Tom Schmalzreid M.D. OPINIONS?

[Anne]

Hi there everyone.  I'm going to the Joint Replacement Institute in May to meet with Dr. Schmalzreid and talk to him about a BHR.  Can anyone give me the poop on this guy?  I've looked everywhere to see if he was trained by McMinn, but haven't been able to come up with anything yet.

JRI was involved in the trial, I know, and that's a big deal, and everything I've heard and read has been positive, but is he on the same plane as De Smet in Belgium?  Certainly, he hasn't done as many, but it isn't just about volume either, it's about skill.  How SKILLED is this guy???

[Pat Walter]

Hi Anne

Dr. S is very experienced.  A friend of mine here in Marietta, OH  went to
him 2 years ago. That is how I learned about hip resurfacing.  He had to
take a second mortgage on his house for $28,000 to pay for his own surgery.

The thing that you have to watch with Dr. S is he often tries to get people
to accept THRS if there seems to be any problems at all.  Most of the
experienced surgeons like De Smet, etc  don't try to ever push thrs unless
there is absolutely no option left.  The newer less experinced surgeons will
also do thrs instead of hip resurfacings if the situation looks difficult.

That said, most people I know like Dr. S.  I know he is quite exprienced.
The only thing you need to feel him out about is to make sure you are
getting a hip resurfacing INSTEAD OF A THR.  You need to feel he is going to
give you want he wants.

Also that said - if you can't afford a hip resurfacing from De Smet or one
of the really top doctors, then a MOM or ceramic on ceramic is not a bad
solution.  It is really not nice to have to depend on aid from the state or
medicare, or whatever.  Your choices are not many and sometimes you have to
take the best option available to you.

I would meet with Dr. S and see how you feel.  He is very experienced and
his patients really like him.  A few people haven't used him since they were
older and he just did not want to go the hip resurfacing route with him.

Find out what he has to offer.  I would not worry about the experience
level - just make sure you can try to get your hip resurfacing.

Here are 2 happy Dr. S patients

http://www.surfacehippy.info/jimroxburgh.php

http://www.surfacehippy.info/dan02.php

Keep in touch.

Pat