Month: November 2014

Most people in Northern Illinois will remember the winter of 2011 for the Ground Hog Day blizzard. Tony Santi, founder and president of J2 Santi, Inc. custom homebuilding, youth athletic coach and weekend athlete from Western Springs, Ill., recalls it differently. In January that year, Santi slipped on his icy sidewalk. “I reached back to brace myself with my free hand and the next thing I knew I was on the ground. I thought I had broken my arm, but I dislocated my right shoulder,” explained Santi. “So, I crawled back into the house and called Dr. Steven Chudik.” Dr. Chudik, an orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine physician with the Steven Chudik Shoulder and Knee Injury Clinic in Westmont, Ill., reduced Santi’s shoulder and recommended he schedule a follow-up clinic appointment.

According to Santi, his shoulder problem actually began 20 years earlier when he partially tore his rotator cuff while playing basketball. Because the injury did not adversely slow him down, Santi delayed treatment and only had physical therapy for his injury. “I knew my arm was weak when I worked out, but I was able to do everything I needed. I didn’t see the need for surgery,” Santi said. With his new injury, Santi opted to try physical therapy first. “Retrospectively, I should have done something sooner,” he added.

After three months of physical therapy, Santi tried to play recreational sports, but couldn’t. “I could barely raise my arm. I had no strength. I knew if I ever wanted to play competitively again, I needed to see Dr. Chudik and hear my options, Santi said.”

“After reviewing Tony Santi’s MRI, I recommended surgery because in terms of injury severity, his was the worst possible. It involved all four rotator cuff tendons and his biceps tendon,” said Dr. Chudik. “Typically an injury of that magnitude is considered irreparable, but because he was so young I had to try and repair what I could. His prognosis for returning to an active lifestyle, let alone throwing and shooting activities, was poor,” he explained.

Santi’s arthroscopic rotator cuff surgery, normally a two-hour procedure, took more than four hours because of the extensive scaring and extreme retraction of the rotator cuff. “I basically rebuilt his shoulder,” said Dr. Chudik. “Technically I was able to repair everything, but questions remained about whether it would heal completely and how much function would return.”

Not one to shirk challenges, Santi began physical therapy within days of his surgery and an addition on his home. “I figured as long as I was going to be home it would be a good time to do the addition,” Santi said. “So, three days a week for five months I went to physical therapy and then home to oversee the construction of our addition. This rehabilitation was much more difficult than my earlier ones, but I didn’t cut any corners. I took my rehabilitation seriously and did as much as I could—and then some, he added.”

Less than a year after surgery, Santi is playing basketball, Ultimate Frisbee, catch with his children and in better shape than he has ever been. “Tony Santi is a testament to dedication and determination,” said Dr. Chudik. “Most would not be able to recover as well as he did after such a severe injury and big surgery. It is important to take care of injuries when they occur—do not wait. Most injuries only get worse with time.”

Imagine slamming into a tree going more than 20 miles per hour with only the protection of a helmet. Imagine that same scenario, but as a petite downhill skier getting hit so hard by a snowboarder that you are lifted off the snow and thrust into a pine tree becoming a human airbag. According to avid downhill skier Mary Falck, that happened to her while vacationing in Colorado. Understandably, Falck does not remember much about the accident, but the severe injuries that resulted—a fractured pelvis, femur, wrist and ankle, as well as multiple torn knee ligaments—would become her biggest challenge. “I just completed a more rigorous ski run where I achieved the million vertical feet mark for the year,” Falck explained. “To celebrate and unwind, my husband and I decided to take another run, but on a less difficult slope. That decision changed the next two years of my life and potentially the rest of my life,” she said.

After the Ski Patrol stabilized Falck, they helicoptered her to Denver where she underwent emergency surgery. “I was in intensive care for several days before moving to in-patient rehabilitation where I stayed for three weeks until I was able to travel,” she lamented.

Falck explained her recovery process was incredibly difficult and long. The fractures on the right side of her body healed slowly with her ankle taking the longest. However, her unrepaired left knee made her unstable and physical therapy nearly impossible. “I was so frustrated by that point my husband contacted the orthopaedic surgeon he’d seen at Hinsdale Orthopaedics,” she said. “He referred her to his partner, Dr. Steven Chudik.” Previous doctors Falck saw told her a total knee replacement was her only option because her knee was in such bad condition. She was hopeful Dr. Chudik would tell her something different.

According to Dr. Chudik, a board certified and fellowship trained orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine physician, Falck’s injuries were so severe he could not put her through knee surgery and more rehabilitation until she was healed and able to walk. “Quite honestly, I didn’t think she would be able to have a successful outcome until her injuries healed,” he explained. “So despite her strong objections and repeated protests, I told her I would not operate until she was in a better overall functional condition. It is important to me to treat each patient individually and not necessarily ‘by the book’ because everyone has different functional and lifestyle goals,” Dr. Chudik added.

For the next six months, Falck never missed a physical therapy session determined to get her right side fully rehabilitated. However, her injured left knee hindered her in therapy and caused her extreme frustration. “My knee buckled during a therapy session and by then I’d had enough,” she said. “I made another appointment to see Dr. Chudik. We discussed my options and injuries—torn ACL, PCL, and PLC (anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments, and posterior lateral corner ligaments), severe cartilage damage and arthritis of the knee. “Despite the extent of the damage, I refused to accept that I could not regain my previous life style,” she explained.

“Given the severity of her injuries, a total knee replacement was the only reliable option. But, that wouldn’t guarantee she’d be able to return to her previous level of skiing,” Dr. Chudik said. “Conversely, ligament reconstruction with her severe cartilage damage and arthritis would likely produce permanent loss of motion, weakness and inability to ski,” he explained.

Determined to ski, Falck elected to proceed with surgery. Dr. Chudik performed
an anatomic, multiple knee ligament reconstruction and coached her through the difficult rehabilitation. “Dr. Chudik warned me it would be a long recovery,” Falck said. “But I did it!

Two years after her accident, Falck resumed the active life she loves–even skiing.