39 more Days...WOW!!!

[cbrniner]

Hello everyone , I am new here and I am seeking advice ... Just some background

At 40 I tore the meniscus in left knee had scope done to shave torn area

At 43 I tore more of it had another clean up done

at 44 Once again made a mess of knee and had surgery again which this time the removed 75 percent of remaining meniscus , leaving me in an off loading brace during any activity ...

Now today at 46 the pain is unreal most days , I have had all the shots and to be honest I am tired of band aides, braces, meds and everything else ....

I guess what hit the nail on the head was we were in Florida on a trip (from Vegas) and I guess its maybe the humidity and the extra walking(Disneyworld and all) but the pain was unbearable to the point my 13 year old wanted to get me a wheelchair as to not want to see any more grimaces on my face ... Well I'm stubborn and of course I didn't but the pain was bad ... Ive dealt with the pain long enough , so I go to new Ortho at the end of this month ...

Am I odd for wanting to get PKR or LKR ?? I am so hoping the OS will say you need it ...I don't want anymore years of pain , Band Aides and I want to make this brace go Bye Bye ....Over the years I have quit coaching youth football cause I couldn't deal with the pain , stairs suck and now its even throbbing at night lying in bed .... It is starting to effect work cause I can't stand for long periods of time and I need to for work ...

by the way I am not overweight , I am 6 foot 1 and about 170lbs maybe a little less ..... If this new Ortho doesn't move in replacement surgery do I move on to another ??? and yes I know I will probably need a revision in 20 years or so , but I want my life now .... and Go .... LOL

 

[tiredwife]

@cbrniner Welcome to bonesmart. I think you are ready! If you can't stand your life the way it is, it is time! You are young but there are younger getting TKR. Many surgeons now don't discriminate about age, they do hate the thought of doing it on someone who is going to overuse the knee in the wrong way (ie jumping, rough sports etc.) Not that many looking at TKR do those things anyway. You have tried everything else, you should be able to find a surgeon that agrees. Be prepared it is a long recovery! Many can't go back to work til, 8 , 10, 12 weeks or more depending on your job. And even at that time you are still in the early stages of recovery.
An advisor will be along shortly to welcome you. Until then if you want to get someones attention you put an '@' in front of their name and type their names exactly as they have it on their avatar. Like I did for you.

 

[cbrniner]

@cbrniner Welcome to bonesmart. I think you are ready! If you can't stand your life the way it is, it is time! You are young but there are younger getting TKR. Many surgeons now don't discriminate about age, they do hate the thought of doing it on someone who is going to overuse the knee in the wrong way (ie jumping, rough sports etc.) Not that many looking at TKR do those things anyway. You have tried everything else, you should be able to find a surgeon that agrees. Be prepared it is a long recovery! Many can't go back to work til, 8 , 10, 12 weeks or more depending on your job. And even at that time you are still in the early stages of recovery.
An advisor will be along shortly to welcome you. Until then if you want to get someones attention you put an '@' in front of their name and type their names exactly as they have it on their avatar. Like I did for you.

Thanks for the kind words , Im very fortunate to have a caring and supportive family , even my sister has insisted on flying out from New york to help me and of course my wife with the house and the kids ( She was in Disney with us and she begged me to start the process to get my leg taken care of could she could see I am not the same fun loving me cause of the pain ) being off work on my night job won't be a problem and my day job is I work from home anyway and partner already said she would watch over things for me ....

Its like I got all the pieces lined up and ready to go except the Ortho and the seal of approval ....The one I am going to see is a new Ortho to me , so I am hoping I don't have to jump through hopes going through other processes ...I just want the old one cut out and the new one installed no more band aides so I can live my life rather then enduring it ...

 

[tiredwife]

@cbrniner You sound so ready. Hope it all works out for you. I know how you family feels, it hurt me to see my husband walk. Now just shy of 8 week post op he walks great and still has one knee to go! Just explain to the surgeon the way you explained it on here and you should be able to convence them. It might help to have a family member in there with you to collaborate all you have been through.

 

[trailspud]

Agree w/tiredwife...you sound ready. Find a high volume TKR expert. I'm sure Las Vegas has a number to offer. And, go for it. This site is a good source of info and comradarie.

 

[Jozilla]

I agree - go for it. You are never too young to live pain free!

 

[Lovestoread]

Sounds like you're ready. If your ortho says you're too young, find another one!


Sent from my iPad using BoneSmart®

 

[Jazzy4564]

@cbrniner, welcome to Bonesmart! I am 48 and am scheduled for RTKR on Wednesday. I've only been dealing with knee issues for the past two years and have gone through all the more conservative treatment. I changed doctors (to get a second opinion) and a TKR was really the last option. I am overweight but the OS never mentioned that or my age as a factor. Best of luck to you!!!

 

[gr82cu2]

I say, go for it!! Your life as you have always known it is slowly melting away. That's how I feel anyway. You are on the young(ish) side but many others your age and younger have gone down this road. I'm 55 and my OS said I was young but as they know now the protheses are good for 20 years and possibly many more. They really don't know at this point. In the earlier days they insisted the patient had to be 'older' so there aren't that many old protheses still out there. The folks who received them have passed on. And anyway, revision is always a possibility down the road, if necessary.

My OS has told me for years that he would never tell me that I had to have a TKR. I would have to tell him when I was ready. Obviously the medical justification is there for me (and will be for you too from the sounds of it) but we all deal with the disability and pain in different ways. It's about the quality of our lives.

If you don't like or feel comfortable with the 1st OS you see, go find another one! Tell them just what you told us here. Your quality of life is at stake. It's not a race to see who can live in pain the longest. Take care and let us know how it works out.

 

[Epic_Ed]

I'm 46 and will be having BPKR in the morning. I also just got back from Disneyland a week ago and we rented a wheel chair for my crippled butt all three days we were there -- zero regrets. If you have exhausted all of the other forms of treatment it's time to take the next step. I'm doing so because I'm sick and tired of living with constant, debilitating pain. I want some quality of life back. When you decide to do so is up to you.

 

[Celle]

I agree with what the others have said.

Age should not be a consideration when having a knee replacement. The only things that should be considered are the condition of the knee and the effect that is having on your quality of life.

@cbrniner - your life is constantly being impaired by your left knee and you are in considerable pain. You've gone through all the procedures that are often recommended prior to replacement.
It's time to find a surgeon who will do a knee replacement.
Knee replacements nowadays can last 20 years+ and even then you might not need a revision. I had a revision and it was nowhere near as bad as I had expected.

So, go fight for an improved quality of life now.
Best wishes!

 

[lorl]

At age 65 I was told by my OS I was too young for TKR. How lovely was that! It does not happen often in yr 60s that you are told you are too young for anything
That said, the real issue was that my knees were not bad enough. They probably are now.
I think it is all about quality of life. If pain means a sedentary life something has to be done, no matter how scary or what the expert says.
I am now 68 and on the verge of making the appointments because I am too young to lapse into a sedentary , inactive life.
Best of luck in yr journey

 

[Roy Gardiner]

A pre-op checklist we've worked out:

- if your knees rule your life , it's time
- take charge, don't be dictated to; it's your knee, your future
- don't believe in either horror stories or miraculous recoveries that happened to 'a friend of a friend'
- there is no such thing as too young or too heavy or even obese for TKR
- choose a specialist surgeon who does several hundred TKRs a year. Ask the nurses, if you can; they know who's best
- all replacement knees are very similar, don't believe that a special new one will give magical recovery -- it's the skill of the surgeon that counts
- if you need two done, think carefully about the time gap between surgeries, it's not a trival decision
- try to plan for at least 12 weeks off work
- your recovery is your time to be selfish and idle; plan to embrace this, you'll need it
- don't think you can work hard (even if you're an athlete ) to speed recovery, healing works at its own pace
- look at our FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) thread and for full reference the Library index.

- finally, if there's any part of this that you aren't clear about, ask here; it's what BoneSmart's for.



It sounds like the first point there describes your situation; I was 59 when I had mine done (still 'too young' in some opinions) and it's transformed my life.

 

[cbrniner]

WOW!!!! Thank you everyone such great advice and kind words , I am sure glad I found this place .....Going to the new Ortho the 29th and I have done some research on another incase things don't go the way I am prepared for ....My goal would be to have the TKR by end of Sept beginning of October slowest time of the year for me and its just perfect .. Now like I have said , have to get Ortho to go along with me ..lol

 

[gr82cu2]

I think looking ahead a couple of months for the surgery is probably pretty realistic. My OS books about 6-8 weeks ahead. Plus it takes some time to get the pre-op testing, insurance approval, etc. taken care of. Please be sure and check back with us after your appointment and let us know how it went. Good luck! p.s. Vegas is my happy place

 

[Biscuit]

I'm 50 and just had my rtkr 9 weeks ago today. I can tell you that it has been very much worth it for me. I saw my primary doctor today for a general follow up and he couldn't believe I was just 9 weeks out. Don't worry about a possible revision some day. My OS told me it generally just involves changing out the plastic disc that rests between the two metal components, which is not a big deal. Plus, you know that in 20 years or so they will have improved the science of the whole thing even more. Between your x rays and telling your OS how much pain you're in, I don't think you'll have any trouble getting on the schedule. Good luck to you.

 

[DanaDelight]

@cbrniner -I am 44 and had a total knee replacement on my left knee 6 weeks ago. I too was in the same place physically and mentally that you are currently in. I started in 2005 with what should have been a simple meniscus repair and it turned into 8 surgeries in nine years and a rapid decline in my physical activity. I decided in 2012 when my OS scoped my knee AGAIN that I was done with the scopes and band aides. I decided that the next time I went under the knife it would be because I had no other options and it would be for a knee replacement. My issue was my previous OS told me straight to my face three years ago that I needed a knee replacement. My meniscus was shredded and beyond repair, my knee cap was no longer tracking correctly so it would pop out of place and slip between the leg bones, and the articular cartilage was chipping off like rust on an old car bumper. I had just about every possible surgical procedure, shot, therapy, brace, and medication with only short periods of relief. The scope pictures of my knee looked like something from The Walking Dead. The ends of the bones were constantly bleeding and full of pot holes. Despite all of this my OS refused to replace my knee because: 1. I was too young, 2. I was too fat-(5'9" and 150 lbs at the time of the comment), 3. I was not handicapped enough meaning I was not walking with a cane or crutches! I knew it was time to find someone else so I spent a year gathering opinions from 3 different surgeons that specialized in knees. All three surgeons told me I needed a new knee and my age was not a consideration for them. I picked a surgeon and now here I am with a new knee and not a single regret. I did discuss the possibility of a revision but if I took care of my new knee then it is possible for me to get anywhere from 20-30 years with it. I may be hit by train before then so the risk seemed minimal and the worry of a revision is something I will deal with when and if I get to that point. I am finding that more surgeons are willing to replace joints in the younger crowd because we want and deserve a good quality of life. Why not take several months to recover so that we can have years of an enjoyable life? I hope your doctor offers you this option. I would go for a total replacement rather than a partial. I believe in going big or going home and from what I have read the partials need to be revised at a quicker rate than the totals. If this doctor says no and the only reason is because of your age then find another doctor. If he refuses based on the anatomy of your knee or his ability to do a less invasive procedure then just do your research before you move ahead. Good luck with your appointment and let us know.

 

[lorl]

So helpful for me too, getting the " too young, not in enough pain" diagnosis from some of the medics.
You make a good point, sad but true none of knows what is round the corner. It came home to us v harshly just recently, two friends in the good health, fit , active, engaged in life struck down by quick unset of terminal diseases.
As they say seize the day

 

[Karringtyn]

I am SO glad that I was passionate about getting life back again...I really was tired of NOT living...and my knee ruling my day to day.....I am half way there.....and I have NO regrets!! Welcome to Bonesmart!

 

[cbrniner]

Please let me say , that you all fatten my heart with the shared stories , advice and education you have provided in such a short time on this board ... This forum and the people here have been a god sent cause now I can actually talk to people who have been where I am ... Well I am 1 week today away from my Ortho visit and I am hoping for good news , I will indeed keep everyone posted as I am sure I will have tons of questions and also be on the search for more information , time for me to fetch the puppy from the vet ....