Steve,
Actually the only bad swelling I had was the Sunday after my long trip home the night before in a car, I iced, elevated and was fine by Monday, I used the ice machine mainly for the monkey fist that I had post-op. I had very little swelling beyond the first couple days.
You yourself had swelling down to your foot 10 days post-op with Dr. Su (see quote below), does that mean all Dr Su patients have swelling issues? Probably not. The ice machine is just a great way to treat patients.
I am 10 days post-op and back home in Douglas, Alaska. I have had swelling down to my left foot (operated side) and need to raise my feet above my chest at night and periodically during the day. I take a couple of pain pills at night, but none during the day. I walked one block to the post office yesterday, using a cane.
I think Bionic had very little swelling on his hip except for the day after he got home like me and then only minor swelling for short time, the same for my friend Lisa who lives nearby me who got operated on October 22nd, I have another fellow Dr. Gross hippy in Chicago who had very little pain or swelling although he used the ice machine a lot after he got home.
Dr. Gross uses the machine because it's easier on the patient because you don't end up with frost bite because it's cold water pumping through tubes in the pad not ice against your body.
My pain was never worse than my hip on my worst days, I was given 20 pain pills and I still have 8 pills left.
Many patients end up with some swelling it's just something that happens when you're operated on no matter who the doctor is.
Chuck