Take any of my
73 newsletters here Or 98,000 video views
here
Does that make me anti-joint replacement?
Anti-implant?
Short answer..
NO WAY!
I love joint replacements
Medical devices have revolutionised healthcare.
(over the last 60 to 100 years)
So, I thought I’d tell you a bit about my story.
How I came to be an orthopaedic surgeon
And how I fell in love with what I do..
33 years ago
33 years ago, I was lucky enough to watch my first joint replacement. I was 16-years old. And a very green work experience student.
It blew my mind. I can still picture it.
The knee flayed open..
Anatomy all on show.
Saws cuts shape the bone
Hammers bang in implants,
Cement fixes the implants in place.
What’s not to like?
It was a great ‘first operation’ to watch.
Especially one to get a 16-year-old interested in orthopaedics.
I was hooked.
Then..
30 years ago
30 years ago, I snapped my right forearm in half..
Stretching for a rugby ball I heard a loud double 'snap / snap'
I came down holding my right forearm
Bent in the middle at 90 degrees.
Waggling from side to side.
An extra joint where no joint should be.
Confusion reigned on a rugby field of 30 medical students(!)
'What do we do?!
'Don't move it!' came my slightly anguished reply..
And a couple of friends helped sort me out..
Ambulance. A+E. Operation.
My radius and ulna were fixed straight with 2x metal plates + screws.
Straightforward technology, but game-changing for me.
I went from helpless to fixed..
(literally overnight)
One minute I was charging around the rugby field.
Next minute my arm was flailing in the breeze.
I was helpless.
Out in the wild, would I have survived?
100 years would I have got back to work?
What would life have looked like?
At that time / in that place
I was fixed by the simplest of medical implants.
Ready to play again..
Ready to, one day, perform that same operation
(many times)
I will be forever grateful.
In the right place
At the right time..
I love medical implants.
They can be truly life changing.
