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6 months later, finally some good news

August 30th, 2006 Leave a comment Go to comments

Had my meeting with my orthopedic specialist yesterday at Boston Medical Center. The specialist I regularly see, invited his partner Dr. T (a nationally renowned ortho surgeon) to give a second opinion, and they both agreed to hold off on surgery. There are two factors that make them think that surgery is not necessary/helpful right now:

1) The bone is progressing toward healing.
2) The bone is not changing position–it has remained at the same angle.

That angle is 12-15 degrees off, making the injured leg 1.5 centimeter (3/5 of an inch) shorter. The question is: is the deformity going to prevent me from a high level of activity? Dr. T said that it won’t. I should be able to lead an active life, with the help of a heel lift that I will put in my shoe. There is a risk that I could develop arthritis in that hip in thirty years, but they would deal with that if/when it happens.

So surgery is off at this point, they expect it will continue healing, but recognize the possibility that the screws could snap or the position could shift. I am finally “weight bearing as tolerated” which means that I should walk on it as much as possible unless I feel discomfort or pain.

If something were to happen, the surgery would officially be called a “valgus intertrochanteric osteotomy,” and they would make a triangle incision and insert something to correct the angle which is currently misaligned.

If nothing goes wrong I could be 100% in around 4 months. Finally, some kind of light at the end of a very long tunnel.

I return to the doctor on September 26.

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  1. August 30th, 2006 at 11:32 | #1

    Good luck motivator…

    If you can make it with a bum hip, you motivate me to know that I can do it in good health

    -Ryan (rwaldron from MarineOCS.com)

  2. September 1st, 2006 at 07:58 | #2

    Congrats on the good news! I hope you’re up and about in no time.

    You’re one tough guy…

    -JW

  3. AndyM
    September 2nd, 2006 at 00:15 | #3

    Best wishes for your recovery, Michael.

    Think positive; I look forward to your OCS reflections in four months.

    AndyM (from AirForceOTS.com)

  4. September 3rd, 2006 at 12:46 | #4

    Hey Michael that is awesome news. I never told you that you are famous at OCS they talk about you and even show a picture of your hip! Of course they do not say your name though!

  5. September 10th, 2006 at 22:35 | #5

    Excellent news, Michael. Best wishes towards a speedy recovery.

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