Angry Hip

Today I went into Children's for angiography and MRI. The hospital is super cute, colorful, and lots of fun sounds. This is where the fun ended.

I went back to radiology where the radiologist explained the procedure. They would be using digital x-rays to locate my hip capsule. The capsule contains liquid around the hip. The radiologist first numbed me with lidocaine (27 gauge needle). Then he used a 10 centimeter (22 gauge) needle to access my hip capsule. Once he got in the "right" area they would inject contrast (iodine) to make sure they were in the right area. If they got in the correct area they would inject Gadolinium, which is the contrast of the MRI. The Gadolinium would expand my capsule allowing the MRI to capture any cracks in my cartilage. Sounds easy huh?

The first try didn't work. The needle wouldn't enter my capsule or they couldn't find it. After another try I needed some more lidocaine. Actually after the hour plus of trying they went through more than a syringe of lidocaine. They hit my bone twice... owwww. They also hit a nerve causing my whole leg to jerk. That was not fun. At first it didn't hurt but it was bad at the end. Reasons why they can't get into the capsule include inflammation and scar tissue. This radiologist is one of two in the hospital that preform this procedure. The other doctor gets to try next Wednesday. I can't wait. =P