Knee Replacement Surgery - Anyone?

[mezz]

I am about to embark on a new journey, knee replacement surgery. Last year I had major back surgery, which was no real picnic. I guess this is a price you pay when you play hard at everything in the younger years including 34 years of sledding. I have osteoarthritis in both my knees & have been taking injections in the worse of the 2 for the last year. The injection is no longer as effective & I am at the crossroads of replacement. My very first surgery was my back, now am faced with knee replacement & I am a little freaked out by the prospect. I know I can't continue on the way it is, just wondering if anybody here has had experience with this? Any input would be appreciated. Hopefully the site stays available long enough for a response.

 

[gary_in_neenah]

Mezz, I don't have any personal experience but have had family members and coworkers that have been through this. Every one of them has said the pain is gone and after the initial discomfort from the surgery they feel great. Any time we have surgery it's a time for concern but remind yourself that this is a common procedure now, they do this everyday. Here's to good health and better days ahead! I'd be interested in your thoughts after the surgery and during rehab.

Gary

 

[heckler56]

What Gary said.

My wife waited way too long in my opinion, bone on bone on both for decades. She had the first one done last September and is still in discomfort. What I think is causing her pain is twofold, her surgeon said it was a total mess when he went in. Secondly, she has power walked daily in pain for decades and this caused her to have a gait to compensate her knee’s pain. Her current pain is the muscles that went unused by her gait which are now on fire with a knee that functions correctly. My brother experienced the same thing and said at one year all felt good. Many many others (dozens) that we have come across have had zero issues and basically said they felt great day three and needed to make sure to not over do it they felt so good.

Do your physical therapy was a theme mentioned by everyone. Take care, you got this!

 

[mezz]

Thank you guys for your input & encouragement. I figured I would try to get this posted before the site goes MIA again. I know I need to get this done, especially before the better of the two knees starts to cause me major problems. I have already had to rely on the good knee more than the poor knee more & it too is messing with my gait which is making my lower back feel like crap. So, onward I go, thank you again.

 

[renegade]

Be conscience of your back after the surgery when getting up. My grandmother had her knee replaced in her eighties and ended up hurting her back getting up with a sore knee, and then needing surgery on the back.

 

[mezz]

Be conscience of your back after the surgery when getting up. My grandmother had her knee replaced in her eighties and ended up hurting her back getting up with a sore knee, and then needing surgery on the back.

Thank you for that bit of advise, I had back surgery last year, 4 fused vertebra, 2 rods, six screws & a nerve passage opened. I can no longer escape the metal detector.

 

[G]

They have knees down. Your biggest enemy will be the possibility of post surgery infection. But they keep a pretty good eye on you nowadays. You will be in for therapy just about immediately after surgery. Just do what the doctors say without question. I myself had total ankle replacement surgery 18 months ago for about the same reasons as yourself. A lifetime of abuse which ended up with a lot of arthritis and damage. But just about all can be fixed nowadays. Hips are a walk in the park. Knees are next as far as recovery time. Ankles take the longest of the three. But now 18 months later there is no pain and I have very close to full range of motion. I was apprehensive about the procedure and read about all the people that had had complications. But you can't look at it that way. All of these procedures have come a long way and there isn't much the Drs have not seen. I had my ankle done at The Orthopedic Institute of Sioux Falls. I would recommend that facility to anyone. Dr Greg Alvine. I couldn't be happier about the outcome. It can be scary but again I couldn't be happier about my outcome. Good luck and think positive. And do what the Drs say. You will be good to go. Best of luck to you.

 

[snobuilder]

Just found this post. It helps me and my questions I have as well. It is getting to the point where I am seeing a wheel chair and wanting one.....LOL ....preferable a 4 stroke with EPS.

 

[mezz]

They have knees down. Your biggest enemy will be the possibility of post surgery infection. But they keep a pretty good eye on you nowadays. You will be in for therapy just about immediately after surgery. Just do what the doctors say without question. I myself had total ankle replacement surgery 18 months ago for about the same reasons as yourself. A lifetime of abuse which ended up with a lot of arthritis and damage. But just about all can be fixed nowadays. Hips are a walk in the park. Knees are next as far as recovery time. Ankles take the longest of the three. But now 18 months later there is no pain and I have very close to full range of motion. I was apprehensive about the procedure and read about all the people that had had complications. But you can't look at it that way. All of these procedures have come a long way and there isn't much the Drs have not seen. I had my ankle done at The Orthopedic Institute of Sioux Falls. I would recommend that facility to anyone. Dr Greg Alvine. I couldn't be happier about the outcome. It can be scary but again I couldn't be happier about my outcome. Good luck and think positive. And do what the Drs say. You will be good to go. Best of luck to you.

Good info, thank you. I have my consult with the surgeon on Monday.

 

[rph130]

I had right knee (total) replaced in July 2020 after numerous minor scope surgeries to fix torn meniscus. Illinois Bone and Joint did the surgery. I walked/hobbled out of the outpatient surgery a few hours later. Rehab started the next day. Within 4 weeks I was back to a somewhat normal life. No pain and mobility is about 90 percent of my other knee. One thing to keep in mind is that you will have trouble kneeling on it forever. Its not painful but strange being that you will have no feeling on one side of knee. Also, my biggest complaint is that trying to sleep is not the same prior to surgery. Surgeon says it is a very common complaint/problem with patients after joint replacement.

 

[heckler56]

Little follow up to my prior post. My wife me informed her surgeon is considered a “trauma surgeon”. Well let me speculate that he went in like a bull in a china shop. Now it all makes.

Besides referrals from satisfied patients, go with someone that has done this all the time. You know you are with the right one when they literally look you over and know what your outcome will be. Not just “many see this or that outcome” but their gut tells them you will see xxx results.

 

[mezz]

Thank you rph130 & heckler56. The surgeon that I am going to see for the consult today is a specialist in knee & hip replacements. My referring orthopedic told me that he does 50 to 60 of these per month. Experience should not be a concern. As far as rph130's comment regarding sleep, are you referring to the position of sleep, or just sleep in general? Just curious. I appreciate this information guys, very helpful & a bit more calming, for me, though I will admit being wigged out a bit, I didn't sleep very well last night thinking about the consult today. Thanks again.

 

[Hoosier]

My parents both had knees replaced. My Dad's knee replacement helped out his back pain - he wishes he would have done it sooner.

 

[BigSix]

Mezz, my wife had her knee replaced last May. OSMS in Bellevue (Green Bay suburb) did it and I rarely recommend stuff but these guys know what they are doing. Saw a lot of Michigan plates in the parking lot too. They had her walking on it about 4 hours after the surgery! Days 2 and 3 were a little rough but the pain meds work wonders. She was back walking with me about 1 month later (about a mile) but we had to take it slow. Now everything is great but as rph130 said, kneeling on it is weird for her but not painful. You will be glad you did it.

 

[mezz]

Mezz, my wife had her knee replaced last May. OSMS in Bellevue (Green Bay suburb) did it and I rarely recommend stuff but these guys know what they are doing. Saw a lot of Michigan plates in the parking lot too. They had her walking on it about 4 hours after the surgery! Days 2 and 3 were a little rough but the pain meds work wonders. She was back walking with me about 1 month later (about a mile) but we had to take it slow. Now everything is great but as rph130 said, kneeling on it is weird for her but not painful. You will be glad you did it.

Thank you for that, greatly appreciate it. My consult went well, have the first one scheduled for May 13th. I will be having this done at Advanced Center for Orthopedics in Marquette. I was hoping to have it done here, but, 100 mi away isn't bad & its done on an out patient basis. I still have to get my pre-op physical, hopefully all is good to get this done. Thanks again for the input.

 

[Deleted member 10829]

Good luck mezz and let us know how it goes!

 

[tgrubb]

Had my right knee replaced in ‘18 and love it. Getting injections in left so it won’t last long. My doc recommended vitamin C,D3 and zinc prior to surgery and for the rest of my life. He’s very proactive about infection.Since I’m fairly young and active he scheduled an x-ray at 5 years to check for wear. Replacing material between the metal is a simple out patient procedure. I wanted one with a grease zirk but it wasn’t available. I agree with everyone that you won’t like crawling. It doesn’t hurt but just an odd feeling. After I get the second one done my crawl space work will be done

 

[mezz]

Thank you for that tgrubb, the input that I have received is greatly appreciated. I hope all goes well enough to get the right knee done this summer as it is about shot & I don't want to wait too long for it to be done. I figure, once I have been down the road of pre-op physical, co-pay & deductibles, I might as well if I can. It has been depressing to not be able to do much on my feet for any length of time, subsequently I have been gaining weight. This all a culmination of a bad back for many years resulting in surgery last year and the knees failing. I am looking forward to better days of moving about. Thanks again.

 

[rph130]

Hey mezz, the sleep comment was just in general. Its not a comfort thing because the knee is pretty much pain free. During follow up appointments, the surgeon asked about any problems or concerns. I said sleep was a problem and he said that it was his experience with 30 years of doing knee replacements that he saw that as the most common complaint. Also, I made the mistake of stopping the pain killers cold turkey because I felt like I was becoming too dependent on them. (Vicodin and Percocet) I went through a little withdrawal drama and realized how easily I got hooked on them. Be diligent in your rehab. I think that is the reason I recovered so quickly. I actually did what they told me and my mobility and recovery was quicker than what they normally saw in a 56 year old. Good luck with it. Not that I had a choice with it, but I'm glad I did it and have no regrets. Also, its a conversation topic in summer when I wear shorts. You are going to have a very impressive scar.

 

[mezz]

I'm not a fan of the pain pills either, though, I was on them for quite some time with my back issue. Primarily because I can't take over the counter meds like Aleve, Advil, or Aspirin because I'm on a blood thinner. Strongest over the counter I can take is arthritis strength Tylenol. I did not like taking the hard stuff, but, I didn't have any choice in order to get remote comfort. Getting off of them was a little uncomfortable, the withdrawals were a little challenging mentally, but I did overcome it. From what I understand, there is a small window for the pain medication with this process. To help reduce the need the pain meds, I had a procedure done called Iovera. It numbs the nerves in the joint prior to surgery & lasts post-op which is suppose to help with the pain control and assist with recovery. We'll see I guess, noting ventured, nothing gained at this point.