4 More Days & I get My New Knee

[gab13by13]

I am ready. I have been doing pre-surgery exercises since Sept. 21st. Kind of followed the diet, my weight is right where I want it.

I am off my supplement pills; Vitamin D, Calcium, and Multi-vitamin. Showered tonight with an antiseptic soap, doc said using Dial was OK too. Tomorrow I start swabbing my nose with Mupirocin.

Surgery scheduled the day before Thanksgiving and doctor promised me I would go home by 11AM on Thanksgiving, but I know that doesn't always pan out.

I got to play golf last Wednesday here in central Pa., shot a 38 for 9 holes. I am lucky, I am ready.

[Skittles]

1. excellent you are following the prep instructions

you're gonna be a better you!

[OAITW r.2.0]

2. Modern medicine is amazing. With any luck. you will experience min discomfort in your recuperation.

[gab13by13]

4. My golfing buddy's wife had her knee replaced.

She came out of the surgery and when the rehab person asked her to bend her knee until it hurt, she went 90 degrees and he said, stop, go home. So now I now the secret, bend the heck out of my knee and don't cry.

[spooky3]

11. I don't want to be a downer, but different people have different

Experiences. I did all the right stuff (including physical therapy exercises) for months and was assured I would recuperate much more quickly than the average patient. I didn’t, and was in pain for a long time. On the good side, the ortho surgeon said the motion was very good. I’m able to do a lot (many months later) but it’s still moderately painful. I know several others with ok but not great results (all with different doctors). So I really wish you the best but just hope you aren’t too disappointed if the recovery isn’t perfect.

[chia]

36. Right out of surgery her leg should still have been numb. Yes the motion is there, but the recovery pain

may be there for awhile. Agree with another respondent to you that pain in recovery will vary according to the patient, so I'm definitely wishing you the very best outcome. DO YOUR P/T! Cannot emphasize that enough. You're battling scar tissue as well, so be diligent with your stretches and exercises.

I had both knees replaced (not at the same time) in 2022. Every day I'm so thankful to not be in chronic and/or debilitating pain.

Wishing you the best possible recovery!

[Croney]

3. I get mine the day after Christmas!

You sound very well prepared. I hope all goes well.

[gab13by13]

6. I am going to UPMC Pittsburgh

but the surgery is being done at MaGee Hospital. I do have a bit of a feminine face.😊

The surgeon is the kind of doctor I like, no nonsense, and he's a golfer.

The doctor ordered me one of those attachments that automatically bends my knee for me, I can wear it sleeping. he must think that just because I'm 77 I need extra help, but I don't argue with my doctor, dentist, or barber; well barber doesn't matter so much now.

[debm55]

43. Very good hospital. but why at MaGee.? From a Pittsburgh. Wish you luck. gab13by13

[MLAA]

5. Yeah! I recently had a small procedure and was told to put mupirocin in nose, belly button and ears!

Sending you best wishes for a swift and full recovery, since you are following pre surgery instructions so well I bet you’ll follow post surgery instructions just as well! 🩷

[gab13by13]

7. Thanks

I'm doing the exercises and riding my bike for an hour.

[a kennedy]

8. Babies all of ya.....both done at different times....first one.. 5 years ago....2nd one??? Jan 24 this year....

10 months ago. And, not doing so good. Don’t hurt, just not right. Can’t say….just not right. So what are they gonna do……not gonna find out. Ugh…..Dr’s ya know….i’ll live with it.

[sorcrow]

9. Good for you

My sister got both hers done. She said new knees added 10 yards to her drive.
And good for you doing pre-hab.

Best regards,
Sorghum Crow

[gab13by13]

15. Yeah, it's my left knee

with a new left knee I can get the weight transferred to my left side a lot better. Hitting it far isn't my problem, it's when I get on the green.

[2naSalit]

10. Sounds like you are...

And that's a good thing. I hope all goes well with a fast recovery time.

[LuckyCharms]

12. Best wishes to you, gab.

[paleotn]

13. Best of luck! My mom loved hers when she had them done back in the 90's.

Of course the Bionic Woman sound effects got a bit old after a while.

[Six117]

14. Good Luck!

All the best to you 😊

[dem4decades]

16. Good luck and keep us apprised of the progress.

I need 2 new knees, the left more that the right, kept putting it off and now I find myself 71, on blood thinners and thinking I waited too long. Can't wait to hear about your successful journey.

[gab13by13]

17. Thanks everyone,

I hope the robot wasn't out drinking the night before my surgery.

[ancianita]

18. Hope it's successful. Knee and hip replacements are the most commonly successful surgeries these days.

Wishing you rapid healing with little discomfort. You sound in great spirits, which is a big help.

[rubbersole]

19. Good luck!

Short grass to you always.

[NBachers]

20. I think there is a demographic here that would be interested in your rehab and progress.

Sometimes I feel an old jalopy with parts falling off as I clatter down the road with a puff of smoke behind me.

About robots: three years ago I had my left kidney taken out by a robot. Just a snip here, a snip there, and a snip down there. But when I got wheeled into the operating room and saw the robot suspended from the ceiling, I told them that I felt like I was in the operating room of the Starship Enterprise.

Miracles abound. May your new knee be one of them.

[JMCKUSICK]

21. Hopefully this

Will mean that you're not kneedy anymore.
Chuckle chuckle, best wishes for you.

[Probatim]

22. Who makes the knee you're getting?

And did you have a choice of manufacturer? Just curious, I do some work in this space.

[MichMan]

27. Doesn't every doctor usually have their own particular brand they use?

I worked a few years for a Tier II manufacturer that supplied several OEMs. Anywhere from partially finished to completely finished.

I often suspected that surgeons were getting kickbacks from the OEM to use their products.

[Probatim]

44. It used to be that way - hospitals are starting to dictate to surgeons now.

A surgeon might like a specific brand but procurement says the hospital is standardizing. It's not every hospital but I'm seeing it happen with more frequency.

[orleans]

23. hoping everything goes nice and smooth for you

and you'll be up and dancing in no time


question: what is Mupirocin and why do you have to swab your nose with it for upcoming surgery?

[radical noodle]

28. I think it's for staph and

your nasal passages are a breeding ground for staph. Infection can be a real problem with knee replacements (and other surgeries) they want to avoid them at all cost.

[orleans]

30. thanks; i had no idea but then i haven't had surgeries. yet. nt

[LoisB]

24. Good luck. May the surgeon's hands be sure and steady.

[Permanut]

25. You've done everything perfectly..

Several people I know have had total success with this procedure, and none of them were as well prepared as you are.

Send updates! Word is that recovery is a grind, but totally worth it.

[lucca18]

26. Best Wishes! Take Care!

[KitFox]

29. Well wishes!

Hope it all goes smoothly and you will be home for Thanksgiving! Good that you have prepared well! My mom had really debilitating arthritis and had both hips and both knees replaced in the late 70’s, early 80’s at a time it was pretty groundbreaking. It saved her from a life in a wheelchair and she was able to be ambulatory the rest of her life. I think how amazed she would be with the procedure today! All the best wishes to you!

[electric_blue68]

38. That's amazing! Good for her.

[AverageOldGuy]

31. Here's some advice

My wife (age 82) had one knee replaced in 2012, the other in 2014.

My daughter (age 55) had one knee replaced in Jan 2024, the other in April 2024.

You mention that you have been doing your pre-surgery exercises since September -- GOOD FOR YOU!!

The PT folks will drag you out of bed and have you walking within hours of surgery. Daughter came out of surgery around 11:00 AM; at 2:00 PM she walked up and down a flight of stairs (with the help of oxycontin); at 5:00 PM she got in the front seat of the car and we went home. DO IT . . . GET UP WHEN THE PT PEOPLE TELL YOU TO GET UP AND DO WHAT THEY SAY.

They will give you exercises to do at home. Daughter was given an exercise bike that was programmed with certain routines. PT gave her a schedule -- days 1-5, do exercise 1 and 2 four times daily; etc., etc. Plus icing and other exercises. DO IT!!!

My wife did her exercises religiously, had not one problem with her new knees.

We have friends, he had one knee replaced about 10 years ago. He was one of these assholes who knows everything -- "I don't need to to all that exercising!!" He wound up back in surgery six months later to fix the ligaments on the knee that had almost atrophied because he did not exercise them.

DO WHAT THE DOC AND THE PT PEOPLE TELL YOU TO DO.

[ShazzieB]

32. Congrats to you for being so well prepared!

Here's hoping your surgery and recovery go as smoothly as possible and you're back on your feet in no time!

[radical noodle]

33. Good luck!

[NoRethugFriends]

34. Do not expect recovery to be a piece of cake. IT can be difficult. Much more so than hip.

[Kali]

35. take the drugs, do the PT and ice is now your best friend - use it!

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

37. All the best!!

[electric_blue68]

39. Wishing you a Sucessful Surgery, and a Recovery on the easier side!

👍🤞🤞🤞

My sis probably will get at least the worst one done next year. Not sure about the other, how long she can wait . She's been working on her pre-surgery P/T.

[maspaha]

40. I just got a new left knee six weeks and one day ago...

…gotta be honest, it’s harder than hip replacement and shoulder replacement. I’m in my early 60’s and I’d put it off for more than five years. I’m only now starting to get to sleep all night. It’s really hard to get comfy. I took Rx pain meds for 2 & 1/2 solid weeks even with their evil side effects. I usually only take pain meds for a couple days. I’d never gotten a refill on postsurg pain meds…until knee replacement surgery. I also did presurg PT and am doing postsurg PT.

My flexion now, 138 degrees, is within three degrees of presurg flexion. The new joint gets stiff very easily.

I injured my left hip and knee in a fall about 30 years ago. The fall severely damaged my knee cap and 10 years of estrogen blockers (I’m a 14 year breast cancer survivor) left me with tri-compartmental arthritis, a funky patella, and osteopenia in my left knee. I could walk up stairs, hills, etc, but not down.

Hope your surgery & rehab goes well!

[10 Turtle Day]

41. I've had both knees replaced

One in 2011 and the other in 2023. The first one was sheer hell recovering from. So much pain and it froze up even though I diligently did all the PT. Getting range of motion back was a long arduous and painful process. But after all that PT I was strongest I’d been in years. I did 3 half marathon walking races on it and all the training leading up to the races without any problem.

The second one was outpatient and I went home the same day! And so much easier. I chalk it up to new technology improving over the years.

My sister had hers done and she did not do PT or pre-surgery exercises and she breezed through it anyway. I was jealous at how easy she had it! So your mileage may vary.

As Kali said upthread, ice and PT are your new best friends! Can’t emphasize that enough. It can take up to full year to get back to normal, so patience is also key.

I wish you a breezy easy experience like my sister had. But you need to keep doing the PT to get full range of motion back. If it doesn’t bend all the way, everyday things like getting in and out of a car become very difficult. Best of luck to you and please report back on your recovery process!

[wryter2000]

42. You will be so glad you got it done

My old knees were torture. The new ones work perfectly.

[dem4decades]

45. Happy Thanksgiving, how are you doing?