High Energy
A bilateral hip replacement got John McKenna up and running
John McKenna has always led an action-packed lifestyle. He played soccer in college, served his country for four years with the United States Marine Corps, and after leaving the military, went on to serve the Williamsport community as a police officer. Today he’s on to a new career in construction. Through every position, he was also competing in 5k races, lifting weights, jumping out of planes, and mountain biking—to name but a few of this Montoursville resident’s many activities.
By 2016, decades of high-octane action left McKenna with severe hip pain, which led him to Brian Batman, MD, SUN Orthopaedics of Evangelical. “When I met Dr. Batman, I could barely even walk up steps. My entire lifestyle went from being engaged to staying away from everything,” says McKenna.
Dr. Batman quickly concluded that both his patient’s hips had sustained serious damage. “Both of John’s hip joints had osteoarthritis,or wear-and-tear arthritis, which damages the cartilage that covers the ends of bones and helps joints move smoothly,” Dr. Batman explains. “We normally do one hip replacement at a time, but because John is young and healthy, I performed a bilateral hip replacement, or both at once. It was a good decision for John because he wanted to get back to his active lifestyle as soon as possible.”
Total hip replacement involves a surgical procedure where the ball and socket of the hip joint are removed and replaced with artificial materials. A metal ball with a stem, called a prosthesis, is inserted into the thighbone and an artificial socket is placed in the cup-shaped part of the pelvis.
As for recovery, McKenna describes it as “unbelievable.” Two days post-discharge, he was off pain medication and had replaced his walker with a cane. He also started physical therapy almost immediately, going four times a week for about a month. “After about two weeks, I even started jogging a little bit,” McKenna recalls. “I can’t say enough about Dr. Batman, his entire staff, and everyone at Evangelical Community Hospital.”