TIP OFF
At (REPS) we serve the whole patient, client or athlete to reach their goals.
We strive to educate active individuals and athletes with our expert tips and advice for your physical therapy, sports performance, wellness and recovery needs.
You will receive expert tips from our Owner and Board Certified Sports Physical Therapy Dr. Lesley Kargbo “Tugg”, our Clinic Director Felicia and other experts on our roster.
To Cut or Not To Cut
In my time as a physical therapist I am now trying to put down a set of principles that I have both developed and been trained on to make clinical decisions. I am confident that this will help more people than just those that I work with at my facility or via virtual appointments. I get asked all the time when it’s time to have surgery. Here are some of my strategies for deciding whether you need to have surgery or not. *Orthopedic reasons only*
Surgery is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pathological condition such as a disease or injury, to help improve bodily function or appearance or to repair unwanted ruptured areas.
- Is it painful? If it is, is it an extreme pain?
- Are you able to sleep well? If you are starting to lose sleep for multiple nights in a row, that is truly irregular!
- Are starting to miss work? Missing work is a huge indication that it’s time to start getting more decisive. For guys making a living is tied into our self-worth. Not making money can be greatly negatively affected.
- Are you getting short and ornery? Pain will affect your attitude towards people and patience. Don’t be a grouch!
- Are you missing out? Our social circle is typically tied into specific activities. Some of these may be physical like a bowling league, or running club. If you took running away from me, I would immediately need some psychiatric help. Running is my happy place.
To recap, pain, loss of sleep, loss of function like stiffness or limping when you walk, decrease in social life, lack of participating activities/sports that you enjoy and the potential loss of income when you miss work can all be contributing factors in making that important decision.
If you have questions that are specific to your situation about surgery and need to hear more about different surgery types give us a call. (REPS) has connections in Fort Bend, Brazoria, and Harris Counties with physicians that can help you with your problem. We can help you reach out and communicate your needs more directly so they can provide you with solutions. Healthcare providers are some of the best people in the world. We love to explain, we love to help, and we love to see success stories.
I am Dr. Lesley Kargbo, and my team are always here to listen and help. God Bless!
Cited Resources:
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surgery
