Hi, liblondie45 (from long island, by any chance?),

i was born with hip dysplasia, also. After complaining for 16 years to anyone who would listen, I got a total hip replacement in 1988 at age 36. What a relief! It is titanium, and after all these very active years I am just starting to feel sharp pains in the hip every now and then.

I don't know if ceramic or titanium is best because ceramic wasn't available at the time. I do know that I was in so much pain before the surgery, I would have been happy even if my leg had been amputated (with a guarantee of being free of pain, of course!).

Good luck with your search!

Linda

hello and yes, I am from long island! I haven't done anymore research since my post in august but I am still interested in the ceramic, rather than titanium hip because it purportedly lasts at least 5 years longer. If your hip was replaced only 17 years ago, that tells me titanium isn't as long lasting as ceramic because I hear ceramic is supposed to last at least 25 years.

You might try using the ceramic when you need another replacement using the less invasive surgery as the pain and recovery time are a lot less than with the standard surgery.

I am just very apprehensive about surgery as I had a bad experience in 1991 for my knee arthroscopy but how much longer can I suffer with this constant pain? I think the inflammation from the bad hip is wreaking havoc on my body as my inflammation rate is 3 1/2 times the normal rate. Inflammation (especially over a period of years like i've suffered) is very dangerous to the body and can lead to heart attack, stroke and cancer down the road. I'd better get this hip replacement soooonnnnn!

Good luck with your 2nd replacement!

Patty