Knee Replacement

[SC Putter]

When I had my left knee replaced in 2011, the surgeon kept my natural knee cap in place. Six months later I was in more pain than before the replacement. The doctor retired right after my surgery. So, I had to have a "revision" done which is basically just another replacement. They got it right the second time.

Did you follow the medication plan to stay ahead of the pain? I was a little hesitant about the narcotics but decided the doctor knew better than me, so I took the medicine as prescribed. Glad I did. The replacement I had in January has gone really well. I am back on the golf course and my last therapy session is April 4th.

Of all the people I know who have had replacement surgery the only ones who have had serious difficulty were the ones who did not finish therapy. They also did little or no work at home.

Agree---therapy is the key. Painful at the beginning but worth it.

 

[JW Smoove]

update:

I'm still in pain which sucks, pain walking up and down stairs. and I'm barely over 90 degrees of flexibility. I still can't jog or walk long distances. so I figured let me get a 2nd opinion since my doctor said, "It takes time."... I'm tired of hearing that after 1 year. so I went to some big ortho in Pittsburgh and boy, I really did not like what he said.

he tells me that he didn't like the way my doctor did the surgery and that the only way I could get back to a decent spot was by redoing the whole thing all over again. That almost had me in tears thinking about going through all of this again. the pain, the sleepless nights, the PT....THE PAIN!!!! he's telling me that he has to cut and replace some of the tendons, so I can't get more flexibility....he started to say other stuff, but my brain zoned out thinking about doing this all over again.

I'm not sure what I am going to do. I think I'm going to let this summer play out and see if I can do some things. If not, I might have to do this again.

Andy - this sucks. Obviously every surgery and surgeon is different. I am 100% NON-confrontational - unless in a THP event and it's necessary hahahahaha, kidding. But, if this were me, I would stroll over to surgeon #1 with this new data (or, I might visit a 3rd to see what he/she says between where you are now and what surgeon #2 said, then if needed visit #1 and see where it all goes. I think the amount of time away from things, the PT, the pain all that you said, it's terrible and you need relief. Me, I would trade another couple - 3 months for a correction that lead to pain relief/elimination.

My worst right now, is going down steps, passenger side of the car, and torquing the knee - I am much better overall, 2 months and 1 day post surgery.

I am resigning myself to maybe needing the left knee done - but holding out hope that I can make lifestyle changes to not need or significantly delay it.

Hang in there - total pain free - I am told can in fact be a year or more, but depending on where you are now, you should be doing/feeling better - are you doing strengthening exercise as yet?

 

[AndyL0711]

Andy - this sucks. Obviously every surgery and surgeon is different. I am 100% NON-confrontational - unless in a THP event and it's necessary hahahahaha, kidding. But, if this were me, I would stroll over to surgeon #1 with this new data (or, I might visit a 3rd to see what he/she says between where you are now and what surgeon #2 said, then if needed visit #1 and see where it all goes. I think the amount of time away from things, the PT, the pain all that you said, it's terrible and you need relief. Me, I would trade another couple - 3 months for a correction that lead to pain relief/elimination.

My worst right now, is going down steps, passenger side of the car, and torquing the knee - I am much better overall, 2 months and 1 day post surgery.

I am resigning myself to maybe needing the left knee done - but holding out hope that I can make lifestyle changes to not need or significantly delay it.

Hang in there - total pain free - I am told can in fact be a year or more, but depending on where you are now, you should be doing/feeling better - are you doing strengthening exercise as yet?

i have never gotten into any kind of weight training but I will say that my quad and calf are in pretty good shape. they are probably more in shape/muscular then before I had the surgery. it's just the knee itself. it still feels unsteady. I still get nervous going downstairs. every once in awhile I will still go down one at a time, especially if I am carrying something.

i will admit reading your progress was one of the reasons I went and got another opinion. i love seeing people do well and want to be in that same boat.

 

[Phil75070]

@AndyL0711

So sorry to hear about your issues! Problems with knee replacements aren't that uncommon, which is why there are surgeons who specialize in "revisions", fixing or redoing previous knee replacements. At 50, you were young to have the first one done. This second one, done right, shouldn't take any near as long to recover from and be a lot less painful after the first couple of weeks.

 

[JW Smoove]

i have never gotten into any kind of weight training but I will say that my quad and calf are in pretty good shape. they are probably more in shape/muscular then before I had the surgery. it's just the knee itself. it still feels unsteady. I still get nervous going downstairs. every once in awhile I will still go down one at a time, especially if I am carrying something.

i will admit reading your progress was one of the reasons I went and got another opinion. i love seeing people do well and want to be in that same boat.

Understood, I still have backslides too, my hamstrings are a mess (well the right hamstring). I was doing about 90% mobility 10% muscle, now it's about 60/40 strength. I still have an occasional feeling of a buckle but I catch myself. And, I to go 1 step at a time down if carrying anything large or heavy.

The Doc said to reduce the weight or take that part a bit slower - but I keep pressing on and am feeling much better, sleep is still more iffy, was tole to take tylenol PM before bed and maybe a magnesium supplement (also before bed) both supposed to help sleep. Who knows. I expect or hope by end of April to feel good - mostly, PT goes to 3 week of April. I may start going back to the gym for more work on the recumbent bike and to get some strength back (general better overall feelings).

Keep pressing on and if you are not where you want to be, seek the docs or a new PT - maybe that's an option?

 

[braveheart]

When I had my left knee replaced in 2011, the surgeon kept my natural knee cap in place. Six months later I was in more pain than before the replacement. The doctor retired right after my surgery. So, I had to have a "revision" done which is basically just another replacement. They got it right the second time.

Did you follow the medication plan to stay ahead of the pain? I was a little hesitant about the narcotics but decided the doctor knew better than me, so I took the medicine as prescribed. Glad I did. The replacement I had in January has gone really well. I am back on the golf course and my last therapy session is April 4th.

Of all the people I know who have had replacement surgery the only ones who have had serious difficulty were the ones who did not finish therapy. They also did little or no work at home.

You are absolutely correct. Being one of the PT’s that get you going right after surgery, I can’t stress enough how important it is to work diligently at your therapy. The PT is your teacher and coach when you need it most. You must accept that this going to be tough and remain focused. Otherwise, you are to blame for the poor outcome.

 

[AndyL0711]

You are absolutely correct. Being one of the PT’s that get you going right after surgery, I can’t stress enough how important it is to work diligently at your therapy. The PT is your teacher and coach when you need it most. You must accept that this going to be tough and remain focused. Otherwise, you are to blame for the poor outcome.

Huh?