Hip injury

[arnsider]

Last Autum, I was diagnosed with Polymyalgia and worrying about continuing cycling led me to buy an E bike.
I had a Thorn Nomad tourer and a Kinesis T2 day bike and went out and bought a Whyte Coniston E bike.
The Steroid medication is brilliant and has allowed me to ride both my Thorn and Kinesis.
I still very much like my E Bike and don't regret the outlay.
There is a niggling drawback with the Coniston in that the Fork center is slighty offset forward of the handlebar stem. This causes the front wheel to swivel around when trying to hold the bike straight for mounting by throwing the right leg over the crossbar.
It can cause me to loose my balance and to fall to the left.
This happened Saturday last and I suffered a grazed elbow leaving a couple of scuds.
My old Parrott windproof came off unscathed (Good Kit!)
Well I got up, shook myself, came too and got back on for an uneventful eight mile ride home.
Tuesday, I started to feel a twinge in my left hip and at first I wondered if the Polymyalgia had flared.
This was a possibilty because I'd just reduced the medication.
Then it got much worse and I could only walk with great difficulty.
The pain is only in certain movements, very similar to those that originally gave rise to the polymyalgia diagnosis mainly lifting the leg from the waist and placing my left foot down, with the leg straight, getting in and out of bed and shuffling forward in a seat.
I have suffered Piriformis Syndrome before and the pain is similar to the nerve spasm you get.
Doctor Google describes piriformis as being caused among othe reasons, by Micro Trauma to the Buttocks, so this fits.
As you can imagine, I am rather frightened of presenting for Xray in these awful times.
Has anyone suffered similarly and can help with their experiences?

[cotswolds]

I've had piriformis syndrome and the pain I had was nothing like yours. But if you think it might be that, I found this stretch https://www.athletico.com/2016/06/22/stretch-of-the-week-seated-piriformis-stretch/ incredibly helpful and easy to do.

If it took 3 days for the pain to come on, it seems unlikely anything is broken so an X-ray is unlikely to be helpful.

Lots of health authorities offer telephone physio advice, sounds well worth doing for you. If they can't help, they'd tell you what to do next.

[arnsider]

Many thanks for your positive reply.
I have indeed contacted a physio who helped me with my ploymyalgia diagnosis.
I hope sincerely hope nothing has broken and concur with your comments on the timetable of the events.
Best regards.

[arnsider]

Moving on, the pain got quite acute and in desperation I contacted an Osteopath.
I have faith in them having had osteo treatment for previous disc problems.
I was able to see someone very early and had a course of manipulation, massage and acupuncture.
It was hard to believe I hadn't suffered a fracture, but the osteo assured me I had a severe soft tissue injury.
As to my quest for a suitable steering damper, I have drawn a complete blank. German manufacturers Hebie have said their band on fitting just will not accommodate my oversize top tube.

[reohn2]

I'm assuming yuore now your hip injury is all healed up?
If so I'm glad you've made a full recovery.

On the steering damper,AIUI you were having trouble dis/mounting the bike,in which case would a dropper seatpost be of any help?

[531colin]

…. German manufacturers Hebie have said their band on fitting just will not accommodate my oversize top tube.

One of these will fix it. they are tapped M5.
https://www.upgradebikes.co.uk/Catalogue/Chaindevice/DMR/Hinged-Clamp
To measure the size of your down tube, use an adjustable spanner; set the jaws to the width of the tube, then measure between the jaws.

[arnsider]

I hadn't thought of a dropper seat post but I'll have a peep.
Many thanks for the links.
My top tube is not perfectly circulart in section, rather a flat top and a round underside.
I will look into the set up check list and I was in fact checking both my Kinesis and my Thorn this lunch time for saddle angle, nose to handle bar dimension and relative elevation.

[carlbennett23]

I don't recommend to follow advice of Dr Google. Better to see a doctor for good advice.

[arnsider]

Well, here I am some 130 days since falling over on my left hip.
I am still in pain and unfortunately, I had a bit of a relapse around a month and a half ago, after I was healing nicely.
I did a 53 mile ride to Beacon Fell from Scotforth and back, which involved some climbs, but worse of it, I overshot my canal tow path route from Lancaster and ended up on a very bumpy hard three miles towards the end.
This put back the healing badly and worse pain returned as a result.
I'm still in discomfort and the nature of the pain has changed from acute nerve spasms in particular stances to chronic full time pain while trying to walk any distance.
The pain refers all the way down my leg below my knee down to my calve and even my feet become swollen.
Sleeping has been difficult and I'm fed up trying to take the best OTC medication.
My Doc did put me on Diloxten, which is an anti depressant but also relieves neoropathic pain, but he did not maintain the dose and I'm back on OTC meds and my own devices.
The Osteopath is snowed under with patients and can only see me infrequently.
I bought a TENS instrument that does offer some relief, but acts solely as a pain reliever and not a therapy tool.
Cycling is all I have just now to try to stay fit.
Any ideas anyone?

[arnsider]

Here I am a month later and still no respite.
My Doc hasn't prescribed any pain relief and just reffered me to the physios who called me in a telephoine consultation!!!
How stupid is that?
How can a physio offer any realistic treatment without having his/her patient on their back, in the surgery?
It's five and a half months since my fall onto my hip and I still don't have a definitive diagnosis.
Cycling remains okay, even on my non electrics, but a seven mile walk on the St Bees cliffs left me in a lot of pain a couple of days after.
I'm fed up with the eternal issues over Codeine/Paracetomol/Ibuprofen use and anyway none of it offers any real relief, even temporary.

[willcee]

Perhaps I'm being silly asking this but have you had an xray, this from someone who for maybe 4 years spent time money and pain chasing what the ''experts'' thought was a deep muscle tear until I got to one who said at your age I reckon its arthritus get an xray done.. this was after he had given me the deep needle treatment and as he worked as well in the hospital physio I'll see the pics before your GP and I''ll likely know more of what I'm looking at as well.. I Went to the docs, he organised an X/R, I rang my man a few days later, Willie he says its bone on bone...New Titanium one needed..I learned in those 4 years just how complicated the hip spine lumbar area is...that was THR in 0ct18, another with a totally different pain THR'd last DEC bad but not as bad as the first.. I do hope that you find relief , I did but the ''xperts'' are good at stringing us along and keeping themselves in pocket. luckily I ended up with one who talked the talk and walked the walk and knew his job.. will

[Jdsk]

Who were the "experts" who weren't doctors?

Jonathan

[willcee]

Recommended qualified trained physios... will

[Jdsk]

Thanks

Jonathan

[arnsider]

Well, still suspicious of the chance it might be a fracture, I got my Doc to refer me to the Radiographers.
A couple of weeks back, at the walk in, I asked if there were signs of fracture and was relieved to hear "No"
Subsequently, my Doc assured me that I was suffering from arthritis consumate with ageing and that it had not advanced appreciably since my previous X ray, prompted by my polymyalgia symptoms.
So it appears my Osteopath was correct and there is indeed severe soft tissue damage with resultant pain.
I did ask my Doc for OTC advice and he recommended to take two paracetomols and one ibuprofen per dose, rather than the other way around I had been doing. Ibuprofen is hard on the stomach.
The pain has ceased to refer down my leg and is very slowly resolving. Finger Crossed!!!