Reviews

Reviews from Swedish patients with a hip operation, of which 95% were performed with hip resurfacing prostheses.

A. S.:
Hi, had 6 years ago left hip surgery in Ghent by de Smet! Play floorball and ski without problems. Have “forgotten” that I had hip surgery. Strong recommendation for you if you want to get back into your “regular life” again.

H. W.:
Less than 11 months after my hip surgery. Today the CykelRallarn mountain bike race, 65 km and a lot of altitude meters. So happy and grateful!

L-E. A.:
Hello, today it is three years since I had bilateral surgery in Ghent. We were a lovely group of about 15 people that were operated this week. It was through Ron, who lived in Trollhättan at the time, who organized the surgery with Dr. Smet. I, in turn, had received a tip through a mutual acquaintance and immediately took the chance after 10 days of waiting. I had had problems for almost 30 years on and off. In the statistics that Dr. Smet kept, I was at the time the oldest person to have a bilateral operation at the age of 71. Everything has gone beyond expectation and I, as a former farmer, am still active sometimes with the chainsaw for a few hours every now and then. I get tired faster for other reasons than the hips, they work to their full potential. I feel very grateful to have been given this chance with Hip Resurfacing and the guarantee that Dr. Smet promised that they will at least last 20 years.

A. U.:
Had surgery in 2010 and am now on my way home after a fantastic skiing and snowboarding week in the little country of Andorra. The hip easily withstands the steep slopes 9-16 every day. The only ache I had was a neck that protested a little but it was already a little obnoxious even before the trip. You will never regret choosing the EU’s best orthopedic surgeon. At home in Sweden there will be too many restrictions and who wants that….

K. R.:
Hi! I had surgery in Nov-2017 (bilateral hip resurfacing) the best decision I have made. Been riding enduro for half my life and can still do it thanks to the hip resurfacing.

M. O.:
Bronze in the Finnish Veterans Tennis Championships, 10 months after my hip surgery. Hip resurfacing, Metal on Metal, the prosthesis Adept, performed by the team Koen De Smet in Ghent. Of course not completely happy with third place, but completely happy with my new hip!

S. S.:
Hi! We are a few karatekas who have had surgery in Ghent by Dr. Koen De Smet and as far as I understand, we all train in the same way as before, which we would not have been able to do if we had operated ourselves in Sweden, at least not without restrictions. Personally, I train at black belt level 3 dan with no restrictions whatsoever. As I see it, your only possibility to continue your profession is an operation in Belgium. Check out Bella Backe on Instagram.

J. R.:
Almost four years ago, I was operated bilaterally with YE in Ghent. Eight months later I was able to start practicing karate, iaido and kobudo again. Yesterday at our style’s winter camp I graduated to 2 Dan in karate after two days of hard training. The hips, that previously plagued me were the least of my problems after almost two years of a pandemic and limited opportunity to exercise.

L. O. Ö.:
I got ceramics, first in one hip September 2020 and then the other hip April 2021. Now I work out at the gym, go for walks and can work full time (construction manager and geologist). Have no limitations due to the hips. Am very satisfied with the whole concept with Dr. de Smet, the help of Ron and the stays in Ghent. Nice to know that it is the best who operates on me. Good luck!

O. B.:
I had surgery 5 months ago. Started playing padel in December. Was down in the Alps skiing in January and expect to be back on the ice playing hockey after the sports break. I was skeptical about the operation after the hallelujah atmosphere on this site when I read all the positive stories and the strong opposition from the Swedish medical profession. After my experience with the surgery in Belgium I can only agree with everyone else on this forum that just go down and do the surgery. Don’t wait another day. The so-called Swedish hip specialists are a big joke. If you have higher ambitions than going for long walks, you should absolutely not let a Swedish bungler saw off your femur or even come near your hip joint.

G. T.:
Most important for me was to get a professional orthopedic surgeon and that the method removes as little of your hip as possible. Also, there would be no restrictions after the surgery. The negative is that you have to pay everything yourself. Was a bit worried about metal ions etc but Dr Koen reassured me. He was the biggest reason why I chose Belgium, he is very caring. Now I play golf again and can ride the motorbike again! No more hip pain, just over a year since the operation.

T. H.:
A riding accident likely triggered my osteoarthritis, struggled for 4 years with pain/lameness.
Continued riding but due to the hip pain I sat like an S in the saddle and became crooked everywhere, back, hips..
Got a recommendation from a relative to contact Ron. Op in Ghent four years ago. Best and best decision!! Everything felt safe from the first contact with Ron to the stay in Ghent and support from them after the op. Today completely pain free! If possible, don’t wait is my advice, you risk, among other things, a significantly longer rehab if you continue for a long time and struggle.

M. W. G.:
I was operated on by Dr. De Smet a few years ago and got back a normal life again. Best thing I did. Wondered why I waited so long.

J. H.:
Have changed both at Dr. De Smet. 2018 and the other 8 weeks ago. I’m super happy and can’t wait to get back to training and other activities. It hurts after the operation, but it goes away.

L. E.:
I had surgery 2.5 months ago and am super happy with my ceramic hip joint. I have had a very smooth rehab, already after 4 weeks I felt like normal again. Now I dance Zumba again without any feelings in my hip. Even the surgery week in Belgium was an unexpectedly pleasant experience.

M. M.:
Tomorrow it will have been 4 weeks for me. Positively surprised, it has been said that crutches should be used for at least 5-6 weeks, but I can already walk without them pretty much unhindered.
(However, the wife is on me like a hawk)
All pain is gone, also faster than expected. I compare a little with the friend who had surgery in Sweden, so-called total hip replacement, and think that my rehab seems to be progressing faster than his did.

L. S.:
Only have good things to say.
I had surgery 6.5 months ago and have been given a new lease of life.

R. K.:
Everything I read in the beginning in here sounded too good to be true! I’m the type who doesn’t get fooled easily and the alarm went off when I read all the good stuff in here! But the fact is, everything is right, so don’t hesitate too long, just do it. Almost 3 years since the left hip received compensation.

G. L.:
Exactly one year ago at 6pm I was waiting to be wheeled into the operating room at the Anca clinic in Ghent. Now a year later with the Adept MoM in my right hip I have achieved everything I could dream of.
1) Painless
2) Sleep at night
3) Walk without limping
4) Can pedal with both legs on my mtb
5) Run
6) Can do orienteering
7) Tough mountain hike in Sarek
8) Innebandy with my old gang
I can only recommend Koen de Smet and his team and hope the rest of you have it or soon will be just as well.
Only one more thing: Be very careful with rehab, don’t throw away the crutches too soon and don’t start heavy exercises too soon

E. N.:
I want to share with you my situation before I had surgery a little more than a year ago. I had had excruciating hip pain for over 2 years and didn’t sleep a full night. Got 2 cortisone injections in the joint but that didn’t help, limping and misalignment, then I got 2 herniated discs and a vertebral compression. I was tossed around between hip surgeons, who thought it was too early to operate on the hip, and a back surgeon who didn’t really know what to do. It got to me mentally. Learned about and contacted Nordenshippies and Ron. Sent x-rays and described my situation. Got the redemptive answer from Dr. De Smet that the back will get better after hip surgery. I’m so glad he was right. Am almost completely fine in the back, a little stiffer than before but working on it. Hope you send in pictures and get a positive response from Dr. De Smet.

O. GF.:
I am 64 years old and had surgery in September 2021. This summer I stood on a ladder and repainted our house during the day and played with our puppy on the floor in the evenings, something that was completely impossible before. But I want to remind you that it will take rehab and your commitment to get really good.

G. A.:
I was in a lot of pain, but read about Stefan Sauk and realized that surgery in Belgium was the only way I could think of. Had surgery at the end of March 2022. Woke up after surgery with no pain from once bad hip. A little pain from the wound, but it wasn’t even worth calling pain. Got my life back.

M. N.:
I am overmobile and dance. Five years ago and quite suddenly I got very painful with discomfort. Had ceramic YE surgery 3 years ago and all the discomfort is gone and I’m doing everything I want to do again! Don’t wait too long with the operation is my advice!

O. B.:
Go to Belgium and have surgery. I can only speak for myself. But in retrospect I regret not having gone right away instead of waiting years for the surgery. Years that consisted of pain and depression. I had surgery 14 months ago and am 99% fully recovered, feel no pain and have full mobility. Play ice hockey, padel, golf, downhill skiing regularly without restriction. The percentage missing is that I can feel my hip when I run longer than 5km. But even that has been getting better every month so I think that too will be good within the next few months. Good luck!

T. T.:
I recommend Ghent. I had my hip surgery in 2018 and am born again. I have been playing tennis all my life and can continue to do so if I want to now. If you have surgery in Sweden, the doctor usually says to take it easy. Swedish hip surgery does not keep up with developments.
You shouldn’t wait too long.

S. G.:
I had surgery two years ago, 36 years old at the time. The best thing I’ve done! From constant pain to pain-free. I’m not thinking about the hip today. Had osteoarthritis and osteophytes.
It’s a big deal to go away and have surgery. At least it was for me. Delight mixed with horror it can be described as. Went alone and am very proud of myself for doing it. Then that it turned out as well as everyone wrote about is absolutely fantastic.

J. B.:
Agree with the written comments. You don’t get bonus points for hanging on and believing things will turn around. When I had surgery, all my efforts had resulted in a much worse situation, which means a longer rehab and even worse condition.