Hip surgery and dementia

Beluga

I am looking for feedback from anyone who’s had a LO go through hip surgery in a mid to late stage dementia and what the outcome was. I need to make a decision for my 79 yr old mom who has been walking (with walker) on a broken hip for months. She was fully ambulatory prior to the fall & loved to walk & dance. It was healing fine but then she fell a few more times so broke it even more. I am very hesitant based on the very bleak outcomes. Please share your experiences.

Patti L

My 85 y/o mom fell again and broke her hip. She did very well with the surgery and was transferred to a SNF for rehab. She almost died there due to dehydration and another UTI. So back to the hospital and 10 days later she was transferred to a memory care facility. The plan was to get rehab then bring her back home. She declined and is now wheelchair bound. So I'm not sure if the surgery or the infection contributed to the rapid decline.

This probably doesn't help you at all, but rapid decline seems to be part of the post surgery process.

Sending good vibes to you on this journey

baacoub

My mom who is mid stage fell and broke her hip and had a partial hip replacement. The rehab was easy physically (never said she had pain) but someone had to be in the room with her 24–7 in case she was confused and tried to get up. The hospital stay was a bit disorienting as well. Made it through everything and she is walking much better now.

susan1955

My 91 yo mom was in assisted living (I would say at that time she had 25% vascular dementia) and fell and broke her hip in February 2023. She had partial hip replacement, sailed through the surgery and 3 week rehab (she had no prior health issues), then came down with double pneumonia. Back to rehab for 4 weeks. She fully recovered from the pneumonia, but her dementia took a nosedive as did her strength. We had to put her in memory care in April. I’m proud to say that as of now (October 2023) she has regained all her strength and walks all over the facility in her walker, and quickly too. The sad thing is her dementia is worse because of all the trauma and changes.