For a consultation, call the office of Jack Bellah, M.D, at 707-964-6910
Steve Porter after hip replacement surgery
Steve Porter, 54, of Mendocino, says before hip replacement surgery he was suffering from right leg stiffness, pain and a limp. a condition that developed over many years.
An X-ray of his hip, ordered by his primary care physician Buzz Graham, M.D., showed the reason: missing cartilage from years of normal wear and tear combined with arthritis.
“It got so bad, I could barely bend over to tie my shoe,” Porter recalls. “Woodworking (building cabinets and guitars) was also getting more difficult.”
All that changed when orthopedic surgeon Jack Bellah, M.D., performed a minimally-invasive anterior hip replacement surgery earlier this year.
“The incision was just four inches long and I needed very little pain medication,” recalls Porter, who spent only two days recovering in the hospital.
Today, Porter is walking pain-free at least two miles daily and recently spent a week in Lassen National Park camping and hiking.
Thinking back, he was nervous about the operation at first. But after discussing with two close friends who had similar procedures and with Karen Reynolds, another Dr. Bellah patient, he decided to go ahead with the hip replacement.
“My gait isn’t perfect yet, but it’s getting there,” he explained. “After so many years walking with a limp and babying my hip, I am regaining my form and confidence knowing I have this tough new cobalt-titanium hip. My ability to bend over and tie my shoe also is coming back.”
With two good hips now, he says he is even walking taller.