Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw spoke at a meeting of the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees in Little Rock on Wednesday, lauding the treatment he received during a recent knee replacement surgery at UAMS Medical Center.
Bradshaw's speech at UAMS followed a presentation by his surgeon, orthopedic surgery Chairman Dr. Lowry Barnes, who described various steps taken to make the department more efficient and reduce waiting list times.
Lowry said the department had an 86 percent increase in patients during the last six months of 2015 versus the same period a year before.
Bradshaw said he met with Barnes on a Monday, had the surgery on a Tuesday and was able to throw a party and host Fox NFL Sunday that weekend. The former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback said he was able to walk unassisted after two weeks.
The surgery healed chronic knee pain that limited his ability to walk and began to affect his back, Bradshaw said.
His speech also touched on more controversial issues that have surrounded the league in recent years. He described how he was recommended to Barnes by another doctor whose brain scans determined Bradshaw suffered "a whole lot more" concussions than he previously thought.
"Most of us that played are having injuries now that we did not anticipate," Bradshaw said.
Bradshaw said he plans on returning to UAMS this year to have ankle fusion surgery and also plans on traveling to New York to have fusion surgery on his hand.