Share review of Professor Damian Griffin OBE TD VR BM BCh MA MPhil FRCS(Tr&Orth)

Professor Damian Griffin OBE TD VR BM BCh MA MPhil FRCS(Tr&Orth) 2022-05-18 Person 5 5 0

I am a 58 year old Physiotherapist and have been playing tennis for 50 of those years at a reasonable amateur level. I also like to run (slowly), play golf and walk in the hills with my husband. I started with a gradual onset of right groin pain in 2019 which was bearable initially and didn't really stop me from doing anything I love. As time went on I became more restricted with more pain and despite having some excellent physiotherapy which helped temporarily, I felt that I needed to investigate it more thoroughly. I knew that Prof Griffin was well known for his work with younger (maybe not me) and active (definitely me) hip problems , so I arranged a consultation in June 2020, having already had x ray and MRI. I felt very in charge of my own destiny and discussed all options open to me which ranged from do nothing to full joint replacement. At that time, I had stopped playing tennis but was still able to go walking and play golf. I had started to have some pain at night. I agreed with Prof Griffin to first of all try a steroid and hyaluronic acid injection into the hip joint as I didn't want to rush into joint replacement. The procedure was a quick day case procedure and relatively painless. I had 6-8 weeks of moderate pain relief and did actually return to playing tennis. I knew it may not last and 3-4 months later I was waking every night with pain, my hip joint range was very reduced and I was really only able to play golf. A further consultation with Prof Griffin , and we agreed that the way forward was joint replacement. I didn't feel pressurised into opting for this and was glad that I had tried the injection first. My procedure was done at the Schoen Clinic in London which I cannot fault for the staff, care, everything really. I stayed for 3 nights during which time Prof Griffin spoke to me each day. I had a follow up appt 2 weeks later and have just had my 3 month review. I have also seen the physio who works with Prof Griffin who has provided me with a programme designed to get me back to my sports. The result....I have a hip joint which moves fully and is pretty much pain free. I started playing golf at 10 weeks post op, I can walk 7-8 miles including hills and I am just about to start some gentle hitting on the tennis court. I also do not wake with the pain. I returned to work at 12 weeks post op. I will have a check x ray 1 year after my procedure, it's good to know that long term follow up is there. I have been very happy with my care from Prof Griffin and feel that I have been treated by an expert in their field. One piece of advice, make sure you do the exercises...well as a physio, I would say that! I fully expect continue with mine for up to a year, if not beyond to keep everything strong.