Tackling Hip Replacement #2 With Her Trusted Team
July 22, 2020
Rebecca Fulton, 66, loves taking walks and spending time with her nine grandchildren, but for the past seven years she was immobilized by pain. Everyday activities like getting dressed, or getting in and out of the car, became difficult. “I started using a cane because I felt wobbly,” she says.
For a long time, she thought the pain was because of her back. She visited several chiropractors but couldn’t get relief, and was surprised when imaging tests suggested the problems were with her hips. That’s when she reached out to orthopedic surgeon Roland Askins, MD, to discuss hip replacement surgery at the Orthopaedic Spine and Joint Center at Lakewood Ranch Medical Center.
After meeting with Dr. Askins, she began a weight-loss program to get healthier for her surgery, and attended a preoperative class so she’d know what to expect. “By the time I had my first surgery in January [2020] on my left hip, I had lost about 65 pounds,” she says. “The surgery was amazing. I have absolutely zero pain in my left hip.”
Surgery During COVID-19
The next challenge was her right hip, which had deteriorated to where she could barely walk on it. For that surgery in May, she’d lost another 15 pounds, and new protocols were in place at Lakewood Ranch Medical Center because of COVID-19. “My husband dropped me off right at the door, I checked in and they took my temperature,” she says. “I washed my hands right away. The check-in was perfect … I felt secure, I felt that they were following all the precautions that needed to be followed.”
With help from her medical team and physical therapy, she was walking unassisted within a few weeks of her procedure, while continuing her recovery. Today, she is grateful to be pain-free. “I can walk longer distances, I’ve been swimming, and I can play with my grandkids as long as it’s nothing rambunctious,” she says. “Now, I’m going to appreciate every step I take.”