Over the weekend, I spent some time catching up on my correspondance and emails. I also patrolled one of the health forums, where I am a member of the Advisory Board.  I like to keep up with the various threads and see what people are saying and see if there’s anything meaningful that I can contribute. And once in a while, a topic comes up that interests me. 

The forum was talking about the pros and cons of the current state of Medicine in the United States of America. The topic was initiated by the announcement by the Japanese government that they would be mandating that their citizens could not exceed a specified waist measurement.  Some members wondered if that was the right approach–after all, it would be for a benign purpose–”it’s for your own good.” Needless to say, this idea stimulated a pretty good debate.

The members of this forum are, by and large, dedicated to health maintenance, physical training and exercise, eating healthful meals and avoidance of harmful habits.  In short, they are responsible people who are good stewards of the body God gave them. They are also more than a bit suspicious of physicians, drugs and surgeries (they make special allowances for me, because they know I’m all for natural methods, when they are reasonable and because I’ve helped quite a few with good medical advice). The consensus was that they were 
more than a little fed up with having to pay (through their taxes) for the health “sins” of other people, who did nothing to improve their health, and often quite the contrary. BUT, and this is a big BUT, they were emphatically NOT in favor of any government TELLING THEM (or anyone else) WHAT TO DO.

In so doing, they renewed my faith in the American  Spirit. Now this directive might fly in Japan, where people are conditioned to conform and respect authority, as part of their culture. But I’ve always believed that if you scratch a real American, you’ll find an anarchist underneath.  And, as Martha Stewart would say “that’s a good thing.” As a people, Americans, at least many of us, tend to be skeptical of authority and don’t take kindly to anyone, ESPECIALLY THE GOVERNMENT, telling us what to do. 

Now, I don’t mean breaking reasonable, sensible laws; I mean directives that interfere in our habits and daily lives, where the government has no business horning in. I mean, these clowns, by and large, can’t even run the Post Office correctly–AND THEY’RE GONNA TELL US WHAT’S FOR OUR OWN GOOD? PLEASE!

The forum went on to observe that the USA has the best emergency care and the best access to sophisticated surgery and high tech diagnostic methods in the world,  when that’s not screwed up by insurance companies and HMO’s, but it doesn’t do near enough to promote preventive measures. As a close-up observor of the current Health Care Delivery System, for many years now, I’m forced to agree. 

But, hey, I’ve done my part. If you have knee pain or a painful knee injury, and want to PREVENT UNNECESSARY SURGERY, my new program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY    http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html    is just what the doctor ordered. And, in addition to the illustrated manual, there’s the full length audio CD version available, as well. 

And, when you order right now, you also get my FREE  Special Report, HOW TO ELIMINATE HIP PAIN, as well as
the FREE BONUS CD: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION. 

With EASY and effective methods from across the entire treatment spectrum, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY shatters the “white wall of secrecy” to reveal what only surgeons know about relieving pain FAST and doing it without knee surgery. If you have knee pain, or know someone who does, don’t suffer another minute. Click this link, NOW:
 http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill 

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Besides the fact that I am a hip & knee specialist, albeit retired from active practice, the reason that I decided to focus on knee productsfor the start of my “second career” on this web site is that knee pain seems to be a very common, nearly universal problem, especially in people of my age group, The Boomers.  It happens almost every day–someone will mention that they have a painful knee, or they have arthritis, or they have a knee that “gives out,” or some other problem. It doesn’t get the “press” that back pain does, but everybody seems to have it, in one form or another.
 
Hell, I’ve had it myself–as many of you know. There’s nothing quite like having the same problem as your patients to give you a whole new appreciation of what they’re going through. They call that empathy. When I had my arthroscopic surgery on April 15, 2000 (Tax Day–might as well get all the agony over with at one time), believe me, I had a brand new understanding of what all my patients over the years had been experiencing. 

The need for the surgery, as you might expect, was well documented by physical exam, and a positive MRI, that demonstrated a torn medial meniscus. It had been interfering with my walking and exercising and I had just had enough. I called two of my best buds in the Department; one was busy and didn’t return my call, but the other saw me right away. Hey, rank has its privileges, right? Well, he agreed that I needed the ’scope. So we booked it for the local Surgi-Center, which specializes in outpatient surgeries.
 
So on the big day, they rolled me into the OR, smiles all around. They started an IV and slipped me a little IV Versed (a short acting relaxant that has the side effect of short term amnesia). Very relaxing, almost pleasurable. I remember just a tiny stab of sharp pain in my left knee, where I needed a little more local anesthetic, otherwise, nothing. Woke up gradually in recovery, feeling fine. If you ever need to have surgery, this is called “conscious sedation” and it’s definitely the way to go.
 
As soon as I woke up sufficiently, they let me go and I went home. Set myself up in bed with my leg well elevated, with a big bag of crushed ice on it, to reduce swelling. At first, I was quite comfortable…then, the local anesthetic, injected into the knee at surgery, wore off. Oh boy! That was sore and even worse when I had to put it down to limp to the bathroom on crutches. So THAT’S what they were all complaining about. I suspected that MY surgeon had given me less anesthetic than I gave my patients. Took at least 2-3 days, before I could put some pressure on it.
 
Turns out I had a whole lot more pathology in that knee than I initially thought. That’s the thing about MRI’s and other interpretive examinations: the real thing is always worse than the scan indicates. In my case, a small area of bare bone under the residual meniscal rim, in other words, some arthritis. Now, with time, and me doing my own therapy, with the same exercises I teach at http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html   I gradually improved, more and more.
 
But after my left knee recovered, the right started acting up. I thought about going through the same process that I had just finished on my left knee, and decided that the odds were good that I had a “mirror image” lesion (in other words, the very same pathology) in my right knee. THIS time, I opted to AVOID SURGERY and treated myself with all the various options I knew about from across the entire treatment spectrum: the best of conventional therapy, alternative measures, dietary changes, nutriceuticals, the works.

And it’s worked–so far, I haven’t had to have surgery on my right knee. And these same measures are those that I used for the over 90% of my patients, who I was able to treat without surgery. Now, I’ve put all these strategies and a number of healing programs into my newest product: HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY. Go see it at    http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
Get rid of your pain, restore your function, and do it WITHOUT SURGERY. 

Til next time, my friend, be well. And have a great weekend.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

During my fellowship training in adult joint reconstruction in Boston, I was trained to use the Midas Rex Drill. This was a revolutionary power instrument, both literally and figuratively, for orthopaedic surgery. This drill spun so fast (over 75,000 rpm) and was so powerful that it allowed us to effortlessly cut through bone, acrylic cement, even metal and plastic. This allowed us to exercise a very delicate touch and do procedures that would otherwise jeopardize a patient’s bones. It was so very good at what it did, that it was superior to all its competition. It was referred to in the professional literature as “a high speed, low torque, pneumatic drill.” This was so that every article which involved its use in revision joint surgery wouldn’t be a de facto advertisement for the Midas Rex.
 
Well, after being trained in the use of this drill, with personal instruction by my professor, Dr. Rod Turner, and the inventor of the drill, Dr. Forest Barber, it became apparent that I had a real innate aptitude for it. And shortly after that, I was using it during surgery in the OR, to remove old bone cement in redo operations (revisions).

It wasn’t too long before I was teaching the advanced techniques in revision surgery in workshops held for surgeons from all across the USA and visitors from foreign countries. The company refused to sell a Midas Rex to any surgeon who had not been trained by the company and/or its designated teachers, surgeons like my teacher and me, who were deemed experts in its use. I taught a number of these workshops during my fellowship and had my hospital buy a Midas Rex for my use when I started my own practice. 

Several years after my graduation from the New England Baptist Hospital fellowship program, I had become known for performing the advanced revision hip and knee procedures, with the aid of my trusty Midas Rex. Over the years I had remained friendly with the Midas Rex people and was often invited to speak at seminars on its use during the Annual Meetings of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. And this led to what I have since called “The Welch Gambit.”
 
One day, the Midas folks called and asked me to represent them at the British Hip Course in Oswestry, Wales in the U.K. Now this is a very big deal. The British Hip Course is an extremely prestigious international forum on Hip Surgery. It’s considered a great honor to be invited to participate as a speaker. Luckily for me,  I had NO idea just how prestigious this gig was at the time–had I known, I might have had “stage fright.”
 
Anyway, the Midas Rex folks sent me and my brother-in-law and aide de camp, John, to Wales, to present a lecture on my experiences with the Midas Rex in Revision Hip Surgery to the course participants. I was on the same stage as some of the greatest surgeons of our day. Since this was during the hey-day of the National Health Service in the U.K., they had no funds to spare and therefore, nothing like this super drill in their surgical arsenal. So they were fairly impressed with what the drill could do and the clinical results that I presented. 

It was a great opportunity. Wales was just beautiful. I had a great time, learned a lot from the other speakers and made a number of friends among the faculty.  This came in real handy a few years later, when I asked a number of them to contribute a chapter to my book on The Art of Total Hip Arthroplasty, which lent my efforts both enhanced credibility and an international flavor (with 42 contributors from across the English Speaking World). The Professor and Chief liked my presentations so well that I was invited to present again the following year, an unprecedented honor.
 
So, in addition to patients who came to me for treatment from Turkey, Greece, France, Bermuda, Trinidad, Pakistan, the U.K., Canada and a number of other foreign lands, my stint as a lecturer at the famed British Hip Course, TWICE, was how I achieved the status of a bona fide international authority in orthopaedics.
 
Well, you don’t have to spring for the expense of an international trip to avail yourself of that level of expertise. As it happens, if you’re one of the first 199 subscribers to purchase my newest program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, you can get it for the low, introductory price AND you will get my Special Report on HOW TO ELIMINATE HIP PAIN, as well as the FREE BONUS CD: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION. 

Such a deal! A number of people have ordered already, and it’s only been officially available since yesterday! Don’t delay and miss out!
Click here to get your copy RIGHT NOW:   http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
 
Get rid of your knee pain FAST, with methods from across the entire treatment spectrum, and do it WITHOUT SURGERY!
If you have pain, but hate the thought of an operation, this is the program for you. Get yours NOW!
 http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html    You’ll be glad you did. Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Over the last few days, I’ve been trying to contain my excitement. The printer promised me delivery today on the first batch of my new programs. I’ve been working on it for the last few months. It was written in response to this most pressing question: “How can I get relief of disabling knee pain, but stay OUT of the operating room?” 

It may seem ironic, given how many thousands of surgeries I’ve performed over the years, that my newest, best course would be on how to AVOID what I spent a career doing. But you have to realize that I probably operated on barely 10% of the patients who came to see me with knee pain. 

You see, I’ve always believed that the very best surgeons only operate when they have no other choice–in other words, only when it’s REALLY necessary. Seen in that way, I hope this makes more sense. What I’m trying to do is teach you how you can give yourself the benefit of the doubt, when it comes to your knee problems. 

There ARE times when surgery is absolutely necssary. Anyone who claims otherwise is a liar or a fool. What I hope to do is teach you to recognize when a proposed surgery may be UNNECESSARY, and then show you how to relieve your pain and resolve your disability, using multiple methods from across the entire spectrum of available treatments, including mainstream/conventional, alternative, dietary, nutriceutical, pharmaceutical, orthotic, physical measures, healing programs and much, much more. 

I know these measures WORK, because they’ve worked for my own patients over nearly a quarter century of practice and they’ve worked for ME, personally,  forstalling the progression of pain in my non-operated knee and keeping me from needing surgery on that knee right up to the present.
 
I wrote this program thinking of the many patients who were referred to me, thinking they needed surgery and dreading it, and their shock and amazement when I showed them how to avoid it, using many of these same measures. It seems counterintuitive, if not counterproductive for a guy who earns his living doing surgery to do this. But when you take that approach with people, they tend to be really happy with you and they then send you other people who really DO need surgery. So it really does make sense, when you think about it. And it’s the best way to practice: “First, Do No Harm.”
 
So, today is the day, zero hour, the official launch of my new program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY. See it at
http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html  But although today is the official opening of availability for this product, a surprising number of people have already ordered it, using the links in the last few emails, starting last weekend.
 
If you’re one of the first 199 people to order this new program, you’ll get in at the low, introductory price. And you’ll get my Special Report on HOW TO ELIMINATE HIP PAIN, to address pain at the opposite end of the knee, as well as my FREE BONUS CD: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION, which explains the biological basis of pain and how controlling the mind can actually minimize pain.
 
So, we’re off! I hope you will like and benefit from this new pain-relieving product. I did my best. Now it’s up to you. Click on the link and order NOW at http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid _knee_surgery.html    Til next time my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

 P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Throughout my early training program, one of the catch phrases was “When you hear hoofbeats, don’t think of zebras.” It’s sort of a corollary of Occam’s Razor, which states that the simplest explanation for any phenomenon is usually the truth. And, for the most part, that has proved to be the case. But regardless of what field we’re in, all of us train continually to deal with the unusual, the seldom seen, the rare.
 
That’s really what separates the great from the merely competent, isn’t it? The expert who knows enough to recognize the truly rare occurence when it does finally show up is considered by the rest of his/her colleagues to be in that rarified stratum of “the best.” 

My old professor, Broadway Bill Fielding, was a world class expert in the cervical spine (neck). And he fell into that quite by accident. HIS boss (when he was just a young attending surgeon at St. Luke’s) was a guy named David Bosworth. And he was considered by many to be THE  most powerful man in American orthopaedics, at that time. He TOLD you where you were going for your position after training–you didn’t ask, because you wouldn’t get his recommendation for anywhere else. I’m not saying that was right, or fair, or reasonable, just that he could do it and make it stick. That’s power.
 
Anyway, one day Dr. Bosworth came across a 16mm film lying in a desk drawer that my Professor, BB, had made. He looked at it and said, “When did you do this?” And BB answered, “just something I was fooling around with, as part of my research on the cervical spine.”  “Well, you’re going to present this to the Academy!”– statement, not a request, from Dr. Bosworth. Turns out this little film was a cineroentgenographic study (x-ray movie–don’t worry, I can barely pronounce that, too) of the cervical spine. In other words, a moving picture of the neck bones, in motion. Seems no one had ever done that before, so it was a big deal.
 
Well, that little movie reportedly electrifed the audience, which was orthopaedists from all over the world. And it launched Dr. Fielding’s career as a world expert in the cervical spine. He admitted to me once that it was ten years after that that he was REALLY as good as they all assumed he was. In the process of trying to become what they all thought he WAS, he literally “created” himself as a true expert. He knew all about the rarities in orthopaedics, because he had SEEN them all before.

In my own practice, I was the only orthopaedist I know of who gave prophylactic heparin (a blood thinner) to patients who were having arthoscopic surgery, to prevent clots from forming in their legs during the procedure. Now, the other surgeons thought I was crazy for doing this. “Just not necessary,” they said. And I admit it was done on the theoretical basis that this COULD happen.
 
Then, one day, a patient who had arthroscopic surgery of the knee came in for pain in her calf. After checking her myself, I was worried enough to refer her immediately to the vascular surgeon. He in turn, got a venogram (x-rays of the legs, after injecting iodone dye, so you can see the veins). And it turned out she had this ENORMOUS long clot in her deep popliteal vein (deep vein thrombosis or DVT). If we hadn’t found it and it broke free, she would have been killed. 

You see, sometimes it IS zebras. And if you don’t at least think of them, you’re going to miss the diagnosis, sometimes with dire consequences.
 
As it was, my clinical paranoia (we call that “a high index of suspicion”) actually got her treated in time and saved her life. And those guys who laughed at me weren’t laughing then. This had happened despite my prophylaxis. So it showed that it CAN happen.
 
Sometimes people develop this problem for other reasons, like long plane flights, or long car trips. It’s just one of the rarer causes of posterior knee pain that I explain for you in my newest program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY
http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html

Yes, it’s almost ready. We expect the first shipment this Wednesday. But the link is active on my website right now. So head on over and grab your copy NOW.  If you ever wanted to know how you could relieve your knee pain, but stay OUT of the operating room, THIS IS IT! Don’t miss out. Click on the link to get yours NOW:  http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html

Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Hope you’re having a great weekend. Now, as you know, I normally don’t send an email over the weekend, just so I have some time to rest and let the mental engines cool off a bit (actually, it’s because I’ve got a broad streak of LAZY in my makeup). But I just saw the  preliminary web page for my new program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, and I just had to share it with you.
 
I have to say, I’m pretty excited about it. It looks great, already! It just needs some last minute tweaking and a couple of additions, and then, we’ll be ready to roll!
 
I spoke to the printer just yesterday too, and the word is, the print run is almost done and delivery to my Fulfillment Center is scheduled for Wednesday!  So we’re in the final countdown….
 
I can’t wait for you to see it. This is THE ANSWER for you and all my friends who’ve written me about needing treatment for their knee pain, but were afraid they’d have to have surgery. This is one title that lives up to its name: HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, everything you need to know to do just that.
 
And, there’s a full length audio CD available too, so you can listen in traffic, on your way to work… 

Make sure keep your eyes peeled and watch for the launch of this super new product. I know that sounds a bit immodest, but what can I do? It’s THAT good!
 
I’ll keep you posted. Til next time my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

 How would you like to be Retief Goosen today? “Who is he?” you ask. Well, he’s the guy from South Africa who finished 14th in the field at the US Open, which was won by Tiger Woods. He was quoted as saying, or at least implying, during an interview that Tiger’s knee pain was exaggerated, or put on, during the recent competition. Unfortunately for Mr. Goosen, Tiger was found to have a torn ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament), as well as a stress fracture of the tibia (you can learn all you need to know about ACL injuries at  http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html  ).   So, it seems that his pain was genuine, his pathology quite real, and his spectacular win burns that much brighter….
 
Despite his subsequent remarks that he was just kiddin’ about Tiger faking his pain to win over the crowd at the Open, Goosen looks churlish, at the very least.  Nothing quite like revealing yourself to be a shmuck on national TV….
 
Now Tiger is going to have to undergo ACL Reconstruction surgery and that means missing the rest of the season. As it happens, he couldn’t be in better hands. His doc is Dr. Tom Rosenberg, who was one of the pioneers in arthroscopic surgical techniques and an associate of Dr. Robert Metcalf, both of Utah. I actually trained in these techniques back in 1982, at the Arthroscopic Surgery Workshop,
taught by both these fine surgeons, under the aegis of the University of Utah, in Salt Lake City. Dr. Metcalf is gone now, but Dr. Rosenberg is still working–one of the best there is, by all accounts.

In those early days, arthroscopic surgery was primitive, especially in Long Island. I had done a few cases using borrowed Neurosurgical instruments as grasping forceps,  to remove loose bodies and simple meniscal tears, but nothing serious. I still had to look through the
eyepiece of the scope, by sticking my big fat NONSTERILE head into the sterile surgical field, to see inside the joint. But most cases were still done ”open,” meaning through a real incision–although my 1-1/4 inch incision was tiny. Most guys used a 4-6 inch incision for the same operation. And I could be in and out of the knee in 25 minutes flat, including a plastic closure (meaning a tight approximation of edges, with ”buried” sutures undermeath the skin, that resulted in a thin, hairline scar). But these patients had to stay in the hopsital for three days, because of the incisional pain and the resultant need for injectable narcotics.
 
But the new arthroscopic techniques promised far less pain and much quicker recovery, enabling the patient to return home ON THE DAY OF SURGERY! This was unheard of.
 
In fact, initially, I didn’t believe the claims about the technique–I was a real skeptic. But my professor from my Fellowship, Dr. Turner, encouraged me to get into it. So based on my respect for him, I did. My problem was that I couldn’t wrap my mind around the idea that six 1/4 inch stab wounds hurt far less than a 1-1/2 or 1-1/4 inch incision. I thought, intuitively, but incorrectly as it turned out, that they should be additive. Turns out they’re NOT. Who knew?
 
Anyway, I went to this course and hands-on workshop and spent nearly a week in Salt lake City. Besides opening my eyes to the possibilities of arthroscopic surgical techniques, miniature cameras, specialized instruments, motorized shavers, and the like, I learned everything I now know about The Mormons. There wasn’t a whole lot to do in the down time between classes, so I went to the presentations given by the volunteers of the Church.  It was pretty interesting. I was fascinated to learn that their Prophet, Joseph Smith, had his visitation from the angel Moroni (that’s the golden angel with the trumpet you see atop any of the LDS Churches and Temples) in upstate New York. The volunteers were as clean-cut and earnest as you could ask for–downright wholesome. It was really quite interesting…but I digress.
 
This course opened up a whole new world of possibility to me. After this, I was a believer (in arthroscopic surgery, not LDS). When I came home, full of enthusiasm, I laid out 30 grand of my own funds to buy all the new equipment that I would need to bring this technique to
my patients. I was the first surgeon in my region to do these procedures, but my first few dozen cases drove the nurses in the OR nuts! I mean, I’d have water running on the floor, out the door and down the hall, over 2 hours when I first started, on a case that would have taken me  25-30 minutes “the old fashioned way.” They couldn’t understand why I was doing this–clearly thought I was crazy. Problem was that this kind of surgery used a different skill set than standard surgical procedures.  Took me a year to develop the reflexes and sychronize my hand movements with what I saw on the video monitor.
 
But once I did get it, my time plummeted down to my pre-arthroscopic limits, and the patients WENT HOME, the very same day. After a few years of that, none of us could even remember how it had been before the advent of arthroscopy. It was that big an innovation. New
arthroscopic assisted techniques followed, developed by leaders in the field, like ACL Reconstruction. So patients today can enjoy results that were undreamed of years ago. 

So Tiger will likely have a great procedure and postop result, if all goes well. Then, it’s a matter of rehab and time to heal. As with the quality of his surgeon, I’m sure he has the best therapists to work with. But after his initial rehab, he needs to maintain the gains he’s made, even when he’s on the road. That’s when a lot of cases lose ground. Here’s where I think I can help….
 
You have probably gathered by now that I’m a big fan of Tiger Woods. It’s not hard to understand–I admire excellence, especially effortless excellence, which he epitomizes. I feel terrible that his career is on a forced hold, that we’re deprived of his talent and that he has to suffer through yet another surgery. I’d really like to help him.
 
So, to express my admiration and to offer some help that he WILL need, tomorrow I’m going to send him an autographed copy of DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
With my program of isometric, free hand exercises for strength and stretches for improved flexibility, that he can take with him and do anywhere in the world, I believe he’ll be able to maintain an excellent post-surgical result, and stay on top of his game. There’s been a lot of speculation in the press about  “can he come back after ACL surgery?” Well, it’s true enough that four surgeries on the same knee within ten years is a lot of surgery. But if anyone can confound the naysayers, and come back even better than before, it’s him. My money’s on Tiger! 
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

I just got off of the phone with my printer to OK the last few corrections and fine tunings of my newest program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, and the good news is, the first print run will be available for shipping in only 3-5 days. The website page for this new product should be up in just a few days. I just have to keep nudging my ace webmaster and get him to do it.
 
Now, I’m really excited about this product, and you should be, too. This was the topic that YOU asked for. And based on my nearly quarter century of experience in the Operating Room, as well as my personal experience as a knee surgery patient, it will reveal all the secrets to staying OUT of the OR. Having undergone surgery myself, I can tell you that there are times when it’s really necessary. But there are times when it isn’t, and times when it’s only one option of many.
 
My goal in writing this is to give you the best, most up to date methods for avoiding that unnecessary surgical procedure, from across the entire medical spectrum–mainstream, conventional, alternative, nutritional, nutriceutical, pharmaceutical, orthotic, therapeutic and a variety of healing programs that will relieve your pain, without surgery. 

I know these methods work, because I use them myself to keep my opposite knee from progressing to surgery.

In the years before my back injury, a good friend of ours, a very busy guy who is the founder and CEO of his own nationwide security company was told by many surgeons that he needed a knee replacement. And, based on his x-rays, he DID. The only problem was, he was very busy, travelling from office to office around the country, the business depended on him to keep new business flowing in. And, more important, he was a very nervous guy, who absolutely dreaded the very idea of surgery. He’d heard all the horror stories, and saw himself in every one. But he was also in constant pain, made worse by the fact that he was on his feet every day for long hours.
 
So, understanding his feelings and his desire to delay the inevitable as long as possible, I started him on the very measures and healing programs that I knew would help him. I taught him what to eat and what NOT to eat, what nutrients to take and how much, what muscles to develop and how, how to modify his activities to minimize pain and joint damage. 

Did they work? Well, he just recently had a total knee replacement, but this was TEN YEARS after I started him on these methods. That’s right–over a DECADE of relief, in a guy with known, end stage, surgical disease. How much better would they work for you, if your condition is not so dire?
 
Now, my other products have all revealed a number of complementary treatments to relieve knee pain, but this time, I’ve pulled out all the stops to help you AVOID KNEE SURGERY. As many of you have reason to know, I often proffer advice to those subscribers who email me with their orthopaedic problems. I can’t answer every question personally, there are just too many of you. But I try to help, when I can. And this was one of the most frequent questions and comments that I’ve seen: “I don’t want surgery–How can I avoid it?” 

Then, some few months ago, I polled a number of fitness buffs, martial artists, gymnasts, yogins, physical therapists and trainers, athletic and personal, with an age spread from the early 20′s to 74. I wanted to know what THEY wanted to know, about my field of expertise. If they could pick my brain, sample my accumulated experience, and ask me just one question about their problem knees, what would it be? 
 
Well, as devoted to natural methods as this group is, what most of them feared the most was “going under the knife.” Many people volunteered this spontaneously, before I could even ask them. And then, of course, as in every group, were those people who had HAD surgery, with less than hoped-for, optimal results. So in response to this, I wrote this program. 

This is a program about SOLUTIONS. The causes of knee pain and the anatomy of the joint are briefly touched on, just enough to orient you. But mainly, this course will TEACH YOU WHAT TO DO, in every aspect of your life, EASY methods to relieve your pain and restore optimal function, and do it WITHOUT SURGERY. It’s a menu of effective alternatives, from which you can choose. 

And, you can also get the program on an audio CD, if you’d like to hear the dulcet tones of my own voice, narrating the program. Of course, you can’t see the illustrations, then, but you can listen to the concepts while you’re stuck in traffic. It’s a great complement to and a reinforcement of the written course. It’s EASY and a great way to really learn this stuff, so it becomes a part of you, for when you really need it.
 
So, forgive me for going on about this, but I think it’s the best thing I’ve done so far, and I think you’re going to LOVE it! So keep a look out for it–it’s coming soon, maybe next week. Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION

Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

 With gas prices reaching stratospheric levels, and no end in sight, the geniuses in Congress continue their obdurate blindness, in blind obeisance to radical environmentalists. This, in open defiance of the American people, the majority (57% last poll) of whom want us to drill and exploit our own resources (before they’re sucked out from under us by foreign powers, notably the Chinese, Cubans, Indians, Vietnamese and others).

Now, as I’ve said before, I’m all for sensible, rational conservation measures–with a finite resource, it just makes sense–and I like breathing clean air as well as the next guy. I’m also a big fan of new technology for alternative energy–all for it (for example, all the hot air generated in Congress is currently wasted…).
 
But the RADICAL elements, who if they dared tell the truth, want us all back in horses and buggies and want to damage capitalism and our economy, care more about the caribou than the people who need oil, to heat their homes in winter and gas, to drive to work and diesel, to deliver our groceries. BTW, the caribou actually LOVE the oil pipelines, where they exist–turns out they’re warm, so they attract the caribou, who have increased their numbers by mating in proximity to the same dreaded pipelines. 
 
Then, there are the national defense implications. Do we really want to become a third world power? No other nation on earth refuses to use its own natural resources. How arrogant to go to the Saudis (who are not our friends, despite lip service–remember how many of the 9/11 hijackers were Saudis) and demand that THEY increase their production for our benefit, when we refuse to do so. Wouldn’t it be cool to be able to give these regimes in the Middle East “the finger,” instead of our money? And since a part of that money finds its way into the coffers of jihadists and terrorists who want to KILL us, wouldn’t it make sense to deprive them of at least our share of those funds?
 
I think so. 

Newt Gingrich, of American Solutions, has started a campaign to lobby Congress to DRILL HERE. DRILL NOW. PAY LESS. Whatever you think of his politics, at least he’s proposing a positive course of action. He has over 650,000 signatures on his petition, so far. In response to this, demonstrating a breathtaking dearth of intellect and lack of common sense, Congressional Democrats have been on every talk show saying, “We can’t drill our way of this!” And because we’re largely a nation of government educated fools, they get away with that nonsense.
 
Yes, if we started drilling today, it would be years before we actually got the oil on line (more reason to start right now, says I). BUT, and it’s a big ”but,” the speculators (who everyone is blaming for this crisis) would see we were serious and the oil prices would fall down to where the actual forces of supply and demand would determine the price–around $80 a barrel, not bumping $140.
 
Just today, President Bush has called for Congress to expand domestic oil production by a four step plan. This would include drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), which if we don’t do, others will (see above), ANWR, exploitation of Colorado oil shale, similar to the oil sands of our Canadian cousins, which would produce, conservatively, over 800,000,000,000 barrels of oil, and increasing refining capacity by construction of new refineries. And that doesn’t count the huge amounts of natural gas that we have….or energy from modern nuclear power plants.
 
OK. Let’s look at this rationally, devoid of emotion or political perspective. The only reasons NOT to drill are environmental, right? People concerned about the environment are worried about oil spills, or nuclear waste or nuclear meltdowns, ala Chernobyl. But their concerns are based on technology and conditions from three decades ago. Again, emotion, not intellect. 

So let’s drill now, with environmental oversight, and conditional approval–to be withdrawn if the energy companies fail to keep their promises of respect for the land and the wildlife. Simultaneously, let’s promote all the alternative energy sources we can develop for now and the future. Let’s face it–fossil fuels are on their way to becoming the whale oil of this era.
 
Honda’s already advertising their hydrogen powered fuel cell car (in my opinion, the real answer–hydrogen is the most plentiful element in the universe and the fuel cells produce only water vapor as exhaust). Toyota has a plug-in electric car that reportedly can hit 100 mph. Ford and other companies have hybrids already available. 

I’ve been driving Mercedes-Benz since 1984. And my other car is a Mercedes, too. But I’ve had it with these outrageously expensive gas hogs! I’m seriously thinking about a Prius–45-60 mpg looks pretty good right about now. And I’m going to get back into riding a bicycle, for short hops. Not only is that a great way to improve my circulation and condition my heart, but it will strengthen my knees, as well. Between that and the special knee exercises from my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM at  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
I can keep my knees in good shape and help the environment, too. And so can you. Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html

P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to  http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Tiger Woods has done it again! Only a couple of months after arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, for “cartilage damage,” he came from behind to win the U.S. OPEN. Wincing in obvious pain throughout the tournament at Torrey Pines, San Diego, Tiger fell behind earlier in the game, with a couple of bogeys, but then went on to pull even, with a couple of simply spectacular shots, that apparently defied the laws of physics, and resulted in eagles. After 90 gruelling holes of golf, Tiger finally clinched the title from opponent Rocco Mediate in sudden death on the 91st hole. This is one for the ages!
 
So Tiger pulls it off again, against a great player, with a real physical and mental handicap. He’s now won his 3rd U.S. Open and his 14th Major Title, hot on the heels of Golfing Great Jack Nicklaus’ Lifetime 18 Major Titles. And Tiger is only 32 years old (though I bet his left knee is a lot “older”). 

I’m not a big golfer, personally (tough to do when you have a fractured spine and crushed discs), but I fiercely admire excellence and achievement, especially when wrested from adversity. This was the third time that Tiger had this same knee operated on. He had a benign tumor removed in the late nineties, and arthroscopy in 2002.
 
If you were watching him walking in the Masters, he was wincing and in obvious pain from that left knee. It’s very possible that the distraction lost that tournament for him, but even there, he almost pulled it off and finished second. This guy is unbelievable! No matter
how you cut it, he is a true champion.
 
The “cartilage damage” referred to could refer to degenerative or traumatic damage to the articular cartilage, manifested as shredding, crevasses or flaps. If widespread, this could be consistent with arthritic changes, despite the fact that Tiger is only 32 years old. On the other hand, it could refer to a tear or degenerative shredding of the meniscal cartilage. No real details have been made available, so it’s anyone’s guess. But his pathology was likely one of these, or both.
 
What happens when the cartilage is damaged? Well, in brief, whether from direct impact, or from slow, progressive degeneration, the ice smooth resilient articular cartilage coating of the bearing surfaces of the knee joint become softer than normal and eventually begin to fragment and shred. Once the cartilage is physically disrupted, this unravelling of the protein fibers of collagen (that normally give support) speeds up and progresses. This is discussed and illustrated in detail in my LITTLE GREEN BOOK FOR ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN (see it at   http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html)
 
If the damage is to the crescent-shaped meniscus, it’s usually a tear. Thing is, any cartilage damage is a problem because cartilage, once physically broken or torn, cannot heal without very sophisticated surgical techniques (at least with current technology).  But there are a number of supplements, herbs, OTC medicines, and even food choices that can have a positive or negative influence on inflammation and
pain.
 
When Tiger was walking the links in pain, something within his knee was catching in that joint, causing traction on the capsule of the joint and/or the lining membrane. Problem is, if the thigh muscles are weakened by the persistent pain, they can’t stabilize the joint and help absorb the shock of walking (especially up and down the rolling hills of a golf course).
 
The solution, both before and after knee surgery, is to strengthen the thigh muscles, the quadriceps, so they will be able to absorb shock and supplement the ligaments to priovide optimal stability. To do that, a number of exercises designed to increase muscle tone, strength and power, and stretches for the antagonists on the opposite side of the thigh, are necessary. But not any old squatting motions will do. No, you need to strengthen your thighs strategically, based on the type of pathology you have. 

As an orthopaedic surgeon and, more important, as a knee surgery patient myself, I’ve collected the best and most effective exercises, specially modified to prevent or eliminate knee pain, in my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
Using a combination of the movements described in my PROGRAM, anyone can improve the stability of their knee and relieve their pain. Of course, as I mentioned yesterday, you actually have to DO the exercises. Nothing happens without effort. But if you do them, your thighs will grow strong and your knee pain will get better and better. Try it and see for yourself.
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved