Matt Adamski, 33, of Plainfield, admits that golf is his main passion; a sport he started playing at age two. But playing on the floor with his three-year-old son and one day coaching him in baseball or another sport of his choice is what really motivated Adamski to address his hip pain.
“I could have lived with it, but I didn’t want to anymore,” Adamski explains.
As a nurse case manager, he understood that an unresolved injury sustained in his previous ‘hockey life’ was the cause of his pain. He also knew that an untreated sports injury at a young age could make him more likely to undergo a joint replacement later in life.
Hockey + boards = injury
Like many Chicago area boys, when the Chicago Blackhawks were winning Stanley Cup championships, Adamski took up ice hockey. He enjoyed playing hockey while continuing to perfect his golf game. As a high school senior, he turned down a golf scholarship because he wanted golf to continue to be fun, not feel like a job. So, as a student at Northern Illinois University, he took up inline hockey and joined the school’s club team.
He took inline hockey seriously, playing a minimum of ten times per week and traveling with the team all over the Midwest on weekends. After college graduation, he played three years of semi-pro inline hockey as part of the Midwest Inline Hockey Association (MIHA).
It was during a MIHA game that he hit the boards hard. “I basically did the splits after a big hit and felt pain in my groin right away,” he says. “I got up, ignored it, and played three more games that weekend. I continued playing through the discomfort for three more years.”
The pain came and went over the years, and he began to notice a reduced range of motion and less rotation in his golf swing. He also felt a ‘catching’ sensation in his hip. Playing with his son became difficult. “I knew that I had to finally get it checked out,” he says.
Time to get it treated
Adamski leveraged his healthcare network and went to see Jorge Chahla, MD, PhD, a sports medicine surgeon at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, in the Naperville office, at the suggestion of a colleague. He liked the fact that Dr. Chahla specializes in the treatment of complex injuries and has experience playing a professional sport.
“I respected Dr. Chahla’s explanation of my labral tear and hip impingement — and his use of a surgical technique which includes fine 3D measurements,” Adamski explains. “I always like using data to help me make informed decisions. Dr. Chahla’s reputation as a surgeon and a hip specialist preceded him and it was an amazing bonus that his bedside manner was second to none.”
The surgery that Dr. Chahla performed on Adamski at the RUSH Oak Brook Surgery Center addressed both the labral tear as well as the femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) that ultimately led to the labral tear. During surgery, Dr. Chahla used non-metal anchors to secure the labrum back to Adamski's bone. A femoroplasty was performed using artificial intelligence to remove the bony abnormality (CAM lesion) on Adamski's femur and reshape the femoral head-neck junction to a normal, round sphere. The femoroplasty served to inhibit any future impingement. Finally, Dr. Chahla utilized a capsular plication procedure which is essential in all hip scopes to avoid post-operative hip instability. In Adamski's case, protecting against hip instability was critical because a golfer’s swing leads to excessive loading and rotation of the hip which can cause episodes of instability if the capsule is not appropriately tightened by plication.
The good life again after surgery
Adamski returned home the same day as surgery with pain medication that he never needed to use. He then completed a round of physical therapy for three months after which Dr. Chahla declared him ‘good to go.’ Trusting his doctor, Adamski went out to swing his club and soon after, played a full round.
“I have actually picked up speed with my driver,” Adamski explains. “I know it was a complicated surgery, but the whole process was much better than I anticipated.”
Today, six months post-surgery, he enjoys pain-free golf and playing all types of sports with his son.
Visit www.jorgechahlamd.com to learn more about FAI and labral tears.
To schedule an appointment with Dr. Jorge Chahla to discuss your hip, knee, or shoulder pain or injury, please call 877.MD.BONES or visit www.rushortho.com.
