Hip resurfacing specialist Vancouver B.C.

[KevinHalicki]

Hello, new to this and am deciding whether to do THR or resurfacing. The 2 surgeons I have seen do not recommend resurfacing because of the past issues. Any feedback on this? I am 55 and active and want to run again, been told the THP will not allow this activity.

[OtterDriver]

Good morning Kevin -

I'm presuming the surgeons you consulted probably never did resurfacings!?  When I was first told I was a candidate for THR...the surgeon (that was highly recommended to me) never said a thing about resurfacing...he coincidentally does not perform that procedure!

I did a lot of research and at age 55 had a BHR installed on my right hip.  Have had no issues whatsoever, but now the left hip has become very jealous and I won't hesitate to have the same thing done for it.

As you are probably aware, this site is full of very helpful resources.  Do your homework!

Happy New Year!

Bruce

[Dannywayoflife]

Why not consult with one of the surgeons who will give you a free online consultation? At your age if you are indeed a candidate for a resurfacing then you would be unwise to go with a thr instead.

[Gazza2]

I recall reading (Can't remember where and can't find it again) that there are few (to none) experienced HR surgeons in BC and high failure rates amongst inexperienced surgeons led them to abandon offering HR surgery.  Don't now if that is still the case.  There are very experienced HR surgeons in Calgary and here in Ottawa though.

[KevinHalicki]

There is one here,  Dr.Nelson Greidanus that has previously done the resurfacing and I will contact his office next week to see if he still does. How do I get the free online consultation?

[oldsoccerplayer]

Dr. Pritchett in Seattle is one of the sponsors of this site. I don't know if there would be insurance issues going from Canada to the US, though.

[KevinHalicki]

Our Canadian medical insurance will not cover it unless you get the surgery here. Also, if you have seen 1 orthopaedic surgeon thru the system it is difficult to get a 2nd opinion, I had to pay out of my pocket for the 2nd opinion and imagine I will need to do the same for the 3rd, and hopefully someone in B.C. will do resurfacing as an option.

[Gazza2]

When you see Dr Nelson Greidanus be sure to ask how many HR operations he has done,  how frequently he is doing them, and what revision rate he has.  As you can read here there is a learning curve (Seen quoted as ~200 operations) before the successful surgeons achieve low revision rates.  There is a helpful list of questions you might want to ask him posted on this site  http://www.surfacehippy.info/questionsfordoctor.php

[Dannywayoflife]

Personally I wouldn't touch a surgeon with less than 1000 surgeries under their belt with low revision rates.

Dr's Bose, De Smet and Gross all will do a free online consultation for you.

[Tim Bratten]

From someone who learned the hard way: hip resurfacing is an excellent procedure than can work very well, but I would HIGHLY recommend you go to a sugeon who is doing the procedure (on the average) at least two or three times a week (i.e. at least 100 times a year) with good success. If you get a small diameter THR (28-32 mm) your activity level will surely be limited, but there are also THR systems out there that are working well in terms of the activities you can do. I payed out of my pocket for De Smet (same problem as you: medical insurance does not cover out of country procedures)  and for the price of a nice, new sedan I have two hips that are doing the job. I'd make that trade anyday.   

Good luck