LTHR - HSS Surgeon

5liberty

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Any recommendations for a hip surgeon at HSS in NYC? Anyone familiar with a Dr. Inglis? Need LHR
 
@5liberty Welcome to BoneSmart! I changed your thread title so that our members in your area will see your query and respond. We have several members who had their op at HSS and seemed very satisfied with the results.

Meanwhile I'll give you a bit of reading:
New BoneSmart members like you are in various stages of their journey to joint replacement. Making the decision whether or not to have surgery and preparing for surgery can be easier once you have done your research and know what lies ahead. Here are some tools that can help you decide what is best for you.

If you are at the stage where you have joint pain but don't know for sure if you are ready to have surgery, these links may help:

Score Chart: How bad is my arthritic hip?
Choosing a surgeon and a prosthesis
BMI Calculator - What to do if your surgeon says you're too heavy for joint replacement surgery
Longevity of implants and revisions: How long will my new joint last?

If you are at the stage where you are planning to have surgery but are looking for information so you can be better prepared for what is to come, take a look at these links:

Recovery Aids: A comprehensive list for hospital and home
Recliner Chairs: Things you need to know if buying one for your recovery
Pre-Op Interviews: What's involved?

And if you want to picture what your life might be like with a replaced hip, take a look at the posts and threads from other BoneSmarties provided in this link:

Stories of amazing hip recoveries
 
@5liberty ... Oh my so many excellent hip surgeons at HSS.

David Mayman was my top choice before I ultimately decided to stay local after finding someone who impressed me almost as much as Mayman did. Mayman uses a robotic assisted arm ... and is nationally known leader in computer and robot-assisted surgery ... he's also a really warm guy ... He draws a lot of really active people, and that was his attraction to me. He's fine with patients running, for example, after hip replacement. But the operation is pretty much the same for people of varying activity levels.

There's a young guy, more of a generalist, who ordinarily I wouldn't recommend except that I noticed that a lot of PTs and HSS doctors were recommending patients to him ... his name is Danyal Nawabi. He does more than hips and knees, but apparently is outstanding at hips. If you read any of his reviews, you'll want to meet with him tomorrow ... he calls patients, checks on them afterwards ... answers questions himself often by phone call, not just email and is apparently just a brilliant and precise surgeon.

Other top hip surgeons there: Edwin Su is famous as a hip resurfacing (but doesn't really take insurance, so is extremely expensive and takes like 6 months to get an appointment) ... Friedrich Boettner, Michael Cross, Seth Jerabek are other names that caught my attention... and these are mainly the ones I read about ... others I'm sure are excellent.

At the very top I think is Paul Pellicci ... but I think he's retiring and he doesn't take much insurance. He is responsible for some serious advances in posterior approach surgeries ... His patients rave ... and they apparently have big wallets ... If I had some wealth, I would have scheduled a surgery with Pellicci--wouldn't have needed to meet with him beforehand. Only partly kidding. Michael Alexiades is another top surgeon and a leader there in anterior surgery ... (again, he was outside my insurance network). Nawabi also does anterior and robotic assisted surgery. Boettner also does anterior if that is an interest of yours.

I picked these limited names, but you could probably throw darts at the HSS hip doctors chart and land with someone really good. Oh, a recent guy on the board ....prairienut used a young guy, Dr. Brad Waddell and seemed happy with the results.

So that's a lot of info. So let me be try to be helpful. If I were telling a friend what to do, I'd say schedule a visit with David Mayman and another visit to Danyal Nawabi ... It's fine to meet multiple surgeons at HSS ... and it's doubly fine since Mayman does mini-posterior approach and Nawabi does the anterior ... You don't have to keep secret that you're meeting with multiple doctors there. Each surgeon has his own office and office managers and schedulers. See if either of those guys impresses you ... if not, keep going.

If you've got the do-re-mi, start with Paul Pellicci, though he may have retired. Unfortunately Inglis was not someone I read up on ... good or bad or neutral.
 
That is a wonderful response to your question with lots of options. I live further upstate in northern NY (north of Syracuse). I could recommend someone in Syracuse but I know nothing about HSS. I just wanted to welcome you to BoneSmart and wish you well in your search for an OS. I definitely agree with @Going4fun that you should set with two OS’s if possible and choose the one you feel most comfortable with. Don’t hesitate to ask them their success rate and how many THR’s they do each year.
 
I originally contacted Dr. Westrich at HSS who is director of research there and operated on a couple of acquaintances of mine. He reviewed my X-ray and MRI and referred me to Dr. Bradford Waddell for the revision of a loosened femoral stem. Apparently, Westrich no longer handles hip revisions. Dr. Waddell is a young surgeon who was trained in Louisiana and did his fellowship at HSS. He received an outstanding clinician award while a fellow. He has been an assistant attending surgeon there for something over a year and does hips and knees. He is also attending surgeon at Stamford Hospital. His youth gave me pause, but I trusted the referral from Westrich and could see that he was already a leader in a group that works to attract and develop new ortho surgeons and another one that focuses on patient safety. He also uses robotics although I'm not sure he used them with my revision. Revisions tend to be special cases. Waddell did three revisions the day I was there. (I was happy to hear mine was the easiest.) At the initial interview, he was very attentive to what I had to say and explained the situation to me so much more thoroughly than the local OSs I interviewed. I tried contacting Dr. Mayman first at HSS but he doesn't accept Medicare insurance. I have a good friend who used Mayman and had an excellent outcome. In the end, I felt there was an element of random chance in selecting a surgeon, but I felt I was better off at HSS for my revision than sticking with the local ortho group. Their infection rate is super low and their patient care standards very high.
 
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I looked up Dr. Inglis' credentials and they are impressive and extensive. I don't see how you could go wrong with him. And I see he accepts Medicare insurance.
 
@prairienut, thanks for the overview of revision at HSS. If I ever have a serious problem, that's where I would go.
 
Any recommendations for a hip surgeon at HSS in NYC? Anyone familiar with a Dr. Inglis? Need LHR

I'm from California but had planned to have my hip replacement surgery done at HSS with Dr. Thomas P. Sculco, who is one of the more experienced hip surgeons at HSS. He used to be the chief of orthopedics (he's now chief emeritus) and has been doing hip and knee replacements since basically the beginning of his career (he's in his mid 70s now). I did extensive research prior to selecting a hip surgeon, and Dr. Sculco seemed to be one of the best of the bunch (at least as far as I could tell -- and that also goes for HSS itself). I actually traveled to NYC and met with him back in March '17 and found him to be a very amicable, caring, and responsive doctor. I was very impressed with him and his bedside manner (much more so than just about any other orthopedic doctor I had ever seen). He simply gave off a very competent, genial, caring vibe -- and combined with his experience, I concluded that I had found the right surgeon!

The reason I didn't have my surgery with Dr. Sculco (I still haven't had the surgery, actually) is because my insurance (Blue Shield of California/PPO) no longer covers out-of-state care (except for emergency care). I made the mistake of waiting too long to schedule surgery at HSS, as my insurance DID cover out-of-state care until January 2019. I had actually scheduled surgery with Dr. Sculco twice but ended up cancelling due to schedule conflicts and then rescheduling, but by that time, my insurance had changed. Bummer! I really wanted to have my hip replaced at HSS (and more specifically by Dr. Sculco), but that ship has now sailed -- at least until I can possibly obtain new coverage!! Ugh!

But I would recommend Dr. Thomas Sculco. He also has a son who is an up-and-coming hip surgeon at HSS (Peter Sculco) who is getting established in his career.
 
Dr. Thomas Sculco does indeed have top credentials. Wow, he is a superstar. However, he does not accept Medicare insurance. His son Peter appears to be an up-and-coming hip surgeon as sfbaylover points out and does accept Medicare.
 
@SelfHelp

Thank you very much for the recommendations. Yes, I do live in the LA area (I'm in Cerritos, to be exact). I have not heard of Dr. Andrew Yun. I will read up on him and check him out further. Thank you for that info.

I have actually heard of (and researched somewhat) Dr. Lawrence D. Dorr. In fact, when I met with Dr. Sculco in NYC, Dr. Sculco gave me Dr. Dorr's name and mentioned him as being an excellent surgeon. Sculco told me that if I chose to have the surgery in the LA area that Dr. Dorr would be an excellent option.

Now that going to HSS seems to no longer be an option, I will have to focus on getting my bad hip (actually hips) fixed out here. I do realize that excellent hip surgeons exist in all areas of the country, and that my chances of obtaining an excellent hip replacement surgery are probably just as good out here as they would be if I were to have the surgery done at HSS. But I guess I wanted to err on the side of doing everything possible to ensure the absolute best possible outcome, and I know the HSS facility (as well as the surgeons there) are cream of the crop and hard to beat, so I was willing to travel.

Again, thank you.
 
@prairienut, thanks for the overview of revision at HSS. If I ever have a serious problem, that's where I would go.


I just booked appointment with Dr. Peter Sculco at HSS. UNFORTUNATELY I have to wait 3 months for his first available appt. they also stated surgery would be another 3 month wait! Thinking of trying a Dr. McLawhorn
 
I looked up Dr. Inglis' credentials and they are impressive and extensive. I don't see how you could go wrong with him. And I see he accepts Medicare insurance.

Dr. Inglis was very nice, although didn’t explain the procedure that much. Just that he would do anterior and I would be up and around soon. I booked appt to see Dr. Peter Sculco, but have a 3 month wait! A lot of the drs at HSS no longer take Medicare, even with another insurance backup so the choices are getting slimmer
 
@5liberty, by my count from HSS's website, there are quite a few joint replacement surgeons who take Medicare--like about 25 or so.

Sometimes websites can be behind ... but ... if you go to this site--the physician search at HSS ...

  1. On the right ... in the "Specialty" box, click on "orthopedic surgeon"
  2. Below that will pop up a "Subspecialty" box ... and click "hip"
  3. And then in the "Insurance" box ... click on "Medicare" ...
  4. Then click on "Search" in the blue box at the bottom ...
I see about 25-26 surgeons who take Medicare ... a few might have a trauma specialty, but lots of their experienced folks and some younger surgeons as well seem to take Medicare.
https://www.hss.edu/physicians.asp?search=yes
 

Thank you again for the recommendations. I have booked an appointment with Dr. Lawrence Dorr for this upcoming Monday at 1:30pm. I am excited to meet with him. His practice/hospital is only about 20 miles from me, so he's very close by. He is a very experienced and renowned surgeon, so I have great hopes!! He's currently 78 years old, so I wonder how long he is going to continue to practice though.
 
@SelfHelp

I actually met with Dr. Andrew Yun just yesterday out in Santa Monica. I brought the x-rays that I had taken at Dr. Lawrence Dorr's office a few weeks ago and brought them to my consultation with Dr. Yun. He agreed that my hips are bad (the right one much more so) and said that he's ready whenever I am to do the surgery. So, I'm in a bit of a pickle as to whether to go with Dr. Dorr or Dr. Yun.

As you indicated, both surgeons are very experienced and highly recommended, so I'll likely have an excellent outcome with either surgeon. The main difference is that Dr. Dorr uses the mini-posterior approach whereas Dr. Yun uses the anterior approach (but the approach used is much less important than the skill and experience of the surgeon -- and both guys are highly experienced and qualified -- so I don't care much about the approach).

I will say that Dr. Dorr has a much better bedside manner and is much friendlier than Dr. Yun (at least on the respective days that I met with them). Dr. Yun was very short and direct, with a very clinical and by-the-book/just-the-facts-man sort of approach, whereas Dr. Dorr was very warm and cordial and friendly. Dr. Dorr shared with me his own hip replacement story and took the time to banter a bit. Dr. Yun on the other hand spent about 5-6 minutes with me and then left. (But I do know that bedside manner is not a good predictor of surgeon competence; many great surgeons have poor bedside manners and/or people skills, and many so-so surgeons have great bedside manners and people skills -- so I know not to place too much emphasis on the this one component). But I do like friendly and polite doctors and surgeons -- and Dr. Dorr is much warmer and friendlier.

The only real issue I have, however, is Dr. Dorr's age -- he's 78 now, and on the day that I met with him, he seemed sort of stressed and tired and looked a bit worn out (in my estimation). Granted, he's probably a very busy guy with a hectic schedule, so his workload combined with his age is likely to be exhausting, so it's understandable if he appeared less than fresh and energetic. With Dr. Dorr's experience, he could probably do the operation blindfolded with excellent results. But I still wonder if perhaps his age might be a detriment to his ability or skillset as a surgeon? And I say this respectfully and not in any way insultingly, because I know Dr. Dorr is a Rock Star in the field of joint replacement. But Dr. Yun in comparison seemed much more vibrant and engaged, which is understandable since he is only 50. And at the end of the day, I don't know if a surgeon's age is that big of a deal or not as long as he is competent.

So, here I am, simply trying to decide which surgeon to use. I seriously think it's a bit of a toss-up as both guys are renowned surgeons. Any advice from anyone here who would like to chime in would be appreciated.
 
Hi @sfbaylover, I hear you on the 78-year-old surgeon ... In my neck of the Woods (Philadelphia PA) there was a nationally famous doctor who started a prestigious orthopedic practice. Richard Rothman ... Well Rothman was operating on patients up through age 80. He had some kind of agreement that his younger colleagues would get in his face when they thought his skill had fallen off. He operated until age 80 or so, I think. Then died just recently of a brain tumor ...

I read somewhere years ago ... that older surgeons actually did fine ... as long as they conducted surgery frequently. What didn't work, if I remember correctly, was an older surgeon who instead of doing 300 hip replacements a year ... did 20 (I don't think the study was on joint replacement surgeons). There was apparently a noticeable drop off in skill when the older person only did a few surgeries ... The moral I took from the story: stay away from a part-time surgeon.

You might ask how many surgeries Dr. Dorr is on schedule for doing this year. His nurse or PA would also most likely have that information. But really sounds like you have two really good choices ... I wanted to go to someone who I liked and who had a great reputation for skillful surgery ... So I tried to dodge the wonderful dilemma you are staring at ... But sounds like you're good either way.
 
I agree with @Going4fun, it looks like you have two excellent options. I was thinking when I read your post, "Find out how many hip replacements he has done in the last year." That would be a key piece of information.

I had the opposite concern. My surgeon is very young, probably late 30s, but has done hundreds of hip/knee replacements in the last year, around 1/3 of them revisions including many complex ones. I ended up putting my trust in the strength of the referral from Dr. Westrich who is head of research at HSS. The boyish Dr. Waddell was friendly, but efficient, and did an excellent job answering all my questions. He is already leading some groups that are advancing the orthopedic surgery profession so I could see he was a leader among his peers even early in his career. At some point, you make the decision as best you can with the information you have and run with it.

Good luck in your decision. You are a good analyst so I'm sure will make the right decision for yourself. Let us hear from you when you have a surgeon and a surgery date.
 
Hi @sfbaylover, I have not met either of these doctors, but I have seen several YouTube interviews and performing surgery. I had same impression of both.
Here is collection of YouTube videos by Dr. Yun:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0yOIQCEY8UzcJU0PbXRriQ
Here are some points I would consider.
Dr. Yun seems to run a Knee and Hip center at Saint John’s Hospital with a dedicated staff specialized in joint replacement recovery http://www.totaljoints.net/ If you can confirm that, then that is a big plus. You read it all the time on bonesmart: go with a "production" surgeon with a support team that has worked out a smooth process of getting you back on your feet. The volume of YouTube videos tells me that Dr. Yun has a dedicated team. From below link you see that Dr. Yun’s complications rate is exceptionally low. He is also very high-volume surgeon, I believe this is because he has staff dedicated to his Knee and Hip center.
https://www.checkbook.org/surgeonratings/Hip-or-Knee-Replacement-Surgery/Andrew-Glen-Yun/1083674410

Dr. Dorr is part of the USC faculty, with 40+ years of experience, publications and research. It seems he operate at USC Keck only? I would want to know if his joint replacement patients are kept separate from other patients and if they are cared for by staff dedicated to joint replacement recovery? Dr. Dorr uses the MAKO Robot; see below video he uses it for THR, at the end of the video he gives his justification for using robot.
Did Dr. Dorr tell you that he will be using the MAKO Robot? I believe that would be a plus, placement of the components will be accurate, but surgery time probably is longer.
One concern is Dr. Dorr complications rate and relatively low volume, see below link.
https://www.checkbook.org/surgeonratings/Hip-or-Knee-Replacement-Surgery/Lawrence-D-Dorr/1053369371
You can ask him about his complications rate and volume.
Another question: Will both surgeons perform the surgery, or will they supervise other surgeons?
If my THR followed the standard procedure, then the anterior vs. posterior approach would be less important, and I would probably favor Dr. Yun because of his high volume and low complications rate. But I have 3 pins in my hip, they first need to be removed before the standard THR procedure, therefore I am not a good candidate for the Anterior approach and I am going with Posterior approach surgeons.
Dorr argues for posterior approach here https://www.dorrarthritisinstitute.org/pdf/dorr-research-foundation.pdf
These are some of my thoughts, hope you find them helpful. Let me know how you decide.
 
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