Femur screw removal

dehner47
Posts
827
Joined
8/9/2010
Location
Mantua, NJ US
11/19/2014 2:24pm
mxdonkey wrote:
The hardware in my femur has all been in there for a very long time and is totally covered with bone. I need a hip replacement...
The hardware in my femur has all been in there for a very long time and is totally covered with bone. I need a hip replacement pretty badly and am at the end of the road with the parts I was born with.

I'm so used to living with pain that I've forgotten what it's like to exist without it after some 25 odd years. My hip wakes me up every night and it hurts just about every time I sit, stand, walk or, move. It sucks, but I see other people with worse physical problems like back and neck stuff and I don't really have it too bad. MX related injury of course.
Dude, get the hip done. You won't believe the difference, and the moment you wake up from surgery you will be in less pain. I was...
Dude, get the hip done. You won't believe the difference, and the moment you wake up from surgery you will be in less pain. I was up on crutches the same day and my whole life improved.
There is really no reason to live with that type of pain. I did it for years and now I feel like I have a fresh start.
mxdonkey wrote:
Thanks for the pep talk. I know I need to get'er done. I'm more worried about the number of revisions I can have vs the years...
Thanks for the pep talk. I know I need to get'er done. I'm more worried about the number of revisions I can have vs the years I'll still be alive. I have some friends that are at the end of their rope on femur material left over after having so many hip surgery ball revisions due to wear and breaks... You're lucky if you get three replacements out of one femur.
I'm in same boat Donkey. It's to point of puking from pain n waking up middle of night in tears the pain so bad. My issue is its both hips I've broken. Left worse then right but both are basically in BAD shape.. Thinking this winter is time. 35 years old. Broke em both when I was 19. Looking forward to being able to poop with out seat hurting hips so bad you start sweating. And I take no pain meds or pills. So looking forward to a day of not buckling at the knees in pain or walking around like a 75 year old man.
1/14/2016 2:07pm
I had two femur operations this past summer due to taking bisphosophates. The particular drug was Reclast which I took for a five year period. The right femur was a complete break where I had a rod put in and two screws, one at the top and other at the bottom. The left was a spontaneous fracture which also required a rod and two screws. The right femur has not completely healed after six and a half months. My doctor advised me to have the bottom screw removed so the femur will heal. I would like to know what your opinion is. Thank you.
ianhendry46
Posts
394
Joined
8/18/2011
Location
Murfreesboro, TN US
1/14/2016 2:17pm
I had a plate and 13 screws removed from my femur a little over 2 years ago. As my femur healed, it actually grew back thicker and caused the screws to push into my knee, tearing a couple of ligaments, and those ligaments were not fixable until the screws were out. That was the easiest surgery of the 7 that were involved with my femur break.
Phillip_Lamb
Posts
2054
Joined
12/14/2010
Location
ORANGEVALE, CA US
1/14/2016 3:15pm
I broke my left femur back in '11. had everything removed a year ago. i had a similiar issue with the pin poking my thigh. had ALL of it removed. best feeling ever.

The Shop

aedwards07
Posts
944
Joined
5/17/2008
Location
st cloud, FL US
1/14/2016 4:16pm
I had an issue with my femur not healing after 6 months. Got the lower screw removed which wasn't a big deal and it healed up in about 8 weeks afterward. Walked out of the hospital no problem.
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Parks65
Posts
267
Joined
12/8/2012
Location
Meridian, ID US
1/14/2016 4:27pm
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my toes. Especially when it's cold-
For guys who've had it all removed what's the recovery time like?

Aside from that lets hear some stories of how you guys broke yours!

I swapped third gear on a sand track downhill, jumped off the bike and thought I would land on my feet and all would be good.... When I landed my left leg hit first slightly higher up the hill than my right and my leg snapped 4 inches below my hip socket, splintered like a piece of wood.
When it snapped I rolled onto my back and when all was said and done my left foot was draped over my right shoulder.
What a wonderful experience
Roostermx58
Posts
1539
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9/18/2013
Location
Wilmington, NC US
1/14/2016 4:36pm
When they remove the screws, do they go in the same place that the original surgery was done? I have 2 huge scars on each side of my ankle where they fixed my talus. Im wondering if i get the hardware removed, will they go in the same place they did for the original surgery?
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jchek779
Posts
533
Joined
3/19/2009
Location
Kannapolis, NC US
1/14/2016 5:25pm Edited Date/Time 1/14/2016 5:38pm
I've been to 4 ortho surgeons and no one wants to touch it at this point. I've had the hardware for 18 years and now it is a problem. My advice.... Get this shit removed as soon as feasible. I had been told for years to only get it removed if there was immense pain. Now I walk up stairs like I'm drunk.



mmain62
Posts
714
Joined
2/7/2013
Location
Knoxville, IL US
1/15/2016 4:26am
Sounds like the screw might be the cause of my knee pain. Did the femur break in 2011 and my knee has hurt ever since.
eeazye
Posts
310
Joined
10/22/2009
Location
Akron, OH US
1/15/2016 5:22am
Broke my left femur in two places in '05. They put in a rod and one screw by the knee. It's clamped at the top with a device, not screwed. On certain days/weather conditions it hurts so bad and is so tender it feels like the day after surgery. Then the pain will just go away like a switch gets turned off. Otherwise whatever discomfort I have I just live with it.

The doc told me the screw would dissolve after a period of time. Was he BS'ing me?
SKIDLID
Posts
1255
Joined
4/9/2013
Location
Fairmont, MN US
1/15/2016 5:50am
When they remove the screws, do they go in the same place that the original surgery was done? I have 2 huge scars on each side...
When they remove the screws, do they go in the same place that the original surgery was done? I have 2 huge scars on each side of my ankle where they fixed my talus. Im wondering if i get the hardware removed, will they go in the same place they did for the original surgery?
I have had hardware removed three times. They usually use the same area but the new opening is much smaller.
threefiddyone
Posts
74
Joined
12/16/2014
Location
Baton Rouge, LA US
1/15/2016 6:38am Edited Date/Time 1/15/2016 6:39am
Parks65 wrote:
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my...
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my toes. Especially when it's cold-
For guys who've had it all removed what's the recovery time like?

Aside from that lets hear some stories of how you guys broke yours!

I swapped third gear on a sand track downhill, jumped off the bike and thought I would land on my feet and all would be good.... When I landed my left leg hit first slightly higher up the hill than my right and my leg snapped 4 inches below my hip socket, splintered like a piece of wood.
When it snapped I rolled onto my back and when all was said and done my left foot was draped over my right shoulder.
What a wonderful experience
BMR179 - Glad you got some relief. Had a rod and 2 screws put in my left femur 2 years ago, now I know what i have to look forward to.

Parks65 - I ask my doctor about the removal, and I believe that you have to spend approx. 6 more weeks on crutches, since the bone marrow has to grow back inside the hollow part where the rod was. As far as pain, i cant tell you because I havent gotten mine removed, it doesnt hurt me at all.

Heres how I broke mine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMbHM5HGFP4
Anaxdlere
Posts
309
Joined
2/25/2015
Location
Saint Louis, MO US
1/15/2016 7:57am
I had a rod the length of my femur and screws at the bottom and top. The screws at the knee backed out almost immediately and began catching and tearing, so had them removed about 4-5 months after the rod was installed. I feel like they put the leg back together crooked too, but I know they were just worried about getting it re-assembled and just
"eye-balled it" as far as getting it straight.

For me, the femur break has had ridiculous long lingering effects. My knee has never been the same and I struggle with knee pain every single day (especially going down stairs, or sitting down). I know many people that are back up and running with all the hardware and no issues at all, so it is obviously incredibly different person to person.





1
1/15/2016 8:20am
I love the old femur/hardware removal threads Smile As some of you guys know I toasted my femur in two places back in 06 at Elsinore. I also punched the femur ball through the acetabulum (hip socket) that was fucking fun. Doc told me the same deal as many of you "leave it in forever unless you experience pain" I was pain free for the first few years but every year the pain is increasing. I've scheduled the removal surgery several times and chickened out. Well, I finally have reached my breaking point (no pun lol) I go in on Wed the 27th and I'm getting the 5 screws and rod removed. Once that all heals I am getting the hip replace. The pain is affecting my quality of life to a point of where I have no
choice. Excuse the dick x ray but this is for medical purposes lol....





Phillip_Lamb
Posts
2054
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12/14/2010
Location
ORANGEVALE, CA US
1/15/2016 9:27am
Parks65 wrote:
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my...
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my toes. Especially when it's cold-
For guys who've had it all removed what's the recovery time like?

Aside from that lets hear some stories of how you guys broke yours!

I swapped third gear on a sand track downhill, jumped off the bike and thought I would land on my feet and all would be good.... When I landed my left leg hit first slightly higher up the hill than my right and my leg snapped 4 inches below my hip socket, splintered like a piece of wood.
When it snapped I rolled onto my back and when all was said and done my left foot was draped over my right shoulder.
What a wonderful experience
i walked out of the hospital the same day and drove home. 0 pain what so ever. felt better immediately. leg was a tender for a few weeks. i was walking on the whole time just had to wait for bone to "fill". as the hardware leaves a void. i think i was something like 6 weeks
TallonT911
Posts
560
Joined
10/31/2013
Location
Henderson, NV US
1/15/2016 10:07am
I had my bottom screw removed because I was still growing at the time. Walked out of the hospital and went to pole position later that day.
Parks65
Posts
267
Joined
12/8/2012
Location
Meridian, ID US
1/16/2016 8:21am
Parks65 wrote:
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my...
Broke mine in 05' and I still have a rod and 4 screws. I experience shooting pain clear down my leg from my hip to my toes. Especially when it's cold-
For guys who've had it all removed what's the recovery time like?

Aside from that lets hear some stories of how you guys broke yours!

I swapped third gear on a sand track downhill, jumped off the bike and thought I would land on my feet and all would be good.... When I landed my left leg hit first slightly higher up the hill than my right and my leg snapped 4 inches below my hip socket, splintered like a piece of wood.
When it snapped I rolled onto my back and when all was said and done my left foot was draped over my right shoulder.
What a wonderful experience
BMR179 - Glad you got some relief. Had a rod and 2 screws put in my left femur 2 years ago, now I know what i...
BMR179 - Glad you got some relief. Had a rod and 2 screws put in my left femur 2 years ago, now I know what i have to look forward to.

Parks65 - I ask my doctor about the removal, and I believe that you have to spend approx. 6 more weeks on crutches, since the bone marrow has to grow back inside the hollow part where the rod was. As far as pain, i cant tell you because I havent gotten mine removed, it doesnt hurt me at all.

Heres how I broke mine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMbHM5HGFP4
Ah! Did mine on a 125 as well.
It's a humbling experience feeling the dead weight of your leg when it's broken like that!
threefiddyone
Posts
74
Joined
12/16/2014
Location
Baton Rouge, LA US
1/19/2016 5:46am
Parks65 wrote:
Ah! Did mine on a 125 as well.
It's a humbling experience feeling the dead weight of your leg when it's broken like that!
For sure. I remember trying to move my leg and only the top half of my femur moved, i instantly knew it was snapped in half.
JC2On
Posts
5
Joined
1/31/2016
Location
CA US
2/19/2016 12:05am Edited Date/Time 2/19/2016 12:06am
I had a plate and 13 screws removed from my femur a little over 2 years ago. As my femur healed, it actually grew back thicker...
I had a plate and 13 screws removed from my femur a little over 2 years ago. As my femur healed, it actually grew back thicker and caused the screws to push into my knee, tearing a couple of ligaments, and those ligaments were not fixable until the screws were out. That was the easiest surgery of the 7 that were involved with my femur break.
I broke my left femur on september/15. I started riding my mountain/road bicycle, but every time my knee reaches the top of the pedal it hurts so bad. I had a screw near the knee. My first thought is that the screw is tearing my left ligament. not sure. Cant do normal squats because of the same pain. I only can do 3/4 of the squat. Not even considered a squat.
Anyone have the same issue? should I remove the bottom screw?
Still debating on taking the rod out. any advise is well appreciated.

And my knee cracks a bit when I bend it. Doctor says its scar tissue but after 5 months??
anyone experience knee cracking sounds or similar?



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LuckyWinner
Posts
3
Joined
9/1/2016
Location
New York, NY US
9/1/2016 11:24pm
Wow! You guys are hard-core. Thank you for all these posts and inspiration. Sorry that I am late to the party. I was 14 years old in 1987 and was hit by a car while riding my bike. Hit-and-run, and my right femur snapped in half. I was laid out in a body cast for a few sweaty July weeks before they realized at the hospital that the setting didn't hold. I had to get surgery. This was in a public hospital in a rough neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. The surgeon for poop in the body cast was fired from the hospital for complaining about the well-known unsanitary conditions in the operating room's. I had to go back for invasive surgery without some sort of guardianship like his to help steer the process.

I had to wait in the hallway for day and a half for bed. The only bed available was in the children's ward in a room full of kids with chickenpox. Since I had chickenpox already, this was better than laying on a stretcher in the hallway for another day or two before I can have hardware installed a hold of them together.

I wound up with a metal plate toward the bottom of my femur and seven screws holding it in place. An 18 inch grizzly scar is on the surface of my leg. Because the wound was so big, staples had to get used. Those were such a pain to pull out toward the end of my recovery because they were getting yanked out of brand-new flesh, as opposed to falling out of dried up scabs. The plates were always expected, like screws and pins, to stay in forever, unless they caused serious issues. Nowadays there's so much more frequency of these things being removed within a year or so of insertion. And the rods for broken long leg and arm bones is such a new process.

Fast forward a few decades, and that area would tend to have pain, usually as the seasons changed, and definitely in the winter, and if there's a lot of humidity. About a year and a half ago, the problems I occasionally had became more regular. The quadriceps would stop contracting. I'd be in terrible pain and be sore as if I foolishly squatted 400 hundred pounds my first time doing squats. I would be limping with awful inflammation. The pain was so distracting I couldn't think straight at times. The vertebrae in my back would get misaligned because I was limping all over the place.

Dr. Hollis Potter at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City is able to conduct MRIs of people with metal in them. That's a first. I happily limped over there to get an MRI and find out that a couple of the screws are irritating the quads and the IT band. That explains all the extremely localized pain and symptoms I was having in the same place and style over the years.

Thankfully, acupuncture is able to resolve the symptoms, restoring everything back to normal after a day or so. But, in the last year and a half, I had this problem so many times to the point that it's become chronic, and acupuncture sometimes is only able just minimize the symptoms. So, I'm getting the hardware removed in three weeks. I still have yet to have another intake appointment with the surgeon to figure out all the details, but everyone's experience here are encouraging.

The winter was the worst, because I could not feel that I was cold and needed to warm up. The bone and metal would have a microscopic tug-of-war since they both responded to the cold and contracted a different rates. Also, I am in my mid-40s now, which is when we start to shrink a little, so that could create some tension. Rubbing BenGay-like Chinese medicinal oils on the area helped keep it warm and helped maintain the circulation. Taoist oil was great because it had the usual formula of camphor, menthol and methyl salicylate in it to promote a kind of heat or cold, but it also has heating properties which were really intense.

Anyway, in talking with the surgeon initially, the concern was since this plate is so old, would it be worth taking out? The answer was yes because I'm in all this damn pain, and the bone hadn't really swallowed up the screws or grown around the plate, allowing it to come out easily. At least, that's how it is predicted.

If anybody still paying attention, I'll write back and let y'all know of my success with surgery.



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mxpro252
Posts
459
Joined
11/15/2013
Location
WA US
9/2/2016 8:35am Edited Date/Time 9/2/2016 8:35am
Ill jump in; so reading through some posts here it looks like some people have experience getting this stuff removed and I'm interested in getting mine out too. Mines been in for about 10 years but i'm noticing random pains and similar stuff others have mentioned.

My main question now is how do I get the process started of getting it removed and how much is covered by insurance or are there any big hurdles in getting this removal covered? I probably have a good idea but first hand experience is appreciated.
1
stone881
Posts
856
Joined
12/26/2014
Location
Fruita, CO US
9/2/2016 10:36am
BMR179 wrote:
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2014/11/19/70994/s1200_Femur_Screw.jpg[/img] Dr. removed the screw yesterday. It already fells better! Surgery was about 20 minutes, no problems. Have some swelling this morning, but no pain...if it...


Dr. removed the screw yesterday. It already fells better! Surgery was about 20 minutes, no problems. Have some swelling this morning, but no pain...if it starts hurting, he gave me scrip of codeine. He said I can put full weight on it. Good deal, no crutches!

Anyone out there that has a loose screw in their femur, not in their head (quite a few on vital LOL), I recommend having it removed. Thanks for all the stories and responses.

Better save that sucker, it probably cost you almost 100 bucks. The rod in my femur had a price tag of 8 g's and what's a ti axle cost these days, about 200?

F'n thieves!
9/2/2016 10:50am
Well, I mean if it costs $8,000 to get a sterile, germ free rod....then I'll pay that. Otherwise you'll wake up with a 2 million dollar sepsis icu bill if they cut corners to give you a $200 rod.....
BMR179
Posts
496
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4/1/2008
Location
East Texas, TX US
Fantasy
9/2/2016 12:12pm
stone881 wrote:
Better save that sucker, it probably cost you almost 100 bucks. The rod in my femur had a price tag of 8 g's and what's a...
Better save that sucker, it probably cost you almost 100 bucks. The rod in my femur had a price tag of 8 g's and what's a ti axle cost these days, about 200?

F'n thieves!
Because of the changes in insurance over the past few years, it cost me more out of pocket to get the screw removed ($6000) than it did for the two surgery's it took to install it correctly ($2600). Non-Affordable Care Act and all that.
9/2/2016 1:53pm
It's pretty straight forward and easy removal

1
stone881
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856
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Location
Fruita, CO US
9/2/2016 1:54pm
Well, I mean if it costs $8,000 to get a sterile, germ free rod....then I'll pay that. Otherwise you'll wake up with a 2 million dollar...
Well, I mean if it costs $8,000 to get a sterile, germ free rod....then I'll pay that. Otherwise you'll wake up with a 2 million dollar sepsis icu bill if they cut corners to give you a $200 rod.....
It doesn't cost anywhere near 8k for a sterile ti rod, that's the point.
2/2/2017 7:23am
Hey guys, I'm getting my screw out of my knee next Wednesday after a femur break, I've had all the hardware in since April, but the screw in my knee had some calcium growth on the end (known to happen) and when I bend my knee it catches the tendon and snaps off sometimes, really painful, cant do squats, leg presses or anything or it will catch,

just curious what was recovery time like? are you able to walk outta there or is it quite a long time?
only getting the screw out, thanks!
1
2/2/2017 7:28am
I had a plate and 13 screws removed from my femur a little over 2 years ago. As my femur healed, it actually grew back thicker...
I had a plate and 13 screws removed from my femur a little over 2 years ago. As my femur healed, it actually grew back thicker and caused the screws to push into my knee, tearing a couple of ligaments, and those ligaments were not fixable until the screws were out. That was the easiest surgery of the 7 that were involved with my femur break.
JC2On wrote:
I broke my left femur on september/15. I started riding my mountain/road bicycle, but every time my knee reaches the top of the pedal it hurts...
I broke my left femur on september/15. I started riding my mountain/road bicycle, but every time my knee reaches the top of the pedal it hurts so bad. I had a screw near the knee. My first thought is that the screw is tearing my left ligament. not sure. Cant do normal squats because of the same pain. I only can do 3/4 of the squat. Not even considered a squat.
Anyone have the same issue? should I remove the bottom screw?
Still debating on taking the rod out. any advise is well appreciated.

And my knee cracks a bit when I bend it. Doctor says its scar tissue but after 5 months??
anyone experience knee cracking sounds or similar?



Get the screw out, I have the same issue as you.
mxracer816
Posts
1092
Joined
7/28/2011
Location
Atlanta, TX US
2/2/2017 7:47am
Broke my femur in 2000 also, got the rod and screws out around 2006. Best decision I ever made. Could literally feel a difference walking and especially running within 2 weeks of outpatient surgery. The insurance I had in 2000 paid to have it removed in 06 if I'm not mistaken. Doctor said it needed to come out when he put it in so maybe that affected it. Unfortunately I broke the same leg except the lower bones very near my ankle about two weeks ago. Recovering from that as we speak. No weight bearing for 3 months, crutches and wheelchairs suck! I'll try to post some pics, not real literate on doing that on here though!
motomike894
Posts
1571
Joined
9/6/2009
Location
Waterloo, IN US
2/2/2017 7:53am
I broke mine in 2010 went 3-4 months in lot pain was walking on it and felt something move, went to doctor the bone shifted where it wasn't filled in and broke all the screws off.

Had a second surgery on it from a different doctor because the original one claimed it couldn't be fixed.

They removed the old rod reamed the bone out and put a larger rod in and 3 new larger screws, 8 weeks later it was 100% healed I lost that whole year from it on and off crutches for like 9 months.

Here's photos of it before the second surgery.

I still have all hardware in it including the broken screws they couldn't remove and I rarely ever know any of its even there.





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