Japanese TV drama star Kenji Sakaguchi announced that he will suspend his acting career indefinitely due to severe hip pain.

Sakaguchi, 42, is most famous for his TV series "Team Medical Dragon". Medical Dragon is an idol TV series adapted from the manga of the same name originally written by Taro Nogizaka. As of 2014, four series of this drama have been released, which is very popular and is constantly being replayed on TV stations. In the film, Kenji Sakaguchi plays the handsome and skilled cardiac surgeon Ryutaro Asada, who together with his team saves patients without fear of power and hospital corruption.

Sakaguchi began experiencing hip pain six years ago, which evolved from intermittent pain to long-term pain. In 2015, he was diagnosed with femoral head necrosis of the hip joint (Japanese: idiopathic femoral head osteonecrosis) and underwent surgery. During these six years, Sakaguchi suffered from pain in his genitals, but he still devoted himself wholeheartedly to his acting career and produced many wonderful works (including the fourth part of Medical Dragon), which is really admirable.

When the filming of "Medicine 4" started in 2014, Kenji Sakaguchi had difficulty walking due to a problem with his right hip joint and had to use crutches to walk. At that time, there were different opinions on the cause of his illness. It was once rumored that it was caused by his love of surfing and overwork at work. Osteonecrosis of the hip joint is also called [femoral head necrosis] and [femoral head ischemic osteonecrosis]. The most common risk factors are the use of steroid preparations and drinking alcohol. The media reported it as a "rare disease" this time, which is not quite correct. In fact, this disease is not uncommon. In cases of artificial hip replacement in Taiwan, hip osteonecrosis and degenerative arthritis are the two main causes.

There is currently no effective drug that can reverse femoral head necrosis of the hip joint. Decompression surgery and bone grafting surgery are a glimmer of hope. If bone collapse affects the hip joint, an artificial joint must be replaced to restore mobility. Otherwise, the last hope is to find Doctor-X Daimon Miiko. (Too deep into the drama)

The medical dragon Kenji Sakaguchi will always be in our hearts. After leaving work, he will concentrate on treatment and do what he wants to do.

Let us look forward to the day when the medical dragon reappears!

This article is from: Dr. Dai Dawei’s blog Ta-Wei, Tai MD