Knee Replacement

I'm having issues with one of my knees in the form of pain and restricted movement. I'm beginning to research knee replacement and wanted to know if anyone that has had a knee replacement might share their thoughts on it. Any regrets? Positive comments? I'm not looking for medical advice, just other people's experiences with the process and results.

Also, apologies if this has already been covered here. I did try searching for a related thread but nothing came up.

Buug959 wrote

I'm having issues with one of my knees in the form of pain and restricted movement. I'm beginning to research knee replacement and wanted to know if anyone that has had a knee replacement might share their thoughts on it. Any regrets? Positive comments? I'm not looking for medical advice, just other people's experiences with the process and results.

Also, apologies if this has already been covered here. I did try searching for a related thread but nothing came up.

Sorry you are having knee trouble. I've not had knee replacement myself, but I have 6 friends who have had it done and I can give you the following advice based on their experiences:

1- Do it! Each of them had a very positive outcome. All of them said they wish they had done it sooner. Just make sure you get a surgeon who has a lot of experience.

2- Since you have only one knee bad this does not apply, but the advice I was given is don't do both knees at the same time.

3- Follow the doctor's instructions to the letter with regard to post-surgery recovery. Exercise, stretch, move around as soon as they tell you it's okay. Don't sit there. Getting moving again is the key.

4- Don't be too impatient about your recovery time. If you follow your exercise program to the letter and don't overdo it, you have the best chance of getting back to 100% more quickly.

As I mentioned, I'm giving you feedback from friends so please take my input accordingly. Hopefully, others will post who have had knee replacement themselves. If they give you advice that is different, please listen to them instead! Best of luck to you.

The wife had both replaced (separately), and had a completely uneventful recovery- despite all of the horror stories she heard from her colleagues.

I’m relatively certain that they’ve found better ways of doing the surgery since the ‘old days’, which is the reason for the easier recovery.

If you’ve come to the point where you’re seriously considering replacement, then it’s time.

sygazelle wrote

Sorry you are having knee trouble. I've not had knee replacement myself, but I have 6 friends who have had it done and I can give you the following advice based on their experiences:

1- Do it! Each of them had a very positive outcome. All of them said they wish they had done it sooner. Just make sure you get a surgeon who has a lot of experience.

2- Since you have only one knee bad this does not apply, but the advice I was given is don't do both knees at the same time.

3- Follow the doctor's instructions to the letter with regard to post-surgery recovery. Exercise, stretch, move around as soon as they tell you it's okay. Don't sit there. Getting moving again is the key.

4- Don't be too impatient about your recovery time. If you follow your exercise program to the letter and don't overdo it, you have the best chance of getting back to 100% more quickly.

As I mentioned, I'm giving you feedback from friends so please take my input accordingly. Hopefully, others will post who have had knee replacement themselves. If they give you advice that is different, please listen to them instead! Best of luck to you.

Thanx for the input. Any and all information is appreciated.

Not a knee, but my cousin had his hip replaced. As another posted commented, follow the doctor’s schedule for PT, exercise, movement, etc. He precisely followed it and didn’t have any issues.

Matter of fact, he got back into working out a few years after and is JACKED at 50.

My wife had her knee replaced almost exactly a year ago. She is happy she did it now but there was a lot of pain involved and a long recovery time.

As others have stated, you have to follow the directions precisely, including walking a little almost immediately after surgery, using a walker, ice, medication and PT. The recovery is nothing like hip replacement as recovery from knee replacement takes a lot longer. You’ll need someone to help you for at least a week or two and if it is your right knee, don’t expect to drive for at least 3-4 weeks (so someone will need to take you to PT at least 3 times / week).

Happy to provide some further details but my suggestion is to see an orthopedic doctor and go through treatment alternatives before jumping into a replacement. If you are young (under 70), they generally advise to wait as long as possible because knee replacements do not last forever. Best wishes as you move forward. I know it’s not easy to deal with the pain before the replacement either.

If it is an option, inpatient rehab is well worth it. They get you moving more, and better, than most anyone can accomplish at home (home PT will be scaled back by comparison, even if you tell them to max you out). Overall results show significant improvements for both rate and extent of recovery.

And as noted above, explore options and the actual results you can expect. It is a new knee, but not really as tough or versatile as your original - if you are very athletic or working it hard with kneeling/lifting then you may wear the replacement faster than what you have now.

I had patella femoral replacements to both knees about ten years ago.

At the end of March this year I had a full replacement to my left knee and I am very glad I did.

I have had absolutely no pain from day one and I am currently travelling around Europe averaging around 18K steps a day with no issue.

It has been a little uncomfortable but certainty no pain.

After the operation I was home after one day and started walking almost immediately. I had five weeks off work.

I am a firm believer that the best outcomes come to those who put the effort in. At 61 I am still relatively fit and don't sit around all day on my bum. I made a very conscience effort to get up and go walking as much as I could.

A very good friend of mine, who happens to be very overweight, had her operation about two weeks before me and she is still limping around. She does no exercise and wonders why it's getting no better.

I have absolutely no regrets other than I wish I had done it sooner!

What's your age and have you had the knee evaluated with an MRI or similar? I'm of the opinion that one should avoid surgery where possible and instead make changes to lifestyle first to see if that addresses the issue. Lifestyle changes can be very difficult as it can take time, focus, and a mental change as bad habits are hard to break. Lifestyle changes may include:

1) Eating better to reduce inflammation in the body.

2) Losing weight if you're overweight.

3) Physical therapy and light weight training.

4) Mobility training especially things like backwards walking.

I'm 51 and a competitive volleyball player. About 10 years ago, I began having shoulder issues where my arm would go numb after hitting a ball. My shoulder was weak, would click, and felt terrible most of the time. The doctor said I had a some sort of rotor cuff or similar issue and that an MRI wasn't great at finding smoking guns in the shoulders given how tightly packed in things are within the joint and that the approach he and most other docs take is cut it open, see what's going on, and fix it. I didn't like that answer at all. Friends that had shoulder surgeries basically told me the same as my doctor and also said recovery was terrible. I decided to improve my swinging form and to do some PT and weight training. I realized my swinging form was trash and my delts very weak. Within 8 weeks, I was pain free and haven't had issues since.

My 17 y/o daughter is a very high level volleyball player and when she's had issues, we take her to sports PT and the issues are addressed very quickly.

A friend of mine is a PT (25 years) and swears up and down that in his opinion, he sees about 40% or so success rate in reducing pain with people that do surgery with follow up PT vs those that try PT and losing weight first where he see their success at 60%+. He firmly believes that weight management and staying active are the keys to joint health and managing pain. His thing is "stay moving" and eat well. Simple as that.

Lastly, my 80 y/o has had 3 knee replacements. One was redone because she had so much pain with the first one. The knee was initially done in 2010 and then again in 2012. The replacement wasn't much better. The reason being they did realize her body was allergic to the nickel in the knee. She can't redo it because there isn't enough bone to attach to again. She just had her other knee done two weeks ago and is recovering well. This knee is made of a titanium alloy. My mother is overweight and has been for decades. She doesn't eat well and doesn't exercise or stretch.

Update: (for anyone interested)

A couple of weeks ago I got a cortisone injection in my knee(my first). It was mildly uncomfortable but not nearly as bad as I was led to believe by my Dr. and friends that have had them. I also didn't have the day or two of aching that I was told I would experience.

As for the results, I'm happy so far. The pain is all but gone. I no longer wear my knee brace. I can walk more than a couple hundred yards now without needing to stop for a minute. Stairs are no longer a problem although I'm not running up and down them like I used to... yet. I've taken my bicycle in to have it tuned up so I can start riding again. It's been lounging in the shed for years now. Time to show it some love.

How long the relief will last is open-ended, some say a few months and some have told me they have only needed one injection in years. Time will tell but I'm not hugely optimistic. I see the injection as being akin to repacking a worn out bearing with fresh grease in order to coax a little more life out of it until you can replace it.

I am going to a metal show next weekend so we'll see if I'm up to the mosh pit again. Here's hoping!

Good luck. If the shot works that well you dont need surgery.
How much one hurts depends a great deal on the person doing it and the condition of the knee joint which they are putting it into. As the space in there narrows it gets more difficult. In the end you can only have them every 3 months and they wont work that long.

Both of mine have been replaced now and I am 100%. My legs aren't bowed and are the same length again. No limp.

Update: Post metal show

Last Friday I flew to Toronto (about 2 1/4 hrs) for a show at the Danforth Music Hall. It's a small venue that I love. The shows are always a lot of fun because the bands are so close and they really get into it. There were four bands playing and three of them I'd never heard of before. They were Bloodywood, from New Delhi, Ankor, from Spain, Ladrones, from Mexico and The Pretty Wild, from Nevada.

Bloodywood (who I was familiar with) was the headliner and put on a fantastic show. Ankor and Ladrones were both great as well. The Pretty Wild were ok. All four bands however kept the crowd going and kept the mosh pit jumping.

Now being an old guy in the mosh pit has it's advantages. First, if you can hold your own against all the young guys you gain massive respect. And second, they tend to take it a little easier on you. For the most part I stayed close to the edge so I could hop out quickly if needed because I wasn't real sure how my knee was going to feel. It's been a few years since I've dared to even get close to the pit. As it turned out my knee held up very well. I did however bow out every time the "Wall of Death" formed up. (example for those that don't know.) .
That one I wasn't ready for... yet .

All in all I'd say my first show after the cortisone shot has been a success and I can't wait for the next one. I do have tickets for RUSH in August but they're not really a mosh pit kind of group. September may be a little better as I have tickets to Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie. That show is going to be fun! I just have to get my bicycle back and get out there and strengthen my legs some more.

That looks as fun as fighting on Saturday night.
Too old for that too.