a full inch shorter than left. Will need another set of shoes with a thicker sole on the right shoe. (7/8+1/8=1inch vs 1/2+1/8=5/8 previously)
I have shoes with 5/8” spacer glued into the soles. Sending off to have another pair modified with a 1” spacer.
For “around the house” to use unmodified shoes, I bought this device on Amazon and modified it. It was loose and my foot tended to rotate inside it and shift rearward. I added two shims and a strap to make it stable.
Reasonable but slow remodeling of the severe damage in the upper section where compression occurred. Surgeon confident the right leg is now solid and not to worry about broken screws or the fractured nail in upper hip above the lag screw. Compression (shortening) should be complete.
Left leg is remodeling well too. So the remaining problem is the screw tip protruding 3 mm from the lateral distal femur that is grinding/dragging on the IT band, causing inflammation and serious pain. This pain is seriously limiting my mobility and state of mind. This protruding tip resulted from fact that screw lengths come in increments of 5 mm, and a screw too short does not load bear into the hard bone, so in this case there was an extra 3 mm and unfortunately it contacted the IT band during knee flexing.
After a long discussion of all the risks it was agreed that an attempt to remove this one screw was reasonable. Risks of surgery are standard with the other possibilities that the screw will break or the head may become stripped making removal of the sharp tip impossible. And there is a small risk of nerve damage.
It was agreed my bones had healed sufficiently to allow a serious weight loss program-low calorie with lots of exercise. 215 pounds down to 195.
So with the surgery and weight loss, there is a chance that pain can be reduced to allow more normal activity levels-even if continued use of a cane is necessary.
It does appear that the left lateral knee miniscus has been diminished (compressed and damaged) but i do not think I am experiencing pain with “normal” foot posture and minimal knee flex angle. My leg length X-ray in 2024 showed good miniscus thickness when standing. This issue may be being masked by the IT band pain caused by the screw.
No comments:
Post a Comment