The pool is still closed

I had high expectations going to the doctor today.  The last time I met with him, he was joking and happy that I was off pain medications.  He told me then "3 weeks, more x-rays, then 3 weeks after that we take a look and  you start walking."

It started off the same way, we met before I had x-rays done and he asked about pain as he manipulated my leg and how the pain compared to the last time.  I told him it was about the same.

After the x-rays, it was not so good.  I watched him as he looked at the x-ray and he was not happy.  He immediately sent me in for more x-rays, then again a third time.

X-rays are 2-dimensional representations of 3-dimensional structures.  So is TV.  Depending on the angle you take a shot, it can make things appear out of whack, especially with spherical structures.  Your mind interprets them as a circle being bisected by a line (the head of my femur with the nail going into it), but because it is 3-dimensional (and the hip rotates so easily) the view can seem dramatically different... or maybe I'm being hopeful.

He was looking at it and said "the ice cream is off the cone."  I didn't understand at first, but what he meant was that the ball of the femur didn't appear to be in-line with the femur.  Which was very odd, because I wasn't in any pain.  He said he never had a patient that was getting worse in the x-rays feel better.  So we went back for x-rays several times.  He really wanted to get some angles that showed if it was in line.  The other pictures made him happier, but it seemed a bit forced to me.   He called a couple of other doctors over who reviewed them with him, and the one x-ray they all agreed wasn't good, but the others were.  So I guess the question is "which one is correct?"  He postulated that the head was attached, but a bit off center, which is why the one picture looked so bad.

Looking at it myself in the office, I thought the nail had moved from the center of the head to further 'up'.  But after getting home and looking at the last surgery, I don't think it has.  It may have backed out a bit more, causing the muscle pain I'm feeling.

The docs really were a bit freaked- they kept asking how I felt, and had me put weight on it as well.  Furthermore, a not-good sign was that the fracture was well-defined.  The hope is that as it heals, the edge will start to 'soften', and that apparently wasn't happening.  The doc also said "if it pops and you're in intense pain, you have my cellphone", and "nope, I'm not thinking about hip replacement now."   I'm reading a lot into this, and there were many more words of confidence given, but I think he is not pleased.

I did go ahead and ask if I could start swimming, and I was told "let's take a look again in three weeks."

The pool is still closed.