Mick finally had a total knee replacement in his mid-70s and wishes he had done this a lot earlier.
Mick played rugby from the age of 11 but after numerous injuries, and much pain he decided to give up at the age of 22 concerned he would be using a walking stick by the time he reached 40.
He seemed to recover well and started to play squash and became hooked on skiing. Finally, 25 years later, age 63, Mick gave in gracefully and stopped skiing. He said, “I could not do the turns and jumps, and it was unsafe and a danger to others on the slopes.”
Mick’s knees deteriorated over the next 11 years and going downstairs became an ordeal. Mick travelled to Singapore often; walking from one terminal to another he needed to use a luggage trolley as a walking frame which took the weight off his painful knees.
Then in 2019, he woke up one morning unable to put any weight on his right knee. He went to see a chiropractor but immediately knew he needed to see a consultant.
Mick searched BMI Bishops Wood Hospital’s website and found Mr Vikas Vedi was a consultant at the hospital who had come highly recommended by a friend, who had recently had hip replacement surgery with Mr Vedi.
Initially, Mr Vedi gave Mick a cortisone injection to relieve the pain and enable Mick to go to his trip to Singapore, before coming back to have his knee replacement surgery.
Mick said, “I had complete confidence in Mr Vedi and he explained, in detail, everything that the procedure entailed - all very frightening but necessary.”
After the surgery, Mick took painkillers to ease the pain and to help with the necessary physiotherapy. During Mick’s stay at hospital, Mr Vedi checked him every day to make sure he was recovering well.
Ten weeks after surgery, Mick was walking with no problems and able to drive again.
Mick concluded, “The whole experience was initially quite frightening, but the result is amazing. I should have had a new knee years ago; in fact, I am now able to run for a bus and Singapore Airport is a doddle. It has been a pleasure to have been treated by Mr Vikas Vedi and the team at BMI Bishops Wood Hospital. I would recommend you seek Mr Vedi’s advice for your ageing joints and keep up with the physio for a speedy recovery."