Revision TKR Knee revision in February

Finally

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Hi all,

I joined 2 years ago and disappeared for a bit. Read but did not post. It's been a rough road. Son run over by a drunk driver, lost my job, moved twice, new job and now a knee revision!!!

So last visit to original surgeon October 2021. He took xrays said everything was perfect and my pain was my fault. Basically told me that I had to be patient and push through the pain and that he had nothing left to offer me. Honestly I just think he didn't want to be bothered with a problem.

Just went to New York to Hospital for Special Surgery and what a totally different experience. I was treated with respect and kindness. I was believed! I had a bone scan that showed extreme activity in the knee that is not appropriate for 1 year and 10 months out. The implant has a 9degree swing from where it should be, reason I now walk with my foot turned in. The prosthetic is too large and is protruding over the back of the tibia and the cement shows gapping. The good thing about this is that he believed me, did not blame me for my pain. He gave me permission to not try to walk with my foot straight because it was only causing more pain and was not going to correct it. I just felt validated. It was not my fault! I did not do anything wrong! I am not being a baby!

My first surgery was a nightmare from the moment I woke up. I honestly just cannot believe that I must do this again. l am terrified. New doc assures me that he will do everything to make sure that I will not experience anything even close to the first. So here I go again, almost 2 years to the day. More prepared in some ways and so not prepared in others. I just want to be able to live my life again.
 
I’m so sorry you had such a bad experience the first time around. :console2:I’ve had a similar situation, 2 second opinions have not found anything wrong, but they didn’t look very far either. I am still managing well enough, 5 years later, though it’s been a tough 5 years. I just don’t have the trust level yet to go for a third opinion.

And I’m thrilled for you that you found a doctor who listened to you and believed you, and can fix it.

Hang out here with us, Bonesmart has a wealth of advice, information and support.
We will offer helpful suggestions, :idea:

Cheer your accomplishments :happydance:

And send hugs when you are feeling down. :console2:

Best wishes!
 
Hi Roy,
It really does seem over the top. The comment of "I have nothing left to offer you" was just too much.

Not sure if there is any recourse, surgery will be just 2 years from first so I may have missed the window to do anything. So frustating. I was so prepared for the first, had my disability insurance, time off from work. Now I am at a new job, just 6 months and this may be considered a pre-existing condition. So stressful!

I did give a review on this site about this surgeon. Hopefully it saves someone from dealing with him.
 
Hey Jockette,

I remember you from my first go round. I was fortunate to find this doc. My husband had a complicated hip replacement at this hospital. Why didn't I go here first!

I am not totally confident, I am terrified but really don't have a choice. I am 62 and feel like I am 80! My mobility is so limited. Plus the lack of sleep from the pain is just so draining.

I will keep you posted!
 
Hey there! I am so sorry to hear you have had such a hard time with your tkr. Its crazy how some of these docs cannot be objective when it comes to the work they perform!!
I am in the same boat as you with the doctor telling me my xrays are "perfect" but i have had continuous pain that they assured me would go away with time. I waited it out and now i have just passed the 13 month mark. my knee swells if i am on it for longer than an hour and really only feels stable if i wear a compression sleeve. there is a band that snaps over the outer edge of my knee, the pain never went away and its very clunky. Yet i am told it all looks great!!!
i felt like i had to reach out because my next move is also the Hospital for Special Surgery. it puts my mind at ease knowing that you had a positive experience there so far.
do you know when will you be having the revision? please keep me updated on your progress. i sincerely hope this doc can get you feeling better :)
 
@quisnees I will be interested in following your experience as it sounds very similar to my current situation, please feel free to start your own thread in the Pre-surgery area as I'm sure there will be others in the same boat.
 
Hi quisnees! I am going this morning for my pre-op appointment with surgeon. Having another set of x-rays and such. I am so nervous that I feel ill.

My surgery is scheduled for February 21. Seeing Dr. Markowitz. Was referred to him by Dr. McLawhorn who did my husbands very complicated hip surgery. What I witnessed at HSS was so amazing. So different than my experience with another surgeon and hospital. I am actually going to the Stamford CT location. Hope it is as good!

I will admit that I am terrified. The closer it gets the more memories of how bad it was come back. Just trying to trust because I just can't continue like this. I am so limited in what I can do.

I do keep questioning as to whether it is the right thing to do. Maybe it isn't that bad...

I'll keep you posted!
 
Good morning everyone!

I've been up since 4am. This seems to be my new pattern. I did this after my last knee replacement so maybe my body is just preparing! LOL

I saw my surgeon on Wednesday. I really like him. He is confident but not arrogant. He is very optomistic about the outcome. I asked him if I was making the right decision, was I expecting too much, is it really that bad, all of the doubts caused by fear. He assured me that he honestly believed that I had no choice, this is a must. He also was clear that he does not say that lightly.

He asked to video tape me walking so that we can have a record of how bad I was. He wants to be able to compare after my surgery. He spent so much time with me! I think he spent more time in this one visit than previous surgeon spent in all the visits combined.

He seems to understand my fear. He said that he hopes that this experience will help to overwrite some of the negativity from my last surgery and he will do everything possible to assure that I will not wake up screaming in pain and will be cared for. Such as, no one will drop my IV line on the floor and then just reattach it, I will be allowed to go to the bathroom and wash my hands, I will be given water to drink! Seriously, this was my experience. I called my husband at 5am and said "come get me now!" It truly was a nightmare. Unfortunately the help after I got home from the surgeons office was atrocious. Days to return calls. I had to ration my pain meds because no one called me back.

I do trust this surgeon or at least I am trying to! Research and recommendations say that he is the guy. Just can' seem to not feel anxious, really anxious. It is actually making me physically ill. Trouble eating, nasuea and worse.

So, no point to any of this. Just rambling because I am so scared and it's 4am and my family is getting a little tired of listening! Especially this early they would not be very empathic!

Have a great day everyone. Thanks for "listening".
 
Not been active here for a few weeks so catching up.

Can I say, my name here isn't Scaredycat for nothing. NO-ONE was more scared than I when getting ready for the op. I'd put it off for years and then severe eczema and then Covid added to the wait.

I was afraid of the pain [dreadful/agonising] and the daunting thought of the rehab [difficult and ultra painful] from everything I'd read about.

In the end, I had to get it done as I am 'the legs of the family and if I can't walk, neither of us will have a decent life.

I am lucky. I had a renowned surgeon, have a wonderful physio and having been a regular gym [if reluctant] gym bunny, my physio and personal trainer had made sure I did the prehab.

Agonising Pain.
Well let's knock that one on the head. You will [should] be medicated to the point where you won't have any initial pain. I weaned myself of the codeine sulphate after a couple of weeks and paracetamol after 8 weeks with the odd tablet here and there. I take Naproxen for the other knee but in minor quantities compared to pre op. It was an uncomfortable experience but agonising? No.

Rehab has been uncomfortable [ I have a separate hamstring/popliteal issue too which is an issue but that's not the joint itself]] but successful. My physio went with the 'if it hurts, stop, but if it's just uncomfortable, then work with it' attitude. I was driving a RHDrive manual car [I had a LTKR] the day my insurance kicked back in at four weeks post op.

I have been very pleasantly surprised at how all the horror stories I'd been told, did not come to fruition.

You had a dreadful hospital experience but now have a new consultant and a fresh hospital. Great guns.

So don't be a scaredy cat like me. Be positive and know not all knee ops have the same degree of pain and post op trouble.

Good luck
 
Hi Scaredycat!

Thanks for the pep talk! I think my biggest issues the "shoulds". I should have not had pain but I did. Worse than I ever imagined. I shouldn't have pain this time but...

I am trying to be rational. My surgeon seemed appalled by my previous experience. I asked him whether waking up feeling like the leg was cut off was a rare occurance and he paused and said, "I have never seen that". Just trying to hold on to that. Hoping it was just poor care and not some odd thing about me.

Today I am going to start preparing my clothes. Bring some downstairs for the first week or so. Bedroom is upstairs and I want to be able to get to the kitchen or the couch on my own in the early morning. I am an early riser and even more so lately so don't want to depend on someone to help me down the stairs.

I feel like I should be doing more to prepare but can't seem to figure out what that might be!

Have a great day. Thank you again.
 
@Finally No wonder you feel scared and anxious you have had the most awful medical experience and had to suffer and endure so much all the time being made to feel that it was somehow your fault. That level of anxiety could be termed a PTSD so forgive yourself. Try some deep breathing calming techniques if you can manage them as they will really help.
Try to trust your experience so far with this new surgeon - he sounds top notch and determined to give you the knee you should have had the first time around. Your challenge after the trauma of your first surgery will be to manage the anxiety in this recovery. Good luck with everything and look forward to hearing your progress.
 
:console2:I understand your anxiety. While my experience wasn’t near as bad as yours, I do have some PTSD from my PT and my surgeons protocols at follow ups. I know I would be feeling just like you if I was facing surgery again. You are beyond brave to go ahead and get this surgery, as bravery isn’t the absence of fear, it’s going ahead and doing the scary thing (or something like that, I can’t remember the actual saying) I do hope that a good experience this time will counter the effects of the previous surgery.

When you arrive at the hospital tell your care team you are nervous, and maybe they can give you something to help calm you. Also, pretend we are right there with you. We’ll be thinking of you.:console2:
 
What I witnessed at HSS was so amazing. So different than my experience with another surgeon and hospital. I am actually going to the Stamford CT location. Hope it is as good!
Hi @Finally Just want to share that I had both my TKR and my THR done by the surgeons at HSS Stamford and I can't say enough positive things about the staff there. Everyone -- from the nurses to the PAs to the doctors -- was empathetic and encouraging. Had the THR first in 2019, and my experience was so positive, that I went back for the TKR 18 months later. I'm going to need the other knee done in the not-too-distant future, I plan to go back to them for that one too.

You've got this! :SUNsmile:
 
Thank you everyone for the support! Tomorrow is the day! Feeling very anxious but I guess I am ready. I worked yesterday and was on my feet for hours, had to drive for about 2 hours, lots of stairs and I paid for it last night. I work as a design consultant for window treatments and have to carry heavy samples. The hardest part is the driving. It aches when I'm driving and then I can hardly walk when I get out of the car. A cane is not practical because I need to carry the samples into the homes. I hope this surgery will make life easier!

Benne68, so good to hear about your experience in Stamford. Hoping mine is similar.

See you all on the other side!
 
Hugs, prayers and Best Wishes for tomorrow! :console2::prayer::flwrysmile:
 
Wishing you all the best for your surgery tomorrow, sending hugs & prayers xx
 
Thank you so much! Can you believe that I just got a call from the surgeon!!! He actually called just to make sure that I am ready for tomorrow and to see if I have any questions. Just so surprised and impressed! Already a different experience and I haven't even gotten to the hospital yet!
 
My surgery was on a Monday, and my surgeon’s personal assistant (different than the PA) called me on Friday night before, just to check in with me and encourage me. It was a nice effort.
 
@Finally Sending my very best wishes and thoughts for a successful surgery tomorrow. Your surgeon sounds wonderful. Speedy healing. Looking forward to hearing you are safely home on the other side.
 

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