Bad Knees

[ronjhall]

My BIL had both of his knees replaced. Either my sister or I need to do RV roof work for him now. His knees will not bend far enough to make that last rung onto roof. He was/is willing to give up that for all the benefits of the replacement.

 

[Bird]

He was/is willing to give up that for all the benefits of the replacement.

I understand. As the doctor said, "The idea is to be able to walk without hurting."

 

[sweettractors]

I understand. As the doctor said, "The idea is to be able to walk without hurting."

You will be fine in a few more weeks. It is a slow process. I have my 98 year old next door neighbor here in the office with me and I am questioning him as I post on this subject. He had both his replaced in his early ninety's. He says the more you use it the better quicker the pain goes away and also the range of movement gets better. Ken Sweet

 

[dmccarty]

This morning was my 12 week checkup after the knee replacement surgery. Of course they made a few x-rays, just as they did 6 weeks ago. And the doctor showed me the x-rays on this laptop computer. (At least he said they were x-rays of my knee). Everything lined up perfectly.

Hard to believe it has been 12 weeks.

Glad it is working out. I think my mother is getting to the point that she will need the surgery and what people on this thread have said makes me feel better about the procedure compared to the results of my grandfather's operation.

Later,
Dan

 

[RadarTech]

Bird,
My mil had her knees done 3 years ago.. She is now walking 2 miles every morning!

 

[Bird]

Hard to believe it has been 12 weeks.

Glad it is working out. I think my mother is getting to the point that she will need the surgery and what people on this thread have said makes me feel better about the procedure compared to the results of my grandfather's operation.

Later,
Dan

Dan, I guess it just depends on getting a good doctor and hospital with the experience in whatever kind of surgery a person has. I happened to have a doctor and hospital that kind of specialize in joint reconstruction, so I doubt that you could find anyone any better at it than they are. Of course I haven't spent a great deal of time with this doctor, but he's a likeable fellow as well as having lots of experience.

Of course, no surgery is fun, but I think you can tell your mother that it ain't too bad either.

 

[WVBill]

Glad to hear you're progressing well, Bird.

You're experiencing about the same things I did with my knee replacements.

The thing to remember is that whatever pain you're experiencing now is due to the trauma of the surgery not the original knee joint dis-integration that got you there. The surgery trauma will heal - it will just take time.

 

[texbaylea]

I have the replacement of my left knee scheduled for right after Christmas. I will be using the same surgeon that repaired my left hip. That went well and I experienced little pain. The cause being a fall there was no existing trauma to the surrounding tissues and structures which made my recovery easier. That is not true for the knees so I expect a lot more pain after the surgery.

Bird, I hope that I do as well as you have done. One thing that will help me is that my surgeon uses surgical glue to repair the tissues not sutures or staples. Less scaring

Vernon

 

[Bird]

Vernon, my surgeon does use staples, but I don't mind the scar it left at all. The surgery was on a Monday morning, I went home Thursday afternoon, had a home health care physical therapist 5 days a week for 2 weeks, then went to out patient physical therapy 3 days a week for 5 weeks. And all the people who participated in my care, in the hospital, at home, and at the physical therapists were good folks. Hope you have as good a crew of care providers as I had.

I mowed, edged, and trimmed the yard this morning and used the grass catcher because I wanted to pick up the leaves, even though most of the leaves on the bradford pear trees have not fallen yet. I ran the Mantis tiller just to be sure it would still start and run OK, then used the Stihl string trimmer, and finally the Toro mower. And I was able to do all that with almost no pain. Then I showered and sat down to rest and when I started to get up, I found I'd stiffened up from all that exercise after my recent inactivity.:laughing::laughing:

But yes, I think I've been lucky and am doing well.

 

[jinman]

Bird, I think you have a lot to be thankful for today and beyond. This seems to all have gone quite well. Happy Thanksgiving to you and Margaret.

Vernon, considering your events this year, I'm sure you are giving thanks too. Good luck with your upcoming surgery.