Knee replacement

[HunterWhite]

Jimbo, don’t gat too frightened of this stuff. My brother had his knee replaced and everything went as expected.
I wish you luck.


Hunter

[NorCal David]

The “little lady” had a knee replacement about three years ago and is very active again. The only changes are she uses a trekking pole on hikes so she won’t fall on that knee if she trips, and she does not lift more than 25 pounds. No more pain and she is quite happy now. They have gotten quite good at performing knee replacements these days.
Wishing you the best!

[TonyF1]

I had a total replacement of my right knee 6 months ago. Like you I had no choice, the pain was becoming unmanageable. There is nothing easy about it but it is doable. They do a block so for 72 hours after the surgery it didnt seem so bad but after the block wore off is when I really felt the pain. For me the first 3 weeks after surgery I wouldnt have recommended it but the pain subsided after that. They gave me oxycodone for pain. I took the oxy for probably the first week and then used it mostly for going to therapy. I took 2 5mg tablets before therapy to get the most out of the bending exercises. I had a real tough time getting the knee to bend and at 8 weeks could only get 80 degrees of bend. The surgeon recommended a manipulation where they put you out and force bend the knee to bust up the scare tissue to get more range. This sounded pretty scary to me but I did it and it really helped. If you are having trouble getting range of movement back ask your surgeon about this. It does hurt after but not nearly as bad as the original replacement surgery. I now have 125 degrees of bend which is the where the surgeon will want you to be. 120 to 125 degrees is all the replacment joint is designed to go. Good luck to you!!!

[Matchstickshooter]

 My wife (73 years young) had her second knee replacement today.
First was right, (about 3 years ago) today was the left, and she breezed right through.
 Be a few days recuperating, but so far so good!
 She has a cane, and a walker, but right now "they're just in the way".

[Berserkeley Mike]

Hey, Jimbo,
You are right to not take major surgery lightly.  Read Orv's account, infections sometimes do happen.  I had a close relative throw a plaque clot and suffer a major stroke in recovery.  Complications happen often enough that if we ask around, we all hear of somebody.  But by far the majority we know do well, and have that better quality of life.
You have until February, right?  What can you do between now and then to prepare for this battle?  Are there things you can change, diet, exercise (OK, tough because of the knee, but there are weights, swimming and such that won't aggravate it), stress?  Have you ever been in training for physical competition, for some sport?  Ask your doc, but mine particularly wanted good cardiovasular conditioning (aerobic workouts, lost weight), so I wouldn't be a problem for anesthesia.  Worry about the recovery exercises afterwards, get into your fighting shape now! 

[jimbo]

Yeah, there are pre op exercises you can do so I'm gonna try and get started with that, Feb. 12 will be here before you know it.

[Hoppalong Doc]

       Your range of motion exercises will be of paramount  importance  along with the strength building work. May the peace of God be with you during this time. After you've gotten past those first couple of weeks post surgery you'll look back and be glad you did it. Merry Christmas to you, Orv.

[Berserkeley Mike]

Jim,  I'm three months out from a new hip, and need to do exercises too.  Today I only did a little stretching.  But tomorrow, let's encourage each other through social pressure!  I need to do laundry in my basement, and the machine needs supervision, so I have a weight set there and I'll lift weights while babysitting the washer.  To make the whole activity fun and airgun related, after each set of repetitions, I'll shoot 5 shots from my Wally World springer at a 15 yard target.  I have 9 sets of exercises, and so... that's 45 shots too. 
What will you do?
Cheers,
Mike

[Berserkeley Mike]

Well, eight by 5 shot groups, between sets.  From the top to bottom of the target sheet it is sitting, left and right side (I practice both sides), just right of the red dots, then kneeling at the corners of the boxes around the red dots, then standing at the bottom (some were off-target but I was getting physically tired), then prone right in the middle.  15 yards, Airforce Talon P/SS H&N Match Green, CO2 driving at around 8 ft#.  Plus I got a workout on the weights and laundry done!  Way more than I did yesterday, or the day before that.
Jim, just do it!
Merry Christmas,
Mike