I had to have arthroscopic hip surgery in Jan, 2018. I asked around and was told Dr. Elder was the best. And he is. He has a wonderful friendly & courteous manner, explained everything thoroughly in easy to understand terms, made me feel comfortable & confident, answered all my many, many questions, and did a realistic risk-to-reward analysis based on my age (58), general health (good except for fibro) & level of fitness (good). The entire staff at Asheville Ortho is equally terrific. It's been about 18 weeks since the surgery and healing is progressing right on track. The procedure itself went very well. I feel completely heard and well taken care of by Dr. Elder and his entire staff. Arthroscopy is his specialty and he does hundreds of them - so he really does know what he is talking about.
One last note: No, he doesn't prescribe PT because for this procedure, there really isn't any that can be done, other than to help with gait if that's a problem. It's just a matter of waiting - as hard as that is. I did not have PT and am walking up and down stairs with no aids at all now. But - I followed his instructions to the letter, used a walker & ice packs (purchased on Amazon-no need for the big machine thing) exactly as directed, took anti-inflammatories and pain med exactly as prescribed. It's not a fun operation, and yes, it really does take 6+ months to return to one's previous levels of activity and get 100% pain free. Also, I had NO arthritis, and I'm petite, so even with fibro I'm doing well. Note: The only pain I have now is still from the operation and only when I have been doing a lot. Also, again, I have fibro - so it's exacerbated. But the original non-stop grinding endless pain from the original condition (impingement, acetabular labral tear, IT band tightness) went away within a week and hasn't returned. read more