New Here - MRI shows severe arthritis

[swmrgirl]

Hi @wings,
So many things you described happened to me, and I would venture to guess that many of us here have had very similar experiences. I've been hobbling around since I was in my early forties. When I had my first OS appt, about three years ago, he said he wouldn't recommend surgery yet, and still says that. I've gone through PT, injections, PT, more injections. I feel like all the injections did was mask the pain as my knees continued to deteriorate.

I was once an active, athletic person, however, my life has become more and more limited over the years. Finally, in May, I sought the opinions of two other experienced surgeons, and they both said I have severe arthritis in my knees, and the only thing need to decide is which knee I want to do first. They are both very reputable, so I chose the most experienced doc. He also spent more time with me, and explained the procedure and recovery process in detail.

I have found this forum so informative and thorough, and I can honestly say that it's helped me make a more informed decision about my surgery. I believe that you will know when it's time, as I did.

Wishing you the very best

 

[wings]

A little update. I saw my primary care physician today for annual physical and gave her MRI reports on both knees. In her opinion (internal medicine), I'm surgical candidate as result of bone on bone, with the variable being am I ready for surgery. She says anything short of surgery is just temporary bandaid.

Yesterday and today were back to more stiffness and pain. I will be so relieved to have appt. with OS on Wednesday. I'm fighting depression caused by this lack of mobility.

 

[Braunzie]

Hi @wings - If your quality of life is so limited by your knees, you need a knee replacement. My story is similar to many here in this site. I stopped being able to garden.. more and more over the years, I stopped being able to hike. Like you, I LOVE nature photography.. and I couldn't do that any more. I was on vacation in Louisiana in March and did so much walking (no hills, btw) that by the last day when we went to the zoo, I was in a wheelchair. Mid way through, I was in so much pain I had to sit in a car rather than go on the planned walking tour around the French Quarter. NOT FUN!! I know in my case, insurance did require some evidence of trying to solve the problem non-surgically, but to me, canes and crutches is NOT it. Physical therapy, injections.. maybe.. but I got to the point where I was really just driving to work, limping around there and driving back home (parking in a disabled spot, so I wouldn't have to walk far to get to my office). I had to be assertive with my doc, I think to convince him I was ready for this.. as it's not a fun thing to go through.. but it's a means to an end to getting your life back and being able to enjoy doing the things we used to be able to do. Find someone who specializes in these surgeries. Please don't be depressed. Be strong so you can find the doctor who will help you.. and you will... and then you can join the TKR club for sure!!!

 

[KarriB]

Sadness is almost always present when your life becomes small due to physical limitations. I also went to work, came home and could barely do anything else due to pain. I had never been a patient in a hospital ( was hoping I could make that a lifetime goal) when I made the decision to undergo TKR. I was petrified, but hoped it would eventually alleviate my pain that made life miserable. It has. I swim 15-20 laps everyday of the summer and can ride 4-5 miles every day. I go about daily activities with no pain (left knee is a little ouchy), but I'm still fighting attitudes of those around me who think I may be in pain because that was the case for so long. Great news, due to my physical activity my BP is 120/70 WITHOUT meds! My docs are happy!

 

[wings]

@Braunzie & @KarriB, thanks to both of you for the encouragement! Thank you.

@KarriB it is so wonderful that you can cycle and swim!! Great news on your blood pressure! I ride my recumbent stationary bike 20 minutes a day at level 0. I have ordered an aqua jogging belt and ankle weights. I'm hoping that works well. I'm so glad you are here.
For your words of wisdom!

@Braunzie, I hope you will be lugging your camera gear around in a few months. I have several photo trips scheduled in September, January, February and May. I'm thinking some if not most of those will be cancelled. September is only 1 day, shooting hummingbirds, so I should be ok with that one. I will probably have to cancel the others. Two were going to be in the Texas Rio Grande Valley and one in Ohio for bird spring migration. Thanks for your support and in the future, we will be gardening, clicking the shutter, touring the French Quarter, hiking in the great outdoors!

 

[KarriB]

@wings its great that you can still bike. My bike just sat for quite a while because the pain too much to even bike at 0.

 

[kneeper]

I remember someone at work telling me after my tkr recovery that I looked more healthy. I think it was because I wasn't so dragged down with pain.

 

[wings]

I make myself do the cycling then limp off and head for chair and ice. My recumbent stationary is much easier for me to ride than beach cruiser. I'm no longer riding beach cruiser as it causes my hip to hurt.

I'm still functional, but I fall on occasion especially going up and down stairs because my knees are just not right. I now hang on to the handrail and move very slow. When I stand from a seated position car or other chairs, I'm sure I look like the walk of Frankenstein until I've taken about 10 steps, then I'm ok motion wise. Up until 1 month ago, I had no idea my mobility problems were arthritis related, I thought they were related to muscle atrophy related to hypercalcemia. I worked hard to build my muscles up and the mobility problems worsened until I was given cortisone injections. Not sure what I would be doing without the cortisone inj. They have not made me pain free but they got me off the couch.

 

[Braunzie]

I had cortisone injections in both knees before I went on my vacation to Louisiana.. Left knee worked, right knee, it had absolutely no affect on.. I have no idea why that is.. but .. good news is that the left knee is doing well for me while the right knee is recovering.. (Thank God!) I don't think I could do a Bilateral.. Certainly NOT that brave!!

 

[Sad knees]

@wings Three years ago, I spent a weekend at a beach house with three floors and I went up and down them all weekend. By the third day my knees were the size of melons and bright red. They have never been the same since. I had never had knee pain before that weekend and since then my mobility issues and pain are constant. I am having them both replaced in October. The first surgeon was reluctant because of my age. I have gone from being an active walker to avoiding all physical activity. I want to be active again! Injections did nothing. If you feel you have not found a OS that is not aligned with your thoughts and needs, continue to look! I spent a lot of misguided time thinking I had Lyme disease or Lupus because the onset was so sudden and strange. I don't have anything, but crappy knees and that will soon change. This website is a godsend to me too. Best of luck to you.

 

[bdink21]

@wings I too became pretty disabled. Over the past several months, cortisone injects lasted maybe 6-8 weeks if they took at all. Synvisc did not work for me at all. I went from active and strong going to the gym several times weekly to just about getting through my day at work (I am a visiting nurse). After work had to make dinner from seated position and could do nothing else, not even enjoyable things. On a day off I could do some housework, resting for long periods in between. I have gained so much weight and felt so depressed. I was falling and have to walk down stairs sideways. My OS told me to let him know when I'm ready and I finally did knowing this was only getting worse. So now at 1 day post-op even tho I am having pain, it is surgical and will resolve. I can't wait to get back to enjoying life. I am so happy that I did this. I've had so many people say 'you're too young for TKR' to which I answer that I'm too young to walk around like I'm 80, too young to be in so much pain all of the time. Good luck with you're second and third opinion. Sounds like you qualify for joint replacement to me. These boards are filled with people like you and you will find a wealth of info and support here.

 

[Sad knees]

@bdink21 Did you really write all those perfectly formed sentences into a perfect paragraph one day post-op? That is awesome!

 

[Braunzie]

@bdink21 - I heard that about being too young.. And my comeback was the same as yours!! Too young to NOT be able to enjoy life and do things for fun as opposed to just doing what you can to to "get by".. Good luck with your recovery!!

 

[SarahJane]

@wings , I could *so* relate to what you wrote! And to what @bdink21 and @Crappy knees said. Been there. Done that. Waited. Unloader brace, synvisc, cortisone ... finally it was T.I.M.E. @wings, I did some very gentle muscle strengthening exercises between the time I talked with the OS about scheduling surgery and the surgery date. I think they helped me achieve good flexion and extension after the operation. But I didn't go on a major self-improvement fitness kick. Slow and gentle's the way to go, IMHO, both before and after surgery. I'm not a big fan of being in pain, so I cringed when I read that you're forcing yourself to do 20 minutes on your bicycle and then limping off it to immediately ice your knee. Are you sure that's not overdoing it?

 

[bdink21]

@Crappy knees you just cracked me up. Yes I am sitting here wondering where is all of this sleepiness and fatigue I am supposed to be feeling? Why am I not dopey from the meds? I've been up since 230a with one tiny cat nap late this morning. I am feeling tired now so maybe I can get another nap. Other than my aching/sore/tender knee I feel totally normal lol. Geez. I hope I sleep tonight

 

[Braunzie]

@bdink21 - for what it's worth, I never felt any negative affects of the pain meds (other than needing to be careful of getting constipated!). No dopiness, no sleepiness.. In fact I never took a nap during the day. I think different people react different to what we ingest. I was also fortunate enough to sleep relatively well at night, despite setting the alarm to take pain meds, which contributed to my not needing naps during the day, I think. My advice.. don't question, just appreciate and enjoy!!!

 

[Sad knees]

@bdink21 and @Braunzie you guys are my new role models! All jokes aside, so glad you are having great recoveries!

 

[wings]

Finally sitting down to summarize my day. Enjoyed reading all the supportive posts.

Y'all are great! Really great


I could not sleep last night, I was in pain every time I turned. Had my appt. today with the OS at the top of my list. He did 652 knee replacements last year. He's got experience . Low complication rate. He did a fellowship at Mayo on lower extremity joint replacement.

First question he asked was has anyone ever discussed your X-rays with you. He reviewed my X-rays. Injections are not going to help. I need both knees replaced or accept the increasing inability to stand from seated position, the difficulty with stairs. He does not like to do BTKR, he said I could pick the delay - 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months just whenever I'm ready. Sitting there, I knew its time and I have confidence in this surgeon.

The left knee is scheduled for September 15.

I go for pre anesthesia appt. next week.

Long emotional day.

 

[bdink21]

@wings So glad you found a great OS who right away could see you were suffering and straight up told you what you need. And you have a date!! Congratulations. One month from now you'll have one done and one to go!! Have you decided how close you want to do them? I'm going for January for my right one. I am not spending another spring and summer in pain and unable to do anything except sit. Trusting your OS is so important. The first time I met my OS I liked him immediately. Also liked that he was up front with me and told me I would need both TKRs when I was ready. He would rather not do bilateral either, I am very glad I didn't push that.

Well breathe a sigh of relief and prepare yourself over the next month. The waiting was so hard lol. I was so nervous but like others have said before mine all of the worrying was for nothing. I take it you are not going for the third opinion since you already scheduled your date?? So happy for you

 

[wings]

@bdink21, I decided to not go for third opinion. At this point, I think it would be information overload. This OS understood without me saying anything. I was shocked. I can't tell you how glad I was that I had my list of questions to pull out when he asked "questions?"

Regarding timing for the second knee, I'm thinking 4 - 6 week range. Get the surgeries done and rehab and look forward to the arrival of spring!! A new season, a season of rebirth and I will have new knees!!

Knees with new and improved patellar tracking.



You are so right about being nervous. I am nervous. I have to remind myself the quality of my life if I do nothing.

So many things to do in preparation!

I'm going to head over to the post-op area and read your thread.