POSITIVE NEWS
The Dayton Daily News brings you uplifting human interest news every Thursday in Life.
Tedd Boomershine of Kettering is a lifelong runner who enjoys keeping fit. But about two years ago, Boomershine started having severe pain in his knees and he had to give up running for good.
“I ran almost every day since 1975,” said Boomershine, who is now 72 years old. “All at once I could hardly move or even walk without pain.” After X-rays showed that both of Boomershine’s knees no longer had cartilage, he knew the reason for the pain. “Both knees were bone on bone,” he said.
He began a series of shots to help ease joint pain and fill the areas with fluid and continued those along with cortisone until earlier this year. “I was pain free for a little bit of time,” Boomershine said. “But they wore off and I continued to have severe pain, especially in my right knee.”
Boomershine went to the emergency room at Kettering Medical Center and was seen by physicians from Far Hills Orthopedics, including Dr. Dan Dunaway.
“One of Dan’s associates came into my room and said he couldn’t believe I was walking without a walker or crutches,” Boomershine said. “My knees were that bad.”
Dunaway suggested that Boomershine research a relatively new replacement knee product called the ConforMIS iFit, which is customized for each patient using three dimensional (3-D) modeling. “I checked it out and decided I wanted to have both knees replaced,” Boomershine said. “Dan doesn’t like to do a bilateral replacement unless the patient is in really good shape.”
Dunaway said a typical knee replacement doesn’t involve exact fitting to each patient. “We take regular X-rays, and the patient is in surgery before we try to match the closest size to the bone,” he said. “You have to guess, and it seems we are always compromising on that because there are so many variations.”
ConforMis, the only company in the world manufacturing the custom joints, has pioneered additive manufacturing and 3-D printing technology in the orthopedic industry. Surgeons not only receive a joint customized for patients but also specialized surgical instruments designed specifically for the joint and patient.
“We do a CAT scan of the patient’s knee and send to ConforMis and they manufacture a joint that matches the patient’s anatomy exactly,” Dunaway said. “I’ve been using these for pretty much this entire year.”
Though every patient isn’t a candidate for this new procedure, Dunaway recommends it to patients who don’t have a severe deformity. “I don’t think the recovery time is any quicker, but the end result is it feels more like a normal knee when it’s complete,” he said. “This is more of a resurfacing rather than a replacement, and now that I’m seeing the results, I’m really happy with it.”
Dunaway knew Boomershine was a good candidate for a double or bilateral knee replacement, and he had his surgery about two months ago. “Tedd has done really well with his recovery and is already walking every day,” he said.
This cutting-edge process has been a godsend to Boomershine, who described himself as “severely bowlegged” prior to surgery and is now standing straight for the first time in his life. He is also thrilled that he is able to walk daily with his best friend, Stella, a former homeless dog he adopted from SICSA in Kettering. “I really did this surgery for Stella,” he said. “She is the best girl.”
Just seven weeks after surgery, Boomershine was walking and driving and doing it all without appliances or walkers. “I did go to rehab after surgery and used a walker for a few days the learned a series of exercises to help me get back into condition,” he said.
And though he is still dealing with some pain and swelling, Boomershine is looking forward to living pain free again and continuing to work on getting back into shape. He and Stella walk three miles daily to the NCR Country Club near his home, and he works out with physical therapists to increase his upper body strength.
“I have a lot of flexibility now, but my primary goal in life is to live pain free,” Boomershine said.
Dunaway continues to see patients that travel from surrounding states to have the surgery. “I think it’s fitting that we are doing the surgeries at Kettering Hospital,” Dunaway said. “I feel a connection to Charles Kettering, because he was an innovator. I feel we are continuing his legacy by doing cutting-edge stuff here.”
About the Author