What causes lower back pain and hip pain after a spinal fusion?

Answer 1

The spine holds all tissues and organs into place. When one has back surgery they are sore so their body compensates to the most comfortable position possible. Thus, you may walk to one side to ease the pain or even hobble and this can create hip pain. I have a callous on the ball of my right foot that I have to continue to keep down because if I don't (doesn't take much to build up) I notice that I am compensating and my left hip is out and sore right down to my ankle. Once I have repaired it then I walk better and my hip problem goes away. In your case after back surgery is could take several weeks to several months before you can walk properly. Try a walker if you aren't using one already and try to keep as much weight off your hips as possible. Physiotherapy is good at this time and usually doing so in a tepid pool of water is a good idea as the body becomes buoyant and relaxes you and puts less stress on your back, hips and legs while still strengthening them. Hope you get better soon. This hip pain may be from the site which they harvested bone from to create a bony fusion, but this is only if you had a fusion surgery.

Answer 2

There is always going to be pain after any type of back surgery, be it major or minor. The question is what type of pain, how bad is the pain, and how long after surgery has it lasted that might raise questions.

For example, I've had 3 major spinal operations, 1 cervical and 2 lumbar multi-level fusions. After my second surgery (my first lumbar) the pain in my back got so extreme that I've required the use of the stronges opiates for the last 10 years. However, it wasn't until my 3rd surgery when I found out where the pain was coming from. Everyone up to that point chalked it up to a failed fusion, but my new surgeon recognized it immediately when he saw the pictures prior to surgery as being a botched operation. As it turned out, I had 2 screws of the 8 in my lower spine that were screwed through too far through the bone, and into tissue - specifically, leg nerves, one for each side. Since they've been removed, the pain has slowly gotten less, but the damage is done, and I've lost 10 years of my life because of it.

I do know one thing about pain - there is always a reason for it, and don't let any doctor tell you it's in your head. Scar tissue plays a big part, and there's nothing you can do about that. Arthritis, stenosis, and the reasons for the surgical procedure to begin with can all be factors, but you need to rule out each one by a process of elimination.

From experience, it takes 12-18 months for most pain from a major back operation to subside, assuming you follow orders and do your exercises, and don't strain/rupture anything, or cause more problems. Keep in mind also that if you've had a fusion, and especially a multi-level one like I've had, that it puts increasing stress on the disk directly above it, as a result of the fulcrum effect. The only thing you can do is to strengthen your stomach and back muscles, and don't overdo anything with your back in general. Learn a good stretching routine, and by good I mean at least 30-45 minutes, as anything less is useless. I spent 5 years in Karate, which helped a lot for flexibility and pain control before I was forced to retire on disability.

Figure out what type of pain it is, and use Pain Diary to track your symptoms. It comes in handy if someday you get to the point where you need to enter a formal Pain Management program like I did 11 years ago. You can get Pain Diary at the American Pain Foundation website (Painfoundation.org). Look in their Documentation section.

Answer 3

There are many reasons for pain after total hip replacement:

1. loosening of the implant: this usually presents as pain on starting to move in the morning or after lying or sitting for long periods. It can be diagnosed early by regular x-rays.

2. Infection: the pain is usually continuous, may be associated with abnormally high blood tests (ESR and CRP), may resultin loosening in which case it is diagnosed by x-ray. Otherwise it may be a little tricky to confirm the diagnosis.

3. trochanteric bursitis: pain over the lateral aspect of the upper thigh, increases with applying manual pressure overthe area of pain, usually resolves by medications and decreasing weight if excessive.

My best advice is that you have to check with the surgeon who performed the surgery as early diagnosis of a lot of conditions leads to better results.

Best wishes

Answer 4

It affects pepole differently. You will experience pain as the lining of the lungs get inflamed.Note that after Pleurisy goes away, the symptoms can stay for awhile, and you can still feel the pain.

Answer 5

Because its only 8 weeks after a hip replacement, there are muscles and tendons in there that are still healing, add in the bad things that happened while you were building up to the replacement, limping, poor posture, those things were trained into your muscles and need to be trained out, there may also be scar tissue or adhesions that need to be worked out. Don't skimp on your PT, what you have for movement when you finish is as good as it will ever be, so do as much as you can.

Answer 6

8 weeks? You may very well experience pain 8 months after. This is major surgery. The bone has to grow around the new hip. The ligaments and tendons and muscles all have to heal around the trauma. Most people believe it takes up to a year to be fully recovered with full mobility and no pain from such an operation. However, the pain should be very different then what was experienced before the surgery.

Answer 7

My dad just had one and he only had minimal pain but my friend had both at the same time and it is horrible but it all depends on the doctor and how much pain you have normaly!