Lionel Richie, now 73, was a fan of wearing platform boots on stage during his Commodores day. But strutting his stuff in the fancy footwear left him with crippling knee and hip pain.
Battling arthritis and unable to tour, the All Night Long singer underwent, what was at the time, a secret hip replacement.
In an exclusive with Mirror.co.uk in 2014 he said: “Since the Commodore days, we don’t wear those big boots any more because of the knees and the ankles.
“I think about it now, and think, ‘What was I doing?!’ Every night, on stage, we’d jump from one riser to the floor. Craziness! What was I thinking?
“I have had a little knee problem, a little hip problem, but not as bad as all that. Although I did have to have a hip operation three years ago and, honestly, I hardly remember which one it is now because technology is so amazing.
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“I put it off for about a year then one day thought, ‘Screw it, let it go’ and had it done.”
Richie joked everything about him after the operation was brand new, and said the hip was doing better than ever.
When a hip replacement is needed
A hip replacement is when a damaged hip joint is replaced with an artificial one.
The NHS explains: “Adults of any age can be considered for a hip replacement, although most are done on people between the ages of 60 and 80.
“A modern artificial hip joint is designed to last for at least 15 years. Most people have a significant reduction in pain and improvement in their range of movement.”
The most common reason for hip replacement surgery is osteoarthritis – the most common type of arthritis in the UK.
Symptoms of osteoarthritis
Symptoms tend to build up over time rather than show up suddenly, according to the Arthritis Foundation.
Symptoms include:
- Pain or aching in a joint during activity, after long activity or at the end of the day.
- Joint stiffness usually occurs first thing in the morning or after resting.
- Limited range of motion that may go away after movement.
- Clicking or popping sound when a joint bends.
- Swelling around a joint.
- Muscle weakness around the joint.
- Joint instability or buckling (as when a knee gives out).
Age is a factor for developing osteoarthritis – the risk increases with age, with symptoms often appearing in people over the age of 50.
Obesity can also add stress and pressure on a joint, with fat cells also promoting inflammation.
People with family members who have osteoarthritis are more likely to develop the condition, and women have also been found to be more likely to develop it than men.
If you suspect you have osteoarthritis, speak to your GP. Lionel Richie at the BBC is showing on BBC2 at 8:30pm on Saturday 6 May.
