Phillip Rutan Hip Resurfacing Dr. Gross 2006
Hello All, Well, I’m “On the other side”! Here are some of my “post-op” thoughts and ramblings…I met Dr. Gross and his assistant, Lee Webb, for the first time on Feb 21. My resurfacing was performed the next day. Not surprizingly, Lee and Dr. Gross were indeed both as wonderful as the many previous postings have reported. My surgery was performed at Providence Hospital Northeast. I was given a quiet, private room post-op, and I was very satisfied with the facility and staff as a whole. Heck, even the food was decent! I stayed both pre-op and post-op at the Courtyard Marriott. It’s a nice facility and very conveniently located next to Providence Hospital. (BTW, they have free wireless internet access.) I flew into the Columbia Airport (CAE), and rented a car from Alamo. The Columbia Area map that I obtained from “Alamo” at the airport was pretty worthless. For that matter, so were the driving directions–airport to hospital–provided by Yahoo Maps.There’s a Longs Drug Store Pharmacy located directly across the street from Providence Hospital. I found the staff there to be quite friendly and very helpful. My post-op pain was very manageable, and I was able to cease taking pain meds all together at two days post-op. However, I still have quite a bit of post-op swelling in my left thigh and buttock… Arrange or request “assistance” at the airport. I made my request when I drove into the rental return lot. A SkyCap was summoned to my rental car for me, and I was taken by wheelchair from the rental return lot, through security, and then all the way to my departure gate. I also had the flight attendants arrange “assistance” for me at the Atlanta Airport and my destination airport. (BTW, I rented a small SUV. I found it to be easy to enter/exit post-op.) For me, the leg room in Delta’s “Coach” class seating was way too tight for comfortable air travel at just three days post-op. (I’m 5’10” and flew to Columbia, SC, from the west coast.) Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to upgrade to First Class. It was a long, cramped, uncomfortable flight back home… In short, go First Class if you’re going to be in the air for more than one hour! Whoever invented the “Sock-Aid” was very clever indeed! Self-injecting “Arixtra” (used post-op as a blood thinner) is “interesting” but painless. However, it did cause my resting heart rate to jump from 60 BPM to 85-95 BPM. I found it hard to fall asleep with my heart pounding away… Per Lee Webb, I’ve discontinued the Arixtra…As for my post-op mobility, I was up and walking with two crutches one day after surgery, and with one crutch on the second day. I’m now using a cane and can drive a car (five days post-op)! 😀 Well, that’s all for now. Hope “youall” find these notes in some way helpful! ~Phillip LT-Biomet /Feb-22-06 /Dr. Gross — In surfacehippy@yahoogroups.com, “Phillip” wrote: Hello All, I’m 47 years old, and I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my left hip joint back in February 2003. I was shocked and devastated with the news, as I thought my groin pain was only a strained ligament or tendon in my hip. Like many of you, I was told by my OS to give up my active lifestyle, live with my discomfort as long as I could, and then get a THR… I joined the SurfaceHippy group last August. This is my first “real” Hippy post, though I’ve had direct contact with some of you during the past few months (Thank you to Alan Ray, Vicky Marlow, and Christopher Sanders!). I’ve been reading the message board with much interest since I joined, and I’ve learned very, very much from your many thoughtful postings. As a result, I decided to move forward and have Dr. Thomas Gross do my resurfacing. For me, it came down to two choices: Dr. DeSmet or Dr. Gross. I ultimately chose Dr. Gross because of insurance and travel considerations (Providence Hospital is “in-network”, it’s a shorter flight to South Carolina, and I won’t have to pay up- front in eurosand then wait for my insurance to reimburse my expenses). But, based upon the many postings that I’ve read, I’m confident either surgeon would have been an excellent choice… My resurfacing is scheduled for February 22, and I found out today that it’s been pre-certified by my insurance (Aetna). So for me, the countdown to “the other side” is on! Thanks to all for your contributions to this wonderful forum and service! With kind regards, ~Phillip Rutan PS. I live in Seattle, WA, i.e., the home of the Super Bowl XL bound Seahawks, but that’s another story… GO SEAHAWKS! ;-D |