Hip Appointment and Arthrogram

Since working with a new physical therapist in Cincinnati her and I both realized that there is something wrong with my left hip. We are not sure when or how I injured it, but with EDS that is quite common. My joints all pop out of place regularly and sometimes they do not go back into place correctly and can catch and tear.  Activity really seems to aggravate the hip (walking, stairs, etc.) and the pain is deep in the hip joint. We started trying to treat the pain conservatively and tried doing different exercises to see if it would improve, but it has not improved. After a few weeks of this treatment the PT recommended that I see an orthopedic surgeon in order to get my hip assessed.

I was able to get an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon at Cincinnati Children's hospital (they accept patients into their thirties, which is fantastic for me!). At that appointment he took some x-rays and did a full assessment of both hips. The x-rays looked great, which we expected them too, but based off of the amount of time I have had pain in the hip, the fact that the pain has not gotten any better, and the specific positions I have pain in the hip he recommended that we do further testing to see what is going on.

The test that he wanted done is called an arthrogram. An arthrogram is done when contrast is injected directly into the joint and then an MRI is done. I have never had one of these, so it was new experience! I was taken into an operating room (a sterile environment), my hip was numbed, and a needle was injected directly into the hip using x-ray guidance. This allowed them to put IV contrast directly into my joint so the soft tissue structures of the hip would show up much clearer on the MRI than they would if IV contrast was used.. While he had the needle in my hip they also injected steroids into the hip. The steroids can be used as a treatment for joint pain because they reduce the inflammation in the joint and can decrease pain. Sadly the steroid injection did not seem to help much at all.

The arthrogram itself was not painful necessarily because of all the local anesthesia that they used, but it was definitely uncomfortable! I could feel pressure and tugging as the needle was in the joint and when the procedure was completed my hip was VERY stiff. The doctor inserted so much fluid into the hip that it was extremely stiff and sore. I was on low activity for 48 hours, so we just used my wheelchair since we had family in town and were going out to a museum. Part of my connective tissue disorder means that I bruise severely and easily, so the point that the needle was inserted into the hip is definitely bruised and still sore a week later.

I will go back to the orthopedic surgeon next Wednesday (4/13) to get the results from the arthrogram. If it is a tear in the cartilage like we think it is we will then schedule surgery to repair the tear, but we will not know that until after I get the results from the arthrogram.