Stephanie Lambert finished her first half-marathon in pain, powering through every step. Two weeks later, her hips hurt so badly she was using crutches. Two months after that, she was bed-ridden, barely able to sit up, and even using a bedside commode.
Lambert bounced from doctor to doctor for months, seeing orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists, and pain specialists, but no one could diagnose the cause. One even questioned if her condition could be chalked up to depression.
For Lambert, a veteran of the Peace Corp who biked five miles to her dream job at the CDC each day, the sudden change in lifestyle was quite a blow.
“It was a very dark couple months. I was in pain every single moment, not knowing if I would walk again,” Stephanie recalls. “Doctor after doctor, they just kept sending me away, telling me there was nothing they could do for me.”
Lambert was living in Atlanta, Georgia, but had a copy of her MRI sent to Dr. Jon Henry, an orthopedic surgeon at Aurora BayCare in Green Bay. Lambert’s parents knew Dr. Henry through social circles and had discussed her mysterious pain with him.
After reviewing her case, Dr. Henry suspected she had a femoral acetabular impingement (FAI), a congenital condition in which the bones of the hip are abnormally shaped and don’t fit together perfectly. The result is often severe cartilage tears, leading to pain and loss of function.
Armed with a potential diagnosis, Lambert went back to her local specialists but still didn’t get anywhere. “No one else could figure it out,” she said. “So in May, in an act of desperation, I flew home.”
Dr. Henry saw her immediately, confirmed his original opinion, and got her into surgery in less than a week. Nine weeks afterwards, Lambert is walking, swimming, and biking again.
“I’m 27 years old, and I feel like my life has been given back to me,” she said, tearing up. “Really, just being able to sit upright is fantastic. I am amazed and grateful that Dr. Henry has been able to do for me what no one else could.”
And what about the doctors who turned her away or refused Dr. Henry’s diagnosis? Lambert sent them a copy of her surgical report and an update on her condition.
“They wanted to help me, but there’s limited knowledge in the field about FAI,” she said. “They congratulated me and thanked me for the learning experience.”
Dr. Henry will be presenting a hip pain & hip arthroscopy seminar on August 25th. Click here to reserve your seat.