Patient Ambassadors

I am 48 years old and for at least 10 years I have been unable to enjoy many daily activities with my friends and family.  Prior to my procedure I began enduring pain during the most simplest of tasks, like putting on my socks or lacing up my shoes .  As an avid golfer and all-around active individual ,my pain became increasingly worse.  Early last year (2014), while watching my wife and 6-year old son get ready to go bike riding and realizing that I was again not going to be able to join them due to unbearable pain in my hips, I decided it was time to seek medical counsel. As a seasoned healthcare professional in the orthopedic business, I had many resources to tap into when considering just the right surgeon to complete my procedures.  I knew both hips were bad and that I would need to have them done at the same time if I was going to become pain free.  After careful consideration and consulting with colleagues I trusted, my decision to see Dr. Steven Louis was an easy one.  His reputation in the area of Trauma and Orthopaedics, and everything I had heard while working in local hospitals regarding how excellent a surgeon he was and how he cared for his patients with a deep sense of commitment and passion, allowed me to feel very comfortable moving forward with his recommendation. I will admit, even after our initial visit I did not want to admit that at 48 I was going to need this surgery.  But a few months later I was back in his office with pain worse than before and he just looked at me and said “its time for surgery”. The surgery went extremely well and  I was walking the very first day!!  In the video below you will see how quickly I was able to walk confidently down the hallway at Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital only days after my surgery. I felt so very confident and strong from the very first step.  All my physical therapists commented on how great I was doing and  they were not surprised when I told them that Dr. Louis was my hip surgeon.  After a few weeks I was back behind the wheel and thankful I was getting back to work and making plans for future activities I had not been able to enjoy for years. Thank you always Dr. Louis for your deep sense of commitment to your patients, excellent skills in the operating room and for providing such a new and valuable technique to your patients.  The Direct Anterior Approach has certainly been invaluable in my healthcare outcomes.

An unfortunate accident while riding one day on my motorcycle caused a major injury to my lower left leg.  Dr. Louis was the trauma surgeon at Good Samaritan Hospital who first treated my injury the day of the accident and was determined to support me through the additional 6 surgeries we had together to try and save the leg below the knee.  Unfortunately, reoccurring infections ultimately caused the difficult decision of a lower knee amputation. As I began my rehabilitation process, and with the full support of a dedicated team of professionals, I am now able to enjoy life again and as you can see here in my videos, enjoying the ski slopes and freedom regained with high-tech prosthesis and great medical support by my physical therapists, family and friends and above all, Dr. Louis and his team!! Thank you Dr. Louis for everything!!

“Thank you Dr. Louis for restoring my hip and giving me my mobility back. I will always be very grateful to you and your team!!”

"Dr. Louis is the best!!! I would highly recommend him to anyone who has to have their hip repaired."

https://vimeo.com/90773784

“Dr. Louis is phenomenal,” Wil said. “He’s upbeat and straightforward. He has a great sense of humor and a big personality. I sure made the right choice.”

 

"Tylenol took care of the little pain I had," Konkel recalled. "My surgery was on a Thursday. I was home by Saturday evening. A visiting nurse stopped by on Sunday morning. I was walking without a cane or walker in 10 days."

Suzanne Lonngren Discusses Anterior Hip Surgery

"My husband and I recently took a trip to Chicago just seven weeks after my surgery and I rode a Segway for over an hour through Grant Park, Millennium Park and to the Field Museum. With Dr. Louis' direct anterior approach procedure, I have no restrictions or pain. It is so nice to feel ALIVE again."

No pain. I was home and at Action Physical Therapy in Shorewood within days. Therapy was smooth and I was very mobile by the time I saw Dr. Louis for my follow-up visit three weeks later. No pain.

“Before my hip replacement surgery, walking and sitting hurt. It was too hard to even go to the store,” Alicia explains. “Now, I’m working comfortably, riding a stationary bike for exercise and feel like I have a whole new life.”