Conditions + Treatments
Hip Labral Tear
At the end of the summer of 2014 I decided to go to my primary care physician in Louisville KY because I had been experiencing chronic right hip pain. I was referred to physical therapy and after returning to Birmingham for my junior year of nursing school at Samford I started physical therapy at Champion Sports Medicine.
Upon evaluation, my physical therapist suggested I go to Andrews for further testing. Although my diagnostic imaging did not show any abnormalities, I was still experiencing pain and had not seen any improvement from physical therapy so I asked to be referred to Dr Emblom. He graciously agreed to see me despite diagnostic confirmation. My evaluation pointed towards a labral tear and snapping hip syndrome which would require surgical intervention.
From my first appointment he listened to my concerns and made sure that all of my questions were answered. He assured me that surgery could be scheduled at a time that would not interfere with my ability to finish my required nursing school clinicals. On November 19th 2014, I had surgery to repair my labral tear and release my iliopsoas. Post-operative recovery was not easy but with the support of Dr Emblom, his staff, and my physical therapist I was able to fully recover. In the months that would follow I began to experience the same symptoms in my left hip and in November 2015 I called Dr Emblom’s office for an appointment. My evaluation pointed towards a labral tear and snapping hip syndrome in my left hip; however, I could not have surgery immediately because of my clinical rotations and intended to wait until after graduation in May 2016. Physical therapy, injections, and anti-inflammatories would be used as conservative treatment until I could move forward with surgery; however, one night in March 2016 I noticed a significant increase in pain and decrease in range of motion as I was unable to flex comfortably to a sitting position (90 degrees). I called the office the next day and was able to schedule a same day MRI as well as an appointment for that day. We once again attempted conservative treatment with an injection to control the inflammation, increase my range of motion, and decrease my pain. But after failing to see any improvement I returned to the office for a follow up on March 17th and moved forward with surgery on March 21st 2016.
Two months later, I am well on the road to recovery and could not have done it without the doctors and staff at Andrews Sports Medicine. While I would have never imagined that my time in nursing school would require two hip surgeries I am forever grateful for the compassionate care that I received from Dr. Emblom and am looking forward to my future as a registered nurse.
