Professor Damian Griffin OBE TD VR BM BCh MA MPhil FRCS(Tr&Orth)

Written by a private patient at University Hospital Coventry

I have had bi-lateral arthroscopies for labral tears and a femoral osteotomy. I am a 41 year old female and in Feb 2020 began to get night pain in my right hip. After a few months it was at the point where I couldn't sleep and it began to effect my walking. The pandemic had just hit and so we turned to private care. As I am not a sports professional, I had not heard of Prof Griffin before and was just incredibly lucky for my insurance to suggest him. I am so pleased they did! After speaking to various doctors who had dismissed my hip pain, when I spoke to Prof Griffin and he said: 'it sounds like you have a labral tear' I was overjoyed that someone 'got it'! By this point I had been having a small pain in my left hip as well, but not as severe or debilitating as the right. After I met with the physio, James, for an online base assessment, my left hip actually tore during the call. It was a blessing in disguise as now they knew to MRI both of my hips. This lead to me having a MUA (manipulation under anesthetic) with Prof Griffin so he could check how my hip pain changed with lidocaine in them. This was a simple half day out patient procedure where the physios test your mobility before the injections and then after as well to see if you would be a candidate for the arthroscopy procedure. My hips did well with the injections and I was booked for surgery on both hips, a week apart. With my first arthroscopy, I did have a complication where my muscles seized up and it was extremely painful. Once the nurses were able to control the pain with pain meds, it was okay. Because of this, when I was in a week later for the second hip I was able to speak to the anesthetist and he agreed to monitor me closely and gave me a list of different meds they could administer quickly if I needed them. This really helped my confidence going in. After the second procedure, Prof Griffin and Dr Wyse came in to check I didn't have the same pain as the week before. Thankfully I didn't but I was grateful and impressed with their level of care. After the arthroscopies, you are put on a machine that helps you move your leg and an ice machine. The ice machine is amazing. It really helps with the swelling and pain. You are encouraged to get up and about as soon as possible after your surgery. It feels counterintuitive but honestly it is the best thing as getting everything moving is better for your body and it helps you feel like 'you' again quicker! Once home, I rented an ice machine and that helped with my recovery. I met with the physio weekly initially and my main advice would be: be HONEST with yourself and with your physio and DO THE EXERCISES! Rehab is HARD WORK - but surgery is only part of the story, you have to do the other part by being active with your recovery and making the effort to get stronger again. It is totally worth it. But my journey wasn't over. Even after both arthroscopies and losing weight and doing everything my physio told me to do, after 8 months I still couldn't walk for more than 5 minutes without pain in my right hip. So I was referred back to Prof Griffin. We did another MUA and discovered that my internal rotation of my hips was all off. A 'normal' person would have an internal rotation of 45 degrees and an external rotation of 25. Mine was 70 degrees internal rotation and 0 external rotation! So my femoral head wasn't sitting nicely in the socket and that's what was causing the tears. Prof Griffin explained to me he needed to do a Femoral Osteotomy: essentially cut my femur in half and twist it to create a more even rotation. Prof Griffin explained it all very clearly and of course told me I didn't need to do this at all. However, I had essentially already lost so much mobility in the last year, I really wanted to get my life back and I knew this bigger surgery was what I needed. So, even with my femur being cut from the inside and turned and a rod and screws being placed inside the bone to keep it all secure, the precision and delicate nature that Prof Griffin has with this surgery meant that the only scars I have are a few 1-2 cm scars along my right thigh and a 5cm scar on my bum. A year on and they are hardly noticeable. Since this was a bigger surgery, I spoke to the anesthetist about my worry concerning the leg spasms after the surgery again. He agreed to do a nerve block and it was such a relief to know I didn't have to worry about that. I stayed in the hospital for 6 nights. There was no rush to get home. Prof came to see me most days and spent one evening helping me walk. He encouraged me to weight bear as much as possible as my femur fracture needed the weight bearing to help it fuse. He also reminded me that he would rather me stay in the hospital until I was fully confident about going home and using stairs etc. So that took the pressure off to do things too quickly. The main takeaway from these three surgeries that I have had is: everything takes time, you are on your own journey, don't compare yourself with anyone else! My muscles did NOT like being moved during the FO surgery and for me that meant a lot of pain and spasms for months. This put a halt to my physio rehab in some respects as there were movements I just could not do. Eventually, everything settled down and I finally turned a corner 6 months after my operation. See, everything takes time. Now I am back at the gym doing weighted squats I never would have dreamed of and having fun finding new skills and trying new sports I never thought I would be able to do. I am back with walking with my family and my dog and loving life. It has taken me longer than expected and Prof and I joke that I'm his 'weird' patient but that's what is so personable about him. He still cared for me as a whole person and has rooted for me throughout the last two years to get back on my feet - even when I'm not a professional sports person. He treats you, for you. I am incredibly lucky to have been referred to him. I really hope my left hip doesn't need treating - but if it does, he's the man I'm going straight back to.

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Written by a private patient at Schoen Clinic London

I am a 58 year old Physiotherapist and have been playing tennis for 50 of those years at a reasonable amateur level. I also like to run (slowly), play golf and walk in the hills with my husband. I started with a gradual onset of right groin pain in 2019 which was bearable initially and didn't really stop me from doing anything I love. As time went on I became more restricted with more pain and despite having some excellent physiotherapy which helped temporarily, I felt that I needed to investigate it more thoroughly. I knew that Prof Griffin was well known for his work with younger (maybe not me) and active (definitely me) hip problems , so I arranged a consultation in June 2020, having already had x ray and MRI. I felt very in charge of my own destiny and discussed all options open to me which ranged from do nothing to full joint replacement. At that time, I had stopped playing tennis but was still able to go walking and play golf. I had started to have some pain at night. I agreed with Prof Griffin to first of all try a steroid and hyaluronic acid injection into the hip joint as I didn't want to rush into joint replacement. The procedure was a quick day case procedure and relatively painless. I had 6-8 weeks of moderate pain relief and did actually return to playing tennis. I knew it may not last and 3-4 months later I was waking every night with pain, my hip joint range was very reduced and I was really only able to play golf. A further consultation with Prof Griffin , and we agreed that the way forward was joint replacement. I didn't feel pressurised into opting for this and was glad that I had tried the injection first. My procedure was done at the Schoen Clinic in London which I cannot fault for the staff, care, everything really. I stayed for 3 nights during which time Prof Griffin spoke to me each day. I had a follow up appt 2 weeks later and have just had my 3 month review. I have also seen the physio who works with Prof Griffin who has provided me with a programme designed to get me back to my sports. The result....I have a hip joint which moves fully and is pretty much pain free. I started playing golf at 10 weeks post op, I can walk 7-8 miles including hills and I am just about to start some gentle hitting on the tennis court. I also do not wake with the pain. I returned to work at 12 weeks post op. I will have a check x ray 1 year after my procedure, it's good to know that long term follow up is there. I have been very happy with my care from Prof Griffin and feel that I have been treated by an expert in their field. One piece of advice, make sure you do the exercises...well as a physio, I would say that! I fully expect continue with mine for up to a year, if not beyond to keep everything strong.

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Written by a private patient at University Hospital Coventry

I first visited Prof Griffin in 2018 aged 48. I had been suffering with pain on a daily basis in both hips. As an active person who liked to keep fit and had an active job, I found all activities beginning to become more and more difficult, leaving my only exercise option as a stationary cycle. I tried to include hip mobility and stretching routines but found myself doing less and less and deteriorating more. After discussions with Prof Griffin, X-rays and a thorough explanation of the condition of my hips and what a THR would entail we agreed to proceed with my left hip first. The whole process from start to finish was outstanding. Prof Griffin’s surgical technique and rehabilitation programme saw me up in the gym on a cycle the very next day. After surgery you wake up with a Game Ready ice machine and a CPM machine meaning you have active rehab immediately. The scar is very neat compared to other hip operations that I have seen. I returned to work within 12 weeks and planned to have my right hip replaced at the next chance I had, however due to work commitments and the pandemic this wasn’t until 2021. Due to the wait the deterioration of the right hip was preventing me from doing even simple tasks like walking the dog. The left hip was incredible but without the right hip done, a lot was being asked of the new left hip. Now, 6 months following the second hip replacement I can only put it into words as life changing. I am back out cycling, doing all the activities I had had to stop doing. Prof Griffin has given me my life back and it is incredible that I don’t even think about the fact I have two THR’s as they feel like my own. If you’re suffering the way I was and you’re looking for a hip surgeon that you can go to with full confidence I would highly recommend Prof Griffin.

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at The Harley Street Specialist Hospital

As a professional female footballer my hips are integral to my job and more importantly my passion/life having played for the last 17 years. I cannot thanks Professor Damian Griffin (and his team e.g. Physio James) enough for all their support, time, and expertise over the last 4 months. They have listened & understood my individual circumstances and tried to help me play the remainder of the season through a steroid injection & acid in the joint. Whilst this helped for a couple of months their thorough assessment explained I would eventually need surgery. Leading up to the operation, I was quite nervous & apprehensive as I'd never suffered a significant injury or needed surgery during my career. In particular, the feeling of it being out of my control and thoughts of would I be able to return to perform at the same level again. Damian and his team were extremely professional, relaxed, and sincere, thoroughly explaining the procedure to me, my parents & my football club to help us prepare pre, during & post-surgery. I am now 2 weeks post-surgery and recovery is going really well with clear better movement in the hip already. The experience was nowhere near as bad as I imagined, the medication helped deal with any initial pain but taking into account the Marleybone hotel overnight stay & breakfast it's hard not to describe the whole experience as enjoyable. To the point, I am confident & comfortable to have booked in for another surgery with Damiain in 2 days time on my other hip. This time I will approach the day with a lot less nerves knowing I am in the very safe hands of Damian. THANK YOU!

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Written by a private patient at University Hospital Coventry

I first noticed a dull ache in my left hip around 5 years ago. After a number of physio visits and no real improvement I went for a X-ray at the local hospital. The orthopedic surgeon reviewed my x-rays and said I had Osteoarthritis and he could “chop my hip off and put a new one on” Being in my early forties it was a big shock. Relaying the diagnosis to my physio he suggested I go see the Prof. On my First visit to see the professor I had a scan and MRI which confirmed my hip was deteriorated to point it had no cartilage and I had only two options , THR or Hip Resurfacing. Damian talked me through the pros and cons of each and said when your ready come back as at the time I could manage the pain and do most of the things I wanted to do. Over the years the pain increased and I think what finally gave me the push to get my hip fixed was watching the Andy Murray documentary Resurfacing and I thought why am I putting up with this lets get it sorted. So I got booked in for my Hip resurfacing operation October 2020. I decided on Hip re-surfacing as I think it’s a good option for “Younger” men allowing a return to a physical life style and reading a number of articles around sports men who returned to high levels of activity post re-surfacing. I was also keen on bone preservation and if I needed a THR as I got older due to wear of the resurface implant I still had the option. Damian spoke with me pre-op and put me at ease in his usual calm manner. The operation was a total success and I spent the next five nights in hospital wearing ice shorts to reduce the swelling. The first couple of days are tough getting out of bed was physically challenging and getting the hip moving in Physio was not easy but I knew it was just short term discomfort. On discharge I had to spend the next 6 weeks on crutches until the bone had healed sufficiency to allow full weight bearing. During the first 6 weeks I was doing low level physio which stepped up after I got the ok for full weigh bearing. From my experience doing the physio is as important as the surgery indeed Damian talks about team work between himself and physio James. The Physio got the strength back in my leg and I did it everyday and still do , make time for physio , do the Physio , do the Physio you will benefit massively from it. Not long after getting the ok for full weight bearing on no restrictions I was back out on my mountain bike it felt great to be pedaling with no pain and two working legs. My general life is much improved ,sleeping , exercising and walking the dog all pain free. From my very first meeting with Damian he answered all my questions and filled me will complete confidence he could carry out the operation with the successful outcome I wanted , he delivered that and my leg continues to get stronger.

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