Trip To Rose Bowl For Joe Pa Too Much, Too Soon After Surgery?

POSTED: 4:36 pm EST November 24, 2008
UPDATED: 5:02 pm EST November 24, 2008

PITTSBURGH -- He's 81 and tough as nails.

Joe Paterno's doctors said he should be back on his feet and back to work one week after hip replacement surgery.

But is that always the case?

Orthopedic surgeons tell Channel 4 Action News that in terms of physical therapy, recovering from knee replacement is tougher than hip replacement. Nevertheless, getting a new hip is a major procedure. So while Paterno may be on his feet, the question is how long he can stay there?

To many fans, "Joe Pa" is like a Timex watch -- he takes a licking and keeps on ticking.

During pre-season, Paterno, while demonstrating an onside kick, fell and damaged his hip. Pain relegated him to the press box. He now has the new hip he needed, but he wants to return to work in a week.

Some doctors caution that could be too soon. Dr. Brett Smith, an orthopedic surgeon, said patients should restrict weight bearing and give the bone time to grow into the implant.

"So my average patient at two weeks is going along pretty well. It's not until the six-week mark their really feeling more like themselves," Smith said.

And it could take three months before those get back to normal eating, sleeping and moving around.

During surgery doctors remove the ball of the hip and ream out the socket, so that a new hip can go in.

"The cup is the socket part and it's up here in the pelvis. The bone grows into it and then the seminal component is inside the bone, as you can see through this clear plastic, and the bone grows into the top part as well. The two meet where the plastic and ball meet and that's the new hip joint," Smith said.

Hip replacement is major surgery fraught with potential complications. The worst potential consequence is the 50 percent risk of developing a blood clot. Paterno will need blood thinners for a least a week. Smith said in his condition, a trip to the Rose Bowl might not be a good idea.

"If he was my father, I would say, 'I know this is important to you, I understand that.' I would tell him not to," Smith said.

Those who know Paterno say he won't stay home and won't give up that trip to Pasadena.

There will also be some post-operative pain. Medications can take care of the pain. But nothing can alleviate the risks that come from doing too much, too soon after hip replacement surgery.

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