4. Choosing a Surgeon

I saw 3 different orthopedic surgeons.  The first was Joseph Schwabb in Milwaukee, referred by my doctor.  My first impression was he was a real nice guy, and didn't seem like he was in a hurry.  He said he did the "mini-open" version of the FAI surgery, but not full arthroscopic.  With the way science has progressed, I wanted to have it done arthroscopically.  And this would help keep the scars to a minimum and would be less invasive.  So this doctor wasn't really an option for my needs. 

Doing some research online and reading other blogs, my next stop was Dr. Charles Bush-Joseph in Chicago, a partner of Dr. Shane Nho.  He was listed as one of the Chicago Bulls' doctors, and had a very extensive history.  My first impression was that he was too busy to meet with his patients.  He had 4 or 5 other people with him (his assistant, an intern, a high school kid and a college kid which they were doing for experience or school credits or whatever) which was fine I guess.  I just felt rushed.  All my questions were answered with quick answers and i felt that he was getting frustrated with every new question I had.  I'm a thinker, so I have lots of questions.  After I left, I had some more questions so I emailed his assistant, which he answered, but finished it up with "if you have more questions, please schedule an appointment."  This didn't sit well with me.... on to the next.  (I'm in no way saying he is not a good or great surgeon, I just didn't have the best experience)

My third doctor was Dr. Patrick Birmingham, also out of Chicago.  He was listed as one of the Chicago Bears' doctors and also appeared to have extensive experience.  My first impression.... awesome guy!  I had to have asked at least 30 questions, and NOT ONCE did I feel like I was ruining his day.  All his answers were thorough and he was just a great all around guy. Not sure if he was the only one that noticed it, but he was the only one that mentioned I had pincer impingement as well (on the pelvis), the others just mentioned the CAM impingement.  And, he was the only one that mentioned he would be popping my leg out of the hip in order to get anything on the inside.  Admittedly, this scared the hell out of me; I mean, I can hang upside down by my feet, so thinking about the pressure it takes to pull it out of the socket worried me a little...  Not sure if the others were going to do the things they didn't mention, but this is why it helps to shop around, they may not even have noticed.

After I left, as one would expect, I had even more questions.  I emailed the assistant, over and over and over, and I always got an immediate response usually within the day.  Based on my overall experience, it was time to schedule my surgery. 

Dr. Patrick Birmingham

NOTE:  From the research I've done online, it is always recommended that you ask your doctor how many FAI surgeries they do each year.  I didn't ask the first two, but Dr. Birmingham said he did about 3 to 5 week (if i remember correctly) so that comes out to hundreds a year.  He said this is the most common surgery he does.