Walking Tall: Cenla Health - Alexandria, Pineville, Louisiana

“Walking Tall" is the name of a popular movie.  It also could be the theme for more than 5,000 recipients of artificial knees implanted by Mid State Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine surgeons over the past 20 years.

Knee replacement surgery is commonplace today.  Some 350 knee joint replacements will be performed by Mid State Orthopaedic doctors in 2008, and the combination of well trained, experienced and skilled surgeons, ever-improving technology and techniques, and advanced rehabilitation is providing patients a return to an improved lifestyle as never before.

Knee replacement patients come from all walks of life, but debilitating pain, instability and curtailed mobility are common to each.  "Nobody wants to have their knees replaced," says Dr. Mark Dodson, "but the pain and other difficulties usually get to the point where the patient tells us that he or she is ready for surgery."

Indeed, comments such as "I wish I had done this years earlier" are frequently heard from long-time sufferers who find the quality of their lives reversed after the surgery.  What follows is a brief testimonial from five patients whose lives have been changed because of knee replacement.

John Costa

A safety director at Ft. Polk in Leesville, Costa's knee problems started nearly 30 years ago when he was the victim of a traffic accident caused by a drunk driver. At the age of 47, and after years of declining mobility and increasing pain, Costa sought the assistance of Dr. Chris Rich, who has been on Louisiana Life magazine's 'Top Orthopaedic Surgeons" list for two straight years. "It was the best thing that could have happened to me," Costa says. "The replacement surgery allowed me to return to full range of motion, and I enjoy walking and doing yard work again. It's been over eight years since I had the surgery, and I feel great."

David Couvillion

This active Oak Wing Golf Club employee has had three careers and replacement surgery on both knees, the first in 2005 and the latest five months ago. Couvillion, whose knee problems gradually worsened after 20 years on his feet as a teacher and another 20 years as an offshore oil rig worker, "could hardly walk" when he saw Dr. Rich following a recommendation from a friend.  "I do anything I want now without pain.  I was back at work six weeks after the second surgery.  It's been amazing, and I am very grateful."

Rev. Clarence "Aubrey" Whitlock

The pastor of Horseshoe Drive Baptist Church was already "very satisfied and comfortable" with Dr Dodson from several other orthopaedic procedures over a 12-year period, so when his left knee deteriorated to the point where he could no longer walk stairs, he again put his trust in his doctor. "I had arthritis and a torn cartilage, and I could no longer walk for exercise or even perform basic functions without a great deal of discomfort," Whitlock says. Now, several months after replacement surgery, Whitlock is "completely out of pain," walking strenuously for exercise, and negotiating stairs without a hitch.  "At some point I'll have to have my other knee replaced, and I won't hesitate to have it done," Whitlock says. "If you pick a good surgeon and make a commitment to rehabilitation there's a very high probability that everything will be fine."

Laura Bordelon

"It's the best thing that I've ever done," says Bordelon, 58, a gift shop employee at Paragon Casino in Marksville.  After five years of "bone-to-bone arthritis pain that sometimes made me cry," Bordelon's grandson recommended that she see Dr Rich, who had treated him for a shoulder injury sustained in a high school football game.  Bordelon says she "walked all the way down the hall with a walker the third day after surgery, and walked by myself at the end of two weeks.  I returned to work after eight weeks.  It's like a miracle to be out of that terrible pain."

Coach Billy Brooks

For Brooks, a former college basketball player and Louisiana College Hall of Fame women's basketball coach, severe pain in both knees forced him out of the coaching profession. "I would have to sit down after about 45 minutes of practice," he says. "The pain became so intense that I could no longer be on the court to teach basketball."  Brooks decided to double-team the problem and had both knees replaced at the same time in a simultaneous surgery -- one by Dr Rich and the other by Dr Dodson. "It was the best decision I've ever made about my health" he says. "The outcome was even better than I had hoped for, and to be pain-free is a blessing."  Brooks, who now coaches the LC golf team, was playing golf eight weeks after the surgery.

If you suffer from painful osteoarthritis of the knee, call 473-9556 for an appointment.  Talking to an orthopaedic surgeon from Mid State could be the first step towards getting your life back.  Or for more information, please visit www.kneereplacement.com.

As with any treatment, individual results may vary.  Knee replacement is not for everyone.  There are potential risks and recovery takes time.  Success depends on factors like age, weight, and activity level.