My hip resurfacing with Dr. Gross 2014

pgibc · August 24, 2014, 10:55:37 PM

Hello, My name is Paul, this is my first post and I am 5 days out from RH resurfacing.

After a surprising diagnoses of necrosis on my right femoral head, I began to do some serious research. As a 46 year old male, it was not on my schedule to have a hip operation anytime soon. I had an MRI done in the Philippines during a missions trip and then my local orthopedic surgeon looked further and diagnosed. He said (he's a long time friend) that I should live with the pain (was in my 3rd year of limping and living with the pain) as long as I could and have a hip replacement later in my 50's or 60's. I sat there kind of numb thinking about years ahead not being able to walk right much less run, jump, ride etc. With 5 children (18 years down to 18 months), I wanted to play ball with my boys and have fun with the young ones.

A friend put me in contact with a friend who had had his hip "replaced". When I talked with the guy, he said, not it was actually a new thing called a Birmingham Hip Resurface. I googled it and came across surfacehippy.info and spent months reading. I finally decided to have a web consultation with Dr. Gross and sent my information. Within 2 weeks, I was surprised that the Doctor called me himself and talked for a little while.

I made the decision to go forward with Dr. Gross and Providence NE in Columbia, SC. It was a 9-10 hour drive for us from south Mississippi.

I was absolutely amazed at the kindness, professionalism and gentle manner in which I was treated the whole time there. Both at the clinic and at the hospital! I Pastor a church and have been in a lot of hospitals, both emergency situations and "regular" stuff, but this was by far the best medical experience.

This was my first surgery, so I had no idea what to expect. Reading thru this website helped me a lot to get mentally prepared. watching the videos helped as well. Wednesday, Aug. 20 was my LHR with Dr. Gross. I was released on Thursday afternoon. I have pain, but it is not overwhelming. I am walking carefully (I'm on the slow recovery as my bone density is not what it needs to be for the quick recovery). I did find out that my issue was cam-impingment and that my left side is nearly half bone on bone and so sometime soon I will be joining the bi-lateral club!

The office visit was wonderful, the check in, pre-op was very good with no hiccups. I remember going into the OR and moving over onto the table and looking at all the "tools" and then I went out and woke up in recovery. I'm blessed that there has been no issues at all. No nausea, no dizzy spells, no issues with bowel movements or urinating.

I want to say thank you to all who have posted over the years. This website led me to see the advantages of resurfacing instead of a total hip replacement. My friend tried to talk me out of it using the MOM "issue" and that the resurfacing procedure hasn't been around that long. I was able to quote many many stats from this website and by the end of the conversation, he didn't have anything else to say negative about it.

Again, thank you Pat and all the members for your time to share your stories so we can learn and make educated decisions about such major things.

The section of posts concerning Dr. Gross and staff was spot on! He is a great surgeon and I look forward to being "full speed" again one day in the future.

Paul

oldsoccerplayer · August 25, 2014, 02:23:46 PM

Quotethank you Pat and all the members for your time to share your stories so we can learn and make educated decisions about such major things.
The section of posts concerning Dr. Gross and staff was spot on! He is a great surgeon and I look forward to being "full speed" again one day in the future.

Amen to all that!

whyme · August 25, 2014, 03:57:36 PM

It's going to take a little while until you feel 100%, but in a matter of not too many weeks you'll be performing better than just before surgery; and, with more time, better than way before surgery, when the hip pain wasn't there yet.
In my experience (1 year next week), at 6 months you'll be fully or mostly recovered for daily life, and before 1 year fully recovered for recreational sport. Regarding more competitive efforts, it will depend on what sport and many other factors.
The important thing is never to lose perspective on how you were vs how you are... we tend to forget very easily that we were in pain (nobody has chosen surgery for fun), and get frustrated because you feel better and want to do more and more.

Said many times already, but once more: be patient and work steadily on your recovery...

Pat Walter · August 28, 2014, 11:30:58 AM

Hi pgibc

Congratulations on your new hip resurfacing. Dr. Gross patients are usually very happy with him, his staff and the hospital.

Good Luck and take it easy. I look forward to reading about your recovery.

Pat