liz_marcs | Seeking People Who've Had Their Knees Replaced

Current Mood: thankful
Current Music: Misfits - The Forbidden Zone | Powered by Last.fm

Seeking People Who've Had Their Knees Replaced

Daddy!Marcs is going in next week to get his right knee replaced.

Frankly it was a long time in coming, and even though he could wait to get it done there was a cancellation and he magically ended up getting something a little sooner than "a year from now."

So, anyone out there had knee replacement surgery within the past couple of years? Or had a relative who had one within that time period? [The reason for the short time span is because joint replacement surgery technology has vastly improved from, say, 5 years ago.]

I mean, I can dig up the medical literature and all that, but first-hand accounts of been-there-done-that would be a huge help for moi. I'm even thinking of passing on a print-out of comments to the Parental Units so they'd have some first-hand testimony. (Just giving fair warning there.)

Among the things I'd like to know:

Pain. How bad and for how long?
What kind of drugs should my parents expect? (I.e., blood thinners, prophylactic antibiotics, etc.)
How quickly did they get you back on your feet? Did they make you get out of bed and hobble around the same day? Or did they wait a day or two?
How long was your hospital stay?
My dad has the option of going home right after hospitalization, or stopping for a couple days at a rehab center between hospital and home. Which option would you recommend? Home first? Or rehab center first?
Which is better during the recovery process: walker or crutches?
How long was it before you could return to normal activities of daily living? We're hearing anything from 6 weeks to 3 months.

Just some things to keep in mind about Daddy!Marcs: He's in fairly good health and in his mid-60s. My parents also live on the second floor for Ye Olde Compound, which could be a factor in choosing the rehab-center-first option.

So my All-Wise and All-Know Flisties, any information you could give me would be mucho appreciated.

Gracias

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I don't know anyone who's had a knee replacement, but several of my friends have had hip replacements in the past few years and they have all been thrilled with the results.

Sorry I can't offer you any useful information--but best wishes to Daddy!Marcs and yourself!

Thanks on his behalf.

Paul's grandmother had it done three years ago. I believe she stayed in the hospital proper for a couple of days until she could walk as much as they wanted (down the hall) and graduated to a rehab clinic for another few days. Granted, her time out of her home was probably longer due to her being 80+ and living alone (and on a hill). That said, her recovery probably went faster with the rehab time than it would have without. I will ask her the other questions.

Thanks!

I haven't had a knee replacement surgery, but I did have a lateral release on my left knee. Far less invasive, but to give you an idea of how I recovered from that: no hospital stay, on my feet shortly after I woke up. ("Here are your crutches, let's see you use them, OK, get out of here.") The first week it hurt like a motherfrakker, even with painkillers. I was pretty much confined to couch or bed for the first couple days. Around 18-20 days I was off the crutches and using a cane. I went to physio a couple times a week for an hour and worked hard at recovery, though.

Your father's is much more invasive, of course. I think I would suggest the rehab first since that's an option. They'll get him moving as soon as possible, no doubt, and being hobbled will likely make him a PitA to the family because I know from experience you get frustrated as hell. Best to let trained professionals deal with that. ;)

"Lateral release?" What on earth is that?

*googles*

Ow! YikeYikeYike...

Ummm, what happened that you needed to have that procedure? I ask because I have a torn ACL that I know I probably should get taken care of. And if it's the same thing... *bites nails*

Chondromalacia patella is the official name, but it's also called "Runner's Knee." My kneecap wasn't riding in the groove anymore and was rubbing against the joint. I could walk just fine, but running and going up and down stairs was excruciating. Funny thing was, I wasn't a runner!

I haven't had my knee replaced, but I have worked an orthopedics floor as a patient care tech and worked with people who have, so I'll say what I can on a couple of these.

How quickly did they get you back on your feet? Did they make you get out of bed and hobble around the same day? Or did they wait a day or two?

Usually the next day, was my experience, though there was some variation depending on factors that I couldn't fathom. Though they'd put patients on the continuous passive motion machine almost immediately. More on that further down.

How long was your hospital stay?

Barring surgical complications, most I saw stayed 2 days.

My dad has the option of going home right after hospitalization, or stopping for a couple days at a rehab center between hospital and home. Which option would you recommend? Home first? Or rehab center first?

Rehab. The more intensive physical therapy he can get straight off, the better. And even if he has outpatient PT prescribed, he'll have more reinforcement and support beyond the formal PT sessions in a rehab setting. Or he should, though all rehabs are not created equal.

Also, he may or may not be prescribed a continuous passive motion (CPM) machine for home use, but I'd be shocked if they didn't use one in the rehab, and those are really helpful in regaining range of motion, even when you're not ready to be doing much weight-bearing stuff yet. You use it lying down and it flexes and bends your knee to a prescribed number of degrees for two hours at a stretch.

OTOH, if the rehab that's available is not going to offer any more PT than he'd get as an outpatient, and if they're not going to keep him on a CPM, then he might as well have the comforts of home.

Which is better during the recovery process: walker or crutches?

Walker. Better to go from walker to cane, imo, for a number of reasons. Crutches freaking hurt. Hurt your underarms, hurt your hands, and they encourage you to keep way too much weight off your legs. Great for breaks. Horrible for an injury or operation that requires you to use the leg for recovery. Walkers, on the other hand, are better for keeping just enough weight off your feet and making sure you keep your balance. You just have to make sure it's adjusted to a good height so that you're not walking around all hunched over. Similarly, canes are good for keeping just enough weight off without throwing too much onto your arm and hand.

Hope some of that helps. Good luck to Daddy!Marcs!

I nearly killed myself with crutches once. Short summary: Don't go near stairs with them.

I don't have all of the specific answers to the questions, but I can tell you that my uncle had knee replacement surgery about 2 years ago, and to this day wonders why he waited so long to do it. About a year ago he had the second knee done as well.

He's very happy with his "new knees" and doesn't regret it a bit. He found the recovery to be better than he feared it would have been, and that it was completely worth it.

Hey, I know this one! Err... kinda. :)

My father has had both of his knees replaced: one of them four years ago, and the other one three years ago. He handled the second one better than the first, since he'd been through it already. He's also a bit younger than your father - my dad was 56-57 between the two knee replacements. On another note, my mother also has a shoulder replacement. Yes, I have cyborg parents.

Anyway, I passed your questions onto him and I'll let you know what he says. I live a bit far away from my parents, so I wasn't there for the entire recovery process, and he'd be able to answer those questions better than me. I saw him the day of the surgery, and he was kinda spacey, and I saw him a few times in the preceding weeks.

What I DO know without referring to him:

- He'll without a doubt be prescribed painkillers and possibly steroids (to promote healing, but that really depends on the doctor). When it comes to the painkillers, if he starts feeling sick tell the doctor right away. They were giving my dad Perkocet (I have no idea how to spell that one) and it was making him feel very nauseous. They switched him to Vicodin and he was fine.

- My dad used a walker before switching over to a cane. I'm not sure of the length of time, but a walker makes more sense to me, anyway. (I've been on crutches myself, and they wear you out. He's already going to be worn out enough from the surgery and PT.)

Anyway, I shot my dad an e-mail and I'll let you know what he says. Your dad'll be fine in the long run. My dad is going on hikes again and everything. He seems much more mobile, lots happier, and he doesn't complain about his knee anymore. :-D

Bruce's dad had his knee replaced in early December. I only know a few of the answers, but I'll tell you those. BTW, he's 86. I imagine that affects lots of the recovery questions.

1. Pretty bad. It's been 5 weeks and there's still pain. On the other hand, the pain now is less bad than the pain before the surgery.

2. No idea about meds.

3. He was led for walks around the ward starting two days after the surgery.

4. He was originally scheduled to spend 10 days in hospital, but they kept him an additional week.

5. I think this depends on lots of things: how long he's in hospital, how well he's doing, how much you and your family can honestly commit to helping him. For Don, home is a six hour drive from where he had the surgery, and that was an important factor.

6. Walker.

7. Not there yet.

My mother literally just had it done.

# Pain. How bad and for how long?
A lot, and she's still in it at the moment (mostly from the strain on the other knee) but she's functional. She had the surgery mid-November.

# What kind of drugs should my parents expect? (I.e., blood thinners, prophylactic antibiotics, etc.)
Painkillers? Those. Lots. And antibiotics. I don't know if that was just hers, but her knee looked like something out of Silent Hill for a few days.

# How quickly did they get you back on your feet? Did they make you get out of bed and hobble around the same day? Or did they wait a day or two?
You're back on your 'feet' very quickly because they need to get that knee moving. I don't think that day but probably the next one, if I recall what I was told. You DO get a walker, though, and it's slow going; not too far.

# How long was your hospital stay?
My mom stayed in the hospital for about four or five days then went to a recovery place for almost a week.

# My dad has the option of going home right after hospitalization, or stopping for a couple days at a rehab center between hospital and home. Which option would you recommend? Home first? Or rehab center first?
Rehab center for the love of Pete.

# Which is better during the recovery process: walker or crutches?
Walkers get stuck on EVERYTHING. So if you think you can do the arm strain of crutches, I'd say do crutches. My mother was so irritated with her walker, she gave up on it almost immediately.

# How long was it before you could return to normal activities of daily living? We're hearing anything from 6 weeks to 3 months.
My mom's in what's technically her third month and she's pretty much back to normal though she has to be careful. That said, she still uses the machine for her knee to make sure it doesn't lock up, but from what my friend has told me, your mileage may vary. You're hearing different numbers because different people have different levels of activity and healing, I think.

I don't know how helpful that was, but that's what I've seen.

but her knee looked like something out of Silent Hill for a few days.

Yeah, this. Only I said it looked like Frankenstein.

My mil had her knee replaced about 5 years ago. She'a one of those folks who would never be truthful about the amount of pain so I can't answer to that question. She didn't have blood thinners, she did have prophylactic antibotics. They had her up the day after surgery. She was out of the hospital in 3 days. She wanted to be home right away but I think she would have been better served with staying at the rehab for a few days, at least. She fell the day after she came home and that scared the pants of the lot of us. She opted for a cane during the recovery process. Two canes at first, then one. It took her about 6 weeks to get back into the swing of her daily activities at home but significant pain lasted beyond 3 months. She gained a lot of weight (about 40 pounds) after surgery and she's never gotten back into the habit of walking for exercise since the surgery.
Best of luck to your dad.

My BFF's father had knee replacement last year, and he is so happy that he did. Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of specific answers for you, but I remember that he said that because he'd been in so much pain before with his knee that post-surgery during recovery it was actually better. I'm sure some of that was psychological, since he knew the pain was a healing pain.

I know he had a lot of PT, though I seem to remember that he came home directly from the hospital. They did have to arrange the house so that he didn't have to deal with stairs for a bit. He had a couple of hours of in-house PT a day for a while afterward he got home, plus I think he did swim therapy after a little while at a local pool. He was back doing most normal stuff within maybe two months.

Best of luck to your family!

I had partial replacement - I have bionic tendons now. The internal damage from surgery is about the same, esp. pain/rehab.

1. Pain was intense for two days, so I made sure to keep up with my pills. Trying to sleep comfortably was the worst, extra pillows to prop up and immobilize the knee are a must.
2. I had nausea meds (never needed to take them) and hydrocodone. The pain meds were terrific.
3. No pressure on my leg for a solid 36 hours, then crutches and the beginning stages of PT. I was very determined, so I was completley off crutches and braces in a week, but that's not normal.
4. If he can stop at a rehab facility, that might be the best. Unless he's the type to feel better in his own bed, then I'd say go home.
5. Crutches for me, but I'm an old hand at using them.
6. Again, I was determined, so I was back to normal after about 3 or 4 weeks, but I'd say 6 if he's been in good health and active, longer if he's not very active.

I had a few massage patients who had knee replacement. The results varied a lot, but textbook healing time for a bone break is 6-8 weeks, longer in the elderly... and this is more comprehensive than an ordinary simple fracture.

Bone pain is really bad. Tell your dad not to be a hero, take the pills (but as someone else said above, note any side-effects and change meds if necessary.) Pain increases the stress on the body, so the more you can minimize stress, the more energy the body can devote to healing itself.

They'll probably have him up right away, both to keep the joint moving and to minimize the risk of blood clots from inactivity. A walker is better - the support is more even, and crutches play hell with the upper body (important blood vessels under the arms, no good putting pressure on those unnecessarily. If he's used crutches and is comfortable with them--his decision, why stress over it? Different things work for different people.

Yes, rehab, for as long as they'll let him stay. This is partly because a trained Occupational Therapist will make sure he's doing the exercises properly (it makes a difference) and because a rehab unit will have people to help him get up and down. I've nearly wrecked my own back helping elderly clients move around. (What can you do when someone starts to fall except catch her?) You'll be doing that assistance soon enough, so put it off as long as you can.

And ASK the OT about proper body mechanics for YOU, when you're helping him. Knowing how to balance and use leverage will help you both.

If your doctor is at all nutrition-minded, ask about supplements. My MD bro-in-law ok'd calcium supplements for his own dad after he broke a rib in a fall; I understand vitamin E also speeds healing. If your doc doesn't believe in vitamins, you might check with a nutritionist, but DO check any possible interactions between meds and supplements.

Your dad's success in this will be largely up to him. The worst-case client I worked with was a woman in her 70's who refused to to do the rehab exercizes and wouldn't even get out of her wheelchair. Result: within six months, she was completely dependent on the wheelchair.

Best-case: a woman who was 85 and had both knees done at once because she couldn't play golf anymore. She did her rehab every day, got me in to do massage to keep things flexible and keep the pain down ... and when I last saw her she was 89 and still mobile (with a cane.) It's hard work and it hurts like hell at first, but it makes all the difference.

Good luck to you and your dad.

My dad's answers:

# Pain. How bad and for how long?
Not too bad. Recovering from the surgery itself is probably worse than the knee. Of course, the longer it's been since surgery, the easier I remember it being.

# What kind of drugs should my parents expect? (I.e., blood thinners, prophylactic antibiotics, etc.)
Yes, yes and something for the pain.
(Krissy sez): See my other comment on the problem with the painkillers, though.

# How quickly did they get you back on your feet? Did they make you get out of bed and hobble around the same day? Or did they wait a day or two?
I think I was up that night.
(Krissy sez: He didn't go very far, but he was up. I remember that.)

# How long was your hospital stay?
I was home in 2 days.

# My dad has the option of going home right after hospitalization, or stopping for a couple days at a rehab center between hospital and home. Which option would you recommend? Home first? Or rehab center first?
If it's both knees he'll have to go to a rehab place. If it's only one it will probably depend on his age but he should be able to go straight home. The first knee was replaced on a Friday, I went home Sunday and your mother went back to work on Tuesday.

# Which is better during the recovery process: walker or crutches?
He'll have to use a walker for a week or two, then crutches.
(Krissy sez: I apparently missed the crutches part. Still, I guess walker, then crutches, and then a cane. My dad was pretty much living in the basement living room during his recovery at home, so obviously I wouldn't recommend any stairs for a bit.)

# How long was it before you could return to normal activities of daily living? We're hearing anything from 6 weeks to 3 months.
Depends. If he's an accountant, 6 weeks; if he's a roofer, it'll be a little while longer.

My grand-aunt had her knee done a couple of years ago, basic femoral condyle-tibial plateau replacement stuff. Here's what I remember.

-What kind of drugs should my parents expect? (I.e., blood thinners, prophylactic antibiotics, etc.)
-Painkillers, antibiotics, steroids.

-How quickly did they get you back on your feet? Did they make you get out of bed and hobble around the same day? Or did they wait a day or two?
-Waited a day or two.

-My dad has the option of going home right after hospitalization, or stopping for a couple days at a rehab center between hospital and home. Which option would you recommend? Home first? Or rehab center first?
-She was almost 80 and lived alone, so she spent a couple days at a rehab center.

-Which is better during the recovery process: walker or crutches?
-Walker. It was more stable for her balance-wise (4 interconnected legs vs. 2 separate) and wouldn't hurt her arms as much.

-How long was it before you could return to normal activities of daily living? We're hearing anything from 6 weeks to 3 months.
-It was at least three months, but like I said, she's rather elderly and wasn't in terrific athletic shape to begin with. Also, her definition of normal activity is cleaning her house, driving a car, and walking her dog a few blocks. She isn't a triathlete.

DaddyoftheSpecies had the replacement 3-4 years ago. It went fine. He healed up in about 4 weeks and was on his feet about 10 days after surgery walking pretty well. He was given one of those circulating ice machines for swelling and had that machine that keeps the knee moving while at rest. That really helped his knee to heal without being stuck in one position. Lots of pain killers are needed for that though, at least in the beginning.

He will be 73 in Feb so a little older than your dad, but he's in excellent health as well so I expect your dad will be fine. Ask about the devices I mentioned. I think they made a big difference.

Good luck!

No actual info, but posts and responses like this are reasons I love LJ & fandom!

Everyone else has already given great info and advice, but... remember who I work for? Let me know if my resources can help you; I have access to lots of medical literature.

Good luck to your dad (and to you -- don't hurt yourself helping him)!

I saw your post and had to laugh a little. I took my mom to PT today. She had her right knee replaced in early October. I answered your questions below, but remember your dad's milage may vary. :-)

Pain. How bad and for how long?

Each person reacts to pain and pain management differently. My mom had almost NO pain from the beginning. She took her meds as directed because the hospital she had her surgery at believes in managed pain care. What pain she had was mainly due to fatigue, although she's had a couple of 'bad days'. We were warned to expect them by her surgeon, her nurses and the rehab people. It's generally a day or two here and there where the pain/fatigue/mood gets bad enough to need some additional medication/assistance. Don't worry too much about it - it'll pass. Or not happen at all.

What kind of drugs should my parents expect? (I.e., blood thinners, prophylactic antibiotics, etc.)

Mom's on medication for pre-existing conditions, so that factored into what they gave her as it will for your father. Pain meds, antibiotics and a blood thinner were among the drugs she was given. Others in this thread have warned that your father should immediately inform doctor/nurse/you of any strange or odd feelings or reactions. I cannot stress this enough. Mom had a reaction to the medication they gave her for her HBP that necessitated some quick changes in meds that only came to light after she complained to me about feeling run-down.

How quickly did they get you back on your feet? Did they make you get out of bed and hobble around the same day? Or did they wait a day or two?

Surgery was at 5:45 AM. She was in recovery by 10:30ish and in a regular room by 12 Noon. She walked to the bathroom at 6:00 PM. From what I heard from the rehab folks, it's customary to get a patient on their feet asap.

How long was your hospital stay?
Hospital = 4 days, Rehab center = 9 days

My dad has the option of going home right after hospitalization, or stopping for a couple days at a rehab center between hospital and home. Which option would you recommend? Home first? Or rehab center first?

*Rehab* first. In rehab they teach you how to dress yourself, get around, go up/down stairs, go to the toilet, walk around while carrying something (harder than it sounds, trust me). Having to essentially learn how to walk again takes time - and learning how to live as normal a life as possible during the process is invaluable in reducing stress which speeds recovery. And starting (and maintaining!) physical therapy asap is important for a full recovery. Someone else mentioned a CPM machine - which is *awesome* in helping after knee surgery. If they don't have one, ask for one.

Which is better during the recovery process: walker or crutches?

For mom? A walker. It provided more stability for her and wasn't as hard on her upper body, especially given that she's had surgery on a shoulder and an elbow. But if your dad's used to crutches they may give him those. The choice will be evaluated by his doctor/therapists, although I'm sure they'll talk to him about the pros/cons of each choice.

How long was it before you could return to normal activities of daily living? We're hearing anything from 6 weeks to 3 months.

That estimate's about right. It'll depend on how well your dad tolerates surgery, how well he heals, and the level of care he receives. This is what happened to my mom:

We live in a house with three (3!!) flights of stairs between the front door and the master bedroom. Mom made it up those stairs her second week home, about three and a half weeks after surgery. Now, let me be clear - we had a medical bed put on the first floor and that's where mom slept/rested during Nov and most of Dec. But she was able to climb the stairs, walk around, work at her desk/computer, by the end of the first month. It's three months today since her surgery. The only thing she's not doing is driving - and she's planning on trying that next week. She's waited this long because she wanted to be as safe as possible at the wheel.

I hope this (long!) post helped. Please don't hesitate to contact me via email if you have more questions. And good luck to your dad!

Everybody has said great things, I just want to add something that I saw happen to a friend because she didn't follow the doctor's advice. The biggest thing of all is that your dad has to be willing to follow up on the post op therapy no matter how long it takes. It is stressful, but in the end it he will be better off. All the medicine in the world can't help if the rehab work ain't getting done. Also watch out for post operative depression(It can happen). I hope your dad gets through it well and is back to walking around in no time.

My mother-in-law had her second knee done probably about two or three years ago.

Meds: Really good pain killers and probably some antibiotics but I don't remember what type of antibiotics she took.

I believe that she stayed in the hospital about 3 or 4 days.

They had her up walking her around on the day after surgery.

Home or Rehab? She went home and she WANTED to go home. However, we were all around to help with the house cleaning and help get her and dad meals. She did go to physical therapy right away. And, I honestly believe physical therapy is what really makes it hurt. She'd be feeling pretty good and then have her physical therapy and then be extremely sore for a few days. I don't know who will be doing your dad's physical therapy but my advice is make sure they follow doctors orders and not overstrain his knee to soon. Reason being is that Mom did real good with her first knee surgery but her second was a bit worse and I think that was in part because they over did it on the physical therapy part of it. So, I guess if he has someone at home to take care of him and he really wants to go home, then let your dad go home. However, if he has it available to him, and if it will be really hard to take care of him at home, then let him go to a rehab center.

Walker or Crutches: Mom used a walker the most. She said the crutches hurt under her arms after a while. I also think she felt like she had more stability with it.

When did mom return to normal activity? I would agree with the 6 weeks to 3 months scenario. Although, she seemed to have a bit more pain with the second knee replacement and that one may have been closer to 6 months. I don't remember exactly on that one.

What did mom think about her knee surgery? Initially is was painful for her but after her recovery, she said, It was so much better to have it done than to suffer with it and she's also pretty active with her knee replacements.

Anyway, I hope this is helpful to your dad. I hope that all goes well with the surgery and recovery and good luck to your dad.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Seeking People Who've Had Their Knees Replaced

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject