Knee Replacement Research & Questions

Status
Not open for further replies.

sessc

new member
Joined
May 18, 2009
Messages
2
Location
United States
Hi all. I am 3 days away from being a 47 yo female with some questions and concerns about knee replacement.

I've been told that I am bone on bone in left knee and the right is not far behind. I am beginning to feel pains in my right hip. Non-medical opinions think the hip pain is from walking differently due to knee pain.

For insurance reasons would like to wait until October to have any surgery...if I can last that long. Mobility is limited. Exercise has all but stopped causing weight gain which doesn't help the knee pain...blah blah blah....

Here are my questions/concerns:
1. Am I too young to have replacement now? Dr. #1 thinks I am too young. Getting second opinion next week. I have 3 children under age 12 that I would really like to keep up with!!
2. Is there a less-invasive procedure that would provide some relief until October if I decide to wait that long?
3. Should both knees be done at once?
4. Could the hip pain be caused from walking differently?
5. If I can work from home, how long can I realistically expect to be out of work?
6. I live in a 2 story house....how long can I expect to be stuck downstairs..?

I realize that I am asking things here that a good surgeon could answer, but everyone here seems to be so nice and knowledgeable that I was hoping to get some feedback and guidance.

Thank you all for all that you do!
 
sessc,
Welcome to BoneSmart! I am 59 and last June I had BTKR. I am pleased you are getting a second opinion. I do believe you need to listen to your body. I was fortunate to have an OS who believes quality of life is important at any age!
He was as anxious for me to get my life back to "normal" as I was!
I am a Family Child Care Provider. I taught Physical Education for 5 years in the public school and during that time I had both of our sons. One is now 34 and the other is 31. I stopped teaching school after the birth of the second child and started my own child care business when he was 3 years old. Twenty eight years later I am still doing it!
I had a parent client come to my home daily for 7 weeks to help me run my business and care for 9 children (6 under 6 years and 3 school age children). The children attended after my "vacation" of knee surgery 12 days post op.
So, to answer your first question, no you are not too young.
Get it done and over with! The sooner it is done and you start recovery (a full year in most cases), the sooner you can enjoy the activities you want to enjoy with your children!
I don't think there is much you can do other than the cortisone and synvisc shots, but those could buy you time until October.
I do believe the hip pain and back pain can be caused by the knee issues!
What do you do for work? I took over my business when I was 9 weeks post op working 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM caring for 6 preschool age children myself.
I would advise you to set yourself up a little "nesting" area in your living room. I put a down twin size feather bed in my recliner and covered the feather bed with a sheet made to fit it like a tube. Easy on and off for washing. I used this to make my recliner more comfortable and slept downstairs (as we have a full bathroom down stairs I could use as well) for a good 2 months. This way I also did not tire myself out going up & down stairs all the time.
I advise you to get the book. I purchased a Total Gym ($100 on Craigslist) and an exercise bike with a damaged fan from eBay (who needs a fan to blow air on them when riding a stationary bike?) for less money. The book takes you from pre-surgery to post op for an entire year. It is like a bible for knee replacement written by a team of an OS and a PT both of whom have had TKR and perform the surgery and work with patients recovering from TKR.
I missed hiking, gardening, walking, skiing when my knees were bad. I have done all the rest except I have not as yet attempted the hiking. Soon!
Go for it! It is worth the pain, time, effort, & energy, getting your life back to enjoy your family..........
Best,
 
Welcome, Sessc. We're glad to have you on the forum and hope you find support from our caring BoneSmart family.

I see Crystal has already provided you with some excellent advice and information. I completely agree with her that you are NOT too young to have knee replacements! Get that second opinion because you need to know whether it is better to have both knees replaced and be done with it. If the second one is right behind the bad one, this may be a good option for you. Quite a number of fourm members have had both knees replaced and have gone on to do very well in recovery.

You DO need your life back - for both you and your family's sake!

Your time off from work can vary, but you would want to plan on at least a couple of months. Some have gone back sooner and your return needs to be phased in (easier to do if you can also work from home). What you DON'T want to do is make any absolute commitments...nothing worse than your boss thinking you WILL return in 8 weeks and then finding out that you can't - even if it's for a very good medical reason. This is NOT like a vacation. Healing takes time and it varies greatly from one individual to another. I was retired when I had my surgery, but had I been working I would not have been ready to go back full time at 8 weeks....would have been more like 12 or even longer.

Read some of the older posts and you can get a feel for what some of the others have gone through. There is a wealth of information there.

You will be able to negotiate stairs when you come home from the hospital. But....as Crystal says, it will be tiring and a LOT of work, so you may want to establish a space downstairs for quite a while.

Post anytime you need some support or have questions and concerns. We'll be here for you.
 
Hi and welcome . No you are not to young I am 41 and had my RTKR done 6 weeks ago. Several Drs said I was too young till I found a Dr that said it wasnt your age but the quality of life. As for your children, I have 2 and my goal is to be able to go places with them again and just enjoy each other , and before I couldnt because it hurt to bad. I am already happier, the surgery is still challenging but I dont have the pain I did before. I work from home . I did wait several weeks, but as I got better I would start off lil by lil . If I felt ok I would work if not I didnt. Just go slow. Also I didnt have to leave my home to go to work either, makes it easier, but I will be back FT at home in a few weeks. It is up to you and how you feel. If it has taken some of your life away I say do it. Dont just sit in pain if you can make it better.... Post anytime w. questions and we are always here for you. Hope you feel better soon...........Kim
 
Welcome Sessc! Just because you have 3 active children to keep up with is reason enough to get your surgery over and done with!!!! You won't regret it! Keep us posted! :)
 
Thanks so much to all for the feedback. I do miss doing things with my kids AND doing things that I like to do - like gardening, walking. I live in an area known for festivals and outdoor events and it's challenging when or if I decide to attend because there is always alot of walking.

I'm going to keep reading and learning and I will hopefully have a decision after my second opinion next week.

Thanks again!
 
One final comment (since everyone else has outdone what I had to offer!) - you may read of partial knee replacements and wonder if you could opt for that instead. Well, the truth is that it's the condition of your knee that dictates partial or total and even then, it's still a major op and will need pretty much the same amount of recovery.

Otherwise, I wish you well in your search. Remember to take a look at the name at the top of the websites as you browse around. If they're about a specific implant and it's from the manufacturer, remember it's still an advertisement! :wink:
 
I had a BTKR on June 3 2008 and things are going good after putting up with horrible knees and multiple surgeries for 30 years (starting at 15 years and I was 58 when I finally did it, though I should have done in my 40 hours).

I would do both at once because the other one is whole going to get worse and you won't enjoy the new knee. Also you only have 1 rehab to do.

Yes, bad knees cause hip pain as well as ankle as your body tries to adapt. I can still what my podiatrist said when I was about 24, -- I walk like a drunken sailor on a ship during very rough seas. I used orthotics to try and counter the knee mechanics. Now we the new knees having some hip pain as everything readjusts it self.

I work from home. I started back part time at 4 weeks and full time at 6 weeks. My problem was due to a lack of sleep and I was too exhausted to be able to concentrate.

To make it to October you might try a cortisone shot. Works best if after you have it you don't bend the knees for a few days and take it easy so that it can work. Find out getting a TENS machine which can really help with the pain. It uses a small electrical pulse to short circuit the nerves sending out the pain message. It never got rid of all the pain but did make things tolerable.

Good luck

Simon
 
I have a TENS machine but never thought about using it for my tkr
Can you refresh me on how to use it. Esp. on knee. It has been about 4 or 5 years since I used it. Will it help with the stiffness?
Really don't have much pain. I have been lucky, did not cry or feel depressed. Just could not eat (esp. meat) and could not sleep. (But I have always had trouble sleeping, but this has made it
worse)
 
There's a good explanatory broken link removed: https://www.thephysiotherapysite.co.uk/physiotherapy/pain-management/how-to-use-a-tens-machine and it covers all the safety advice as well. As for placing the electrodes, I usually place them in a square formation like this

[Bonesmart.org] Knee Replacement Research & Questions


You can either connect the top pair to one channel and the bottom pair to the other or pair them diagonally. You need to try them out and see what works.

Doubt it will help with the stiffness unless it's the pain that's causing it.
 
I am 44 and had a TKR November of 08. I am nearly 7 months out. I have 2 teenage sons, 14 and 16. We are a active family till my knee set me out from the activity. My TKR was the best thing I have ever done. I could not drive for 3 weeks, so I had friends help me out with the kids and take me to therapy if my husband could not. Our family knew it would temporarily turn our house upside down but it would eventually settle down. I am going to be honest and say it was hard for about 4 months, then we saw the light at the end of the tunnel. This weekend we hiked a 8 mile loop. I have been riding my bike to work and it is a 25 mile round trip. I can do what ever anyone else can do activity wise now. Boys both play lacrosse and I spent last Saturday at a tournament and my husband and I walked between all the games. Was it a tough procedure????? YOU BET! Did I have my doubts???? YOU BET! But it was good for our family to leave how to pull together in times of stress. It helped my boys be more compasionate and learn how to do things themselves. I know your kids are younger than mine, so it might be a bit tougher. But I can say our whole family is so happy with the results and it was worth all the stress! GOOD LUCK!
Mary
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom