Sally Crow loves life, but the vibrant retired Noblesville school teacher was beginning to slow down and take it easy on her favorite activities such as golfing, volunteering, walking and dancing. After some encouragement from friends, Sally took the step that would get her life back – having hip replacement surgery.

Her friends had cautioned her to not have just any hip replacement, but the Anterior Supine Intermuscular (ASI) hip replacement procedure. Sally soon found she was in luck because the ASI is performed by Dr. Jeffrey Ginther at Riverview Hospital. Dr. Ginther is a board certified orthopaedic surgeon who is fellowship trained in adult reconstructive surgery (joint replacement) and sports medicine.

What makes the ASI procedure better than other options? The ASI minimally invasive hip replacement procedure is designed to reduce the trauma to the tissues surrounding the hip joint. The incision placement from the front of the hip allows surgeons to directly approach the hip joint by going between the muscles that surround the hip joint rather than cutting them. By preserving the muscles and tendons, surgeons may enable their patients to walk the day of surgery and return to daily activities more quickly.

“When I first went to see Dr. Ginther, he told me I would be playing golf again at 7 weeks,” said Sally, who had her left hip replaced. “I thought he was crazy. However, at 7 weeks I was on the course again and even improved my score by 10 strokes!” Sally was very impressed with her quick recovery time and limited pain she had after her surgery. The worst part of her recovery was her wound, because it was a bit sore and itchy from the sutures. However, the incision was only a couple inches long versus the traditional longer incision for hip surgery. Sally quips “My hip surgery was so much easier than my hysterectomy.”

After almost 4 weeks – 2 weeks with a walker and close to 2 weeks with a cane – Sally was able to walk without assistance and the only indication that she had surgery was a slight limp. Besides being mobile, she also had very few restrictions on her new hip. At 7 weeks she was not only playing golf but also starring in the Riverview Auxiliary’s annual fashion show.