My 15 year old son (soccer player)had the AP surgery with Dr. Cattey 3 months ago. He had been in pain for 8 months prior to surgery and was being treated for hip flexor strain before seeing Dr. Cattey. He had to stop all activities that involved running, cutting, stretching etc.. A deep throbing ache was present most of the time but got worse with activity. Rest, Ice, Physio, Active Release Therapy and deep massage did not fix the problem. Most Doctors (including sports specific)assumed we were from another planet when we mentioned AP or Sports Hernia as a possible cause. We choose Dr. Cattey given his apparent ability to return elite athletes to their sport - there are many walking/running and kicking examples of his work out there. From research it appeared crucial to find a surgeon very familiar with the condition and very skilled with the laparoscope - if going that route. Dr. Cattey obviously has these skills.
The experience:
-I found Dr. Cattey to be compassionate personable and genuinely interested in returning my son to full activity. (He has personally followed up him several times post-surgery).
-The facility in Milwaukee is top notch and the staff were amazing.
-The surgery is not a walk in the park although it only lasts 30-40 minutes. Anaesthetic and the CO2 gas used in the procedure have their issues.
- Major pain from surgery went in 3-4 days.
-6 week return to sport may apply to elite (pro) athletes that were diagnosed early and with access to daily physio in the post op phase- but probably not to the average Joe.
The Result: A huge improvement.
My son has recently returned to basketball, running, gym work, biking and pretty well everything a kid at that age does. He has not returned to soccer yet and is not comfortable with full out sprinting. He has some sharp pain when he goes full out and it looks as though there may be some nerve damage lingering from either the initial injury or the surgery. There is no more throbing pain and weakness and the residual pain is not stopping him from rebuilding his strength (and he is paying huge attention to core strength and flexibility) but it is playing on his confidence a little.
Cattey vs Meyers
If you are at the stage were surgery is required (and that is probably the hardest decision to make) then both surgeons are without any doubt highly qualified. Both offer very good success rates, even if you don't believe its 100%. Not sure the outcome from either procedure is being "completely" pain free for life though.
Good luck.