New Surgery takes place of Hip Replacement June 22, 2006

Tampa, FL (June, 2006) - The Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR) surgery recently won FDA approval, and is now available in Tampa and Zephyrhills thanks to the efforts of Dr. Stephen Raterman of Florida Medical Clinic. Raterman is one of two surgeons in the state of Florida qualified to perform the BHR procedure.

This bone-conserving approach to hip surgery relieves hip pain and improves hip function by replacing the parts of your hip that have been severely damaged by degenerative joint diseases. It’s a technology that replaces the worn surfaces of the hip joint with all-metal caps rather than replacing the entire hip joint, as in total hip replacement. After a traditional hip replacement, between 1-4% of patients suffer a dislocation of the hip and often require follow-up surgery.

”Total hip replacement is a wonderful operation, it works very well, particularly for elderly people who aren’t extremely active and don’t do a lot of athletic activities,” said Raterman. “But when you start putting standard total hip replacements in people who are active, particularly the younger population, then you start to see failures.”

Hip Resurfacing is designed primarily for patients in need of hip replacement surgery at a young age. For people between the ages of 35-65, regular consideration is given for the procedure depending on their bone quality. Patients who chose hip resurfacing resume activities such as professional soccer, judo competitions and running within about a year.

Over 60,000 BHR procedures have been completed worldwide in the last eight years. Raterman has undergone special training in the UK and took part in surgeries with the doctor who developed the BHR technology.