Knee Replacement Questions

Hello everyone, I have severe osteoarthritis in both knees (since 1991) and I've needed both knees replaced for about 5 years now. It's bone on bone in both knees. I will be having 1 knee replacement surgery in a few months and was wondering if anyone who has had their knee(s) replaced could share their experiences with me. I'm not looking forward to surgery at all. Thanks for your help. Terri Please email me at: [email protected]

I am facing the same surgery. Bone rubbing against bone in right knee, but not that bad in left knee. I know of a lady that has had it on both knees and she says she does not have any more pain or stifness at all now. She does have problems with her feet and can't stand very long cause of her job, but her knees are fine now. She can walk up inclines with no problems with her knees now she says. I am not looking forward to the surgery either, but if it will lesson the cringing and the pain I am all for it. Irish

I had my right knee 'done' last June...the best decision I've made in a very long time! I had a couple of minor problems; the anti-blood clot medication made me nauseous (which I'm told is so rare that the doctors didn't know it could happen until I looked up the 'side effects'..) and I found out that I don't have what ever receptor gene it takes to make morphine work; all that stuff does is overcure diarhea for me. (grin) Still, in spite of the above, my knee hurt less the morning after surgery, even with post op pain, than it had been for months. Within a week I was off the walker, within four weeks I was driving, I'm wearing high heels for the first time in close to five years, I LOVE this!!! The physical therapy is a royal pain, but if you simply clench your teeth and DO it, you won't regret one second. This is, well....scuse me while I skip around a little.... Diana

I had a knee replacement in Dec 2003 and it was the best thing I could do. Though the other one puts more stress on the good one, I am relatively pain free. I plan on doing the second one soon. I have never regretted doing the surgery and wish I had done them sooner. I went from the hospital to inpt rehab for four days because I didn't get much PT in hospital. Then I did rehab outpt for 6-8 weeks three times a day. It really isn't bad surgery or recovery and worth anything to relieve that pain. Gail

Hi Terri....... I have bilateral knee implants that are 12 and 15 years old. The 15 year old one was "revised" three years ago. The first one was both the hardest and best thing I had ever done! The surgery was tough, the recuperation and rehab hurts, but within a week I knew it had "worked" and that horrible bone-on-bone pain was gone. As soon as it was bad enough, I had the other one done. I waited way too long on the first one, and the second one was relatively a snap. I weighed almost 300 pounds and after wls am down to 165. I'm sure my first knee would have lasted a lot longer if I had known about wls way back then. Good luck to you. The most important thing I can say is do the rehab. It's not worth doing the surgery if you don't do the followup!.........Judy

Hi Judy, Thanks so much for your reply. I had my ortho preop this past Tuesday, and all my preop tests today. I will be having my total knee replacement done in 2 weeks. Congrats on your fantastic weight loss. I've lost 102 lbs. My surgeon said I will hate him for 3-6 months after my surgery. I'll be in the regular part of the hospital for 3-5 days and then inpatient rehab for 1 week. I wish I had wls several years ago too. Have a great weekend!! Terri

I am about 5 years out from having my right knee replaced. The pain after surgery was never as bad as the knee pain before. The rehabilitation was lengthy, but prior to my surgery, my knee had frozen and I had to have an abnormal about of rehabilitation...18 months. It is usually only about 12 weeks to 6 months max. Just like with WLs there is a period of time when you ask yourself...what have I done?...during the first year. But that passes and soon, other than setting off alarms at airports, you won't know it is there. It feels very natural...I can even dance....that took a while. I can ride a bicycle, but I went to a tricycle, because you don't want to take a chance of falling. I also notice that I cannot do things that require a lot of pressure ...like pedalling uphill on the tricycle...but really, how often do you have to do that. It'sl ike WLS...if you need it...it is a miracle.

I'm pre-op but had my left knee replaced 3 years ago. It was bone on bone. My surgeon gave me an epidural for the first 3 days so I was in no pain. When they removed it, the medications worked on the pain (and I'm allergic to codene and morphine..so took weaker pain medication). As to physical therapy, it hurts less than walking on bone to bone. I DID have to stay in an in-patient rehab unit for 5 days because I live alone. But they treated me like a queen. I just wish I had done it sooner.... My dad had a replacement a few years before mine and he told me that the most important thing to remember was to do all the physical therapy ...and even more...because that was the key to getting back on you feet sooner. I did and it worked!! Good luck and God bless you during your surgery/recovery, Ann H

How old are you guys? I ask cause my DR. has sent me to pysical theapy, given me shots to replace fluid in my knee and so on. I hurt! He keeps putting me off about having knee replacement cause he says I am to young. I am 56 years old and have lost 200 pounds. Did not hurt before bye pass surg. Guess it was there all along but did not show up until I fell last Thanksgiving. Been hurting every since then. I have wasted a lot of time going to massage, chirpractor phsical thearapy and dr. needless to say co pays so lot of money and time wasted! I now weigh 150 -155. Help!

I would really like to know the same answer Cheryl..I am 33..ive had arthritis in both knees pretty bad since i was in my 20's. Doc's said i was too young for a replacement. So i dealt with it. Ive been deaing with it since my teens. Now after loosing 170lbs my knees are worse then they have ever been. I did this surgery to help my immobility ..now im even more limited. Doc's say i am too young for a replacement. I have been on celebrex for a month or so..now my stomach hurts so i stopped. not like it helped much anyways. So again..how old were u when u had the replacements? tanya