Right BHR – Anterior Approach – 2009 Dr. Klug

I am now 4 months post-BHR after surgery with Dr. Raphael Klug on October
30, 2009. The anterior approach was used to minimize impact and speed the
recovery, and Dr. Klug himself said this is the kind of surgery he would
want done on himself. From review of various videos and articles, this
looked from the patient perspective to allow quickest recovery with
minimized pain, while also avoiding need for any muscle detachment.

I was an extremely competitive runner into the late 1990s, actually
qualifying for the USA Olympic Marathon trials a 4th time at age 43 (for the
2000 Summer Olympic Games). As I have always taken special care of my body,
allowing me to push harder than most could imagine, the frustration level
was quite high that I had a problem that could not be easily fixed, that
actually made me question if my success had actually come at too high of a
price.

My right hip had significant joint damage for someone my age, likely caused
by my extensive distance running background as I logged 110,000+ miles over
30 years. The level of pain over a 4 year period starting in 2005 kept
increasing, finally reaching peak levels 9-10 on a scale of 10. I tried
various treatments such as anti-inflammatory pills, cortisone injections
into the joint for resolution, and even had arthroscopic hip surgery in
August 2009 which provided around 6 months of relief. It became obvious
though mid-2009 the hip issue was not going away, and left me with seemingly
two choices, either hip resurfacing or replacement. Being age 53, I was a
good candidate for the hip resurfacing, so I began extensive research around
the best surgeons in the USA and across the world, preparing to switch my
medical insurance from Kaiser to Blue Cross (freedom to choose any provider)
during my company’s open enrollment for 2010. For this type of surgery which
cannot be repeated on the hip, it needed to be done 100% world class the
first shot. I was intrigued in my research as I found a single Kaiser doctor
in Roseville, CA who had performed a significant number of these surgeries,
who had been mentioned throughout my research. I was surprised he could work
for Kaiser, given the fact the Kaiser orthopedist I had seen in 2007 gave me
some pain meds, told me I was too young for any surgical treatment, and live
with the pain/issue until such time a hip replacement could be performed. At
any rate I reviewed Dr. Klug’s video at the Surface Hippy website, very much
liked him and his sincerity, and next called Dr. Raphael Klug’s office
October, 2009 for more information. I was pleasantly surprised by a very
helpful office staff that was quite proactive. They reviewed my charts,
requested some new x-rays at the local Kaiser facility, and gave me the good
news that I was a candidate for hip resurfacing as it looked feasible it
would resolve my issue. Even better news came a few days later, that I would
not need to wait several months for an open surgery date as they found an
opening for me. This all happened pretty fast, and I was nervous, although I
desperately wanted to be fixed. We scheduled the pre-op visit a few days
before surgery, and my wife and I drove from San Francisco area where we
live to Roseville Kaiser, providing opportunity to meet Dr. Klug in person
to ask the detailed questions. I also wanted to meet him face-to-face to
allow an overall assessment of his character, ask the questions to see his
response, understand his background better, and if any doubt a cancellation
was in order for the upcoming surgery. What I found was someone very
different from any Kaiser doctor I had met, as he listened, gave me lots of
time, and did not dictate to me. He was actually on par with other world
class surgeons from my past, as the good ones aren’t pushing you through on
a time clock, but rather consulting with you as part of your resolution
team. To make a long story short, at the end of our 45 minute discussion I
was 1,000% sold on him, this guy really, really cared and was really, really
good. How fortunate he was with Kaiser, and I would not have to bounce my
family around between medical plans once again!

I still remember, as we were leaving his office after this first visit, we
bumped into him again in the hallway heading towards the elevator. He saw me
walking and made comment about my significant limp of which I had become
accustomed. He was clearly compassionate, and made some interesting comment,
implying after he performed his work the issue would disappear. At that
moment I was certain, that utilizing Dr. Klug for this surgery was the right
thing to do.

On surgery day I was his last surgery as we headed into evening. I saw him
walk by while I was in the waiting room, and told him if he was tired from
prior surgeries to let me know and we could cancel for another day. I wanted
this important surgery done right! He quickly came back to me with, "I feel
awesome!", and “I’m warmed up and ready to go”. Wow, he never stopped
getting my confidence up.

The stories continue around Dr. Klug prior to going under for actual
surgery. At admissions on surgery day I was told by the hospital
administrator, “You know, Dr. Klug is our finest surgeon”, to which I
replied I knew this given my research, and given the fact we checked into a
hotel for my wife while taking a long drive for the surgery. I also
overheard another young patient in the pre-op area asking about doctors each
time they walked by, asking her father who seemed to work there to identify
Dr. Klug. He finally shot back to others in their group that Dr. Klug has
rock star status around here. A short time later Dr. Klug walked to my
bedside, the last visit before surgery, and I was happy the rock star had
arrived to get things started! I still remember rolling into the operating
room, and just before going under (had spinal anesthesia, sedated to sleep)
I see Dr. Klug sitting at a computer carefully studying my charts. What else
could you expect, this is a world class surgeon working hard and showing no
sign of complacency.

It has now been 4+ months since the surgery. It was the normal recovery you
hear about, down and out for 1-2 weeks, and then more activity, and about a
month later walking fairly normal with relatively little pain. My pain which
was hitting the highest threshold on a 1-10 scale is now 99% gone. I have a
slight amount of numbness on the outside of my thigh, which I think is part
of the tweaking required to work on the head of the femur, and a very slight
amount of joint discomfort if I push some activities (i.e. running around
with the kids) too hard. If non-impact such as biking is involved I am now
pain free. It’s still hard for me to get use to this! If I sit for long
periods of time I expect pain when I stand, and I’m always amazed it’s just
flat out gone. My brain after all the difficult years will take time to
accept I’m back to normal once again.

I have had highly successful knee surgery and Achilles surgery with Dr.
Arthur Ting (Fremont, CA), and hip arthroscopy with Dr. Thomas Sampson (San
Francisco, CA), both world renowned for their medical achievements. Dr.
Sampson performed my unsuccessful hip arthroscopy, and for resolution was
hesitant about perform resurfacing as he indicated significantly more skill
required, versus performing his standard hip replacement. With that comment
I quickly scratched him from my candidate list of doctors to help going
forward. I now put Dr. Klug into their elite company, and actually put him
at top of the list. He is compassionate, knowledgeable, highly skilled, and
really wants to resolve issues and make a difference.

I have three young children, and now I have my life back once again, as my
focus is no longer consumed with 24×7 pain. I wanted to share my story; this
is an excellent surgery to consider, and Dr. Klug is as quoted by a patient
in the pre-op area "a surgeon with rock star status". I’ve always treated my
body like a temple, and without doubt trusting Dr. Klug to resolve the
damage I had caused was the right thing to do. To provide the highest
longevity for this wonderful surgery I won’t race again, or train hard as a
distance runner. I will though always consider myself fortunate that Dr.
Klug has given me back a very normal life.

The photo taken with Dr. Klug is from my follow-up visit, about 5 weeks
after surgery. The walls which are the background of the photo are filled
with photos and letters of gratitude from his past patients.

Brad Hawthorne
Danville, CA

4-time qualifier USA Olympic Marathon Trials
Course record holder Big Sur Marathon (6-time winner)
2-time member USA World Cup Marathon Team
Marathon PR: 2:14.04