Mr P was initially referred to Mr Bibhas Roy at Spire Cheshire Hospital by his GP as he was concerned about a painful elbow with a large lump that had appeared on his elbow. The GP had lanced and drained the lump and had also given Mr P a steroid injection, but a few months later Mr P noticed that the lump had started to reappear and it was growing bigger by the day.
"Mr Roy was wonderful, he fully explained the procedure to me and he was very caring and professional"
Mr P, patient
Mr P is a fit and active 49 year old man and the painful elbow was causing him problems in his day to day activities. Mr P plays in a local football team every Saturday and it was during a match, when playing in goal that he dived for the ball and unfortunately landed on his elbow. He felt the lump burst internally and during the match noticed that his arm had started to swell causing him pain and discomfort.
He went to see his GP again who referred him to Spire Cheshire Hospital under the care of Mr Bibhas Roy, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon. At the initial consultation Mr Roy put Mr P’s mind at rest and told him that he was suffering form tennis elbow which was causing the pain. The lump was unrelated to this – this was a bursitis – and was settling on its own. He arranged for an X-ray, which was done there and then at the hospital, within the hour and the results showed no major bony problems
Mr P would need an MRI scan, this would allow the consultant to have a more detailed look at the area and decide on the best treatment for Mr P.
Within a couple of days he had had the MRI scan and the diagnosis of tennis elbow was confirmed. A further consultation followed, and treatment options were discussed with Mr P. Specific scoring of his problem (DASH Score) was performed, and this pointed to a 52.5% disability due to his left elbow so it was agreed that surgery was the best way forward.
Mr Roy said "The decision to perform keyhole surgery rather than open surgery was based on the fact that this leads to much quicker recovery, with minimal risks. The procedure is more technically difficult, and takes longer to perform, but is worth it as the patients benefit. Typically, the benefits that is seen from open surgery in 6 to 12 weeks is obtained within two weeks with this keyhole technique."
Mr P was then admitted to Spire Cheshire as a day case patient, had the procedure at 2.00pm and then left on the same day around 5.30pm. Mr P was delighted with the care he received at the hospital and said ‘The whole experience was fantastic, the service was superb and Mr Roy was wonderful, he fully explained the procedure to me and he was very caring and professional.’
After leaving the hospital Mr P was able to resume his day to day life almost straight away, he went out that night and managed to play a game of snooker and one week later he was back on the football field.
At his follow-up appointment, two weeks after the surgery his disability was measured to be down to 10%. Mr P's elbow was moving normally and he had resumed work as well as all other usual activities.