Team Honda HRC’s Ken Roczen returned to Colorado’s Steadman Clinic for the 11th and final surgery on his left arm, which was injured in a crash at Anaheim 2 on January 21. Over the course of several hours, Dr. Randall Viola inserted cadaver cartilage into Roczen’s elbow, a procedure that is expected to ultimately give the arm full range of motion. During the operation, Viola also spent time cleaning out scar tissue from the affected area. It’s estimated that Roczen’s arm should be able to bear weight within six to eight weeks.
With the long surgery process finally behind him, Roczen will soon be traveling to his native Germany on vacation, and he will continue to do physical therapy during that trip.
“I’m really happy to have this last surgery out of the way,” Roczen said. “They got the cadaver piece earlier than expected, which is awesome because that was the last piece of the puzzle. Now I can really focus on recovery without having to worry about any other surgery. Other than that, things are going well. I’m excited to be going to Germany for the first time in a few years to vacation with family and take my fiancé for her first time. I’ll still be doing physical therapy while there and then will be hitting it hard when we’re back.”