Question
I am 52 and have been very active all my life with ballet and working out at  at the gym 5 days a week. My weight is good.  After a partial hysterectomy 3 years and a layoff of a month, I stared limping after about 20 minutes of repetitive exercise. My gait has been unstable and I have periodic back pain. I definitely notice a weakness in the left hip and have trouble raising my left leg 90 degree. Now I am feeling tightness and paid in the upper edge of the left hip about 3-4 inches away from my spine.
A MRI of the L-5, left sacral joint and the left hip revealed nothing....a touch of arthritis but basically normal. Doc thinks this all stems from a muscle weakness and cannot be coming from the joints....hence a major strengthening regime would possibly cure me. The problem is that it is very hard to work out with foot drag and muscle weakness in the left leg....Any suggestions?
P.S. I tried Chiropractic with no result for 7 sessions two years ago. I have also tried a anti-inflammatory from the ortho with no results as well. Steriods were also non effective. I want my old body back? But how?

Answer
Kim,

I am not completely clear about your info.  You had the hysterectomy 3 years ago and have not been well since??  Okay, assuming that I have this correct, you have tried seven  sessions of WHAT kind of treatment by a chiropractor.   "Chiropractic" is a profession, not a procedure.   If all that was done was joint manipulation, then likely something was missed.   The striking feature about your situation is that you were fine up until the partial hysterectomy.   You had a surgical procedure where part of one of your organs was cut off.   It is well known that invasive procedures to the pelvic area lead to "reactive arthritides" that typically are seen in women.  This includes conditions such as osteitis pubis or osteitis condensans ilii.  Go and google these conditions.   Your mention of "foot drag" implies muscle weakness.   Your surgical proceure may have created deep pelvic scar tissue adhesions that are entrapping a nerve.  You likley need a chiropractor to do "decompressive manipulation" such as with a flexion-distraction table, and then also to try deep soft tissue release in and around your psoas muscle in the lower abdomen.   This involves finding a chiropractor with these tools/modalities as part of their treatment skill set.    You need to ask around.    Were steroids oral, as in prednisone, or injected into a nerve canal as in an epidural steroid injection?  

'Best,

Dr. G