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PKR Right knee 9/24...so far so good...

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I must admit that I am amazed that you are so far along at 8 weeks. Wow!!! I am 10 weeks and doing well but not riding my recumbent for an hour. I admire you I will say that!!
Now walking on the gravel walk was difficult because of the uneven surface? I am sorry but feel sure you will bounce right back.
Take care!!
 
The night was a bit rough, but I did get a full 8 hrs in. I suspect one of the reasons I wasn't in worse shape was that I had stopped all of the Tylenol and Ibuprofen the day before, and so I was getting the unfiltered messages from the knee. The trip back was pretty slow.. This morning seems to be ok, with perhaps a slight amount of heat in the knee. Icing to start up pretty quick.

maggie may, I credit the speed of my recovery (and the beauty of my scar) all to the great folks at Mayo. Reading on this website (and some other research) has convinced me that picking the right surgeon and hospital are a great part of the determination of your outcome. Of course, being a longtime fan of an obscure movie called "The Killer Elite" (the James Caan version, not the new one of the same title but different story), I had the recovery course already set in my mind (I haven't tried Ti Chi yet..).

Rough ground is still my bugaboo walking. I don't have the strength yet to keep the knee in position if I take a step that stops in a different place than I expect. The only really bad step I took was a repeat of a couple of earlier ones, where the ground was slightly below where I thought and the knee tried to overstraighten. I am still a few degrees off of the "lock back" which I would (perhaps erroneously?) call negative knee position. My left knee locks back, but my right knee only comes to straight so far. It is only a couple of degrees difference, and I am sure the right will get there. But the muscle isn't there to hold it on a bad step, so "ouch".

It continues to get better. One other thing was that I never stopped the visits with the trainer, we worked on the other 3 limbs and core (what we could) even on the second week. I am short and heavy, but have always been strong and kept in good shape, and I think your relative fitness helps a lot too.
 
Well, today was pretty good, but the knee is still giving me some issues. Last night I figured out that I had inflamed the outer compartment of the knee in my stupid walk to the post box. As I was telling this to my wife I said "Human side" to which she rejoined "as opposed to BORG side??" I went back on Ibuprofen, this time for the anti-inflammatory as opposed to the pain relief. Got a good 7.5 hrs of sleep in despite traveling yesterday and today, and look forward to another night icing and elevating. I suspect it will work out fine, but still concerned about it. My first real step back in a while, and all my fault.
 
You've certainly done a great job documenting your excellent recovery!!! Thanks for that! Others will come along and appreciate that you were so thorough.

I think you are doing just great. It's normal to have a few steps backward now and then as you begin to stretch your limits and see what the new knee will do. You're going to be just fine!!!
 
Thank you for sharing all of your excellent adventures. Mayo Clinic is quite impressive!!!
I am so glad that you are better now after your post box setback!
 
Well, my Doc was right (as usual). Inflaming the outside (human) half of the knee set me back a week (at least). On the other hand, not running to a schedule. but still irritated at myself for being an idiot. The rest of last week was simply rest and Ibuprofen. I am mostly off of it now, but still resting until Monday. Did a little bit of recumbent today, but felt it afterwards. With this week being mostly a pass anyway (I hate the holidays), there will be little time lost. However, my followup is in 4 weeks, so would like to be off the cane by then (and still expect to be).

Barring further idiocy by me....
 
Not idiocy - too much human and pushing our little and large envelopes. I had to smile at your (I hate the holidays). It is exactly what my husband says multiple times starting in Sept.

Best wishes for quick relief of your human knee part.
 
Yes, if I could find a door from Oct 31 (now about the 15 as Christmas music and decorations seem to go up WITH Halloween this year) to Jan 2 (or better yet, a Door into Summer (hmm, sounds like a book title...)), I would take it in a heartbeat. The combination of the (mostly artificial) good cheer and the short and cold winter days just take the cake. Bah Humbug...and Get off my lawn! Getting to be an old man<G>.

30 on the Recumbent today, and 10 on the elliptical. No pain today, bit of stiffness still. I am off Tylenol and Ibuprofen except for 2 Advil PM at bed, and I have some just sleep aid to try tonight. Never could find any Tylenol PM (I know they make it...).
 
I have to admit that I am getting more like my husband also with the Christmas decorations and push in Sept so you cannot even enjoy fall and the stress people put themselves under and then are miserable at work. My husband calls himself "a crochety old man" which makes me laugh.
 
Too true lee! We haven't wrapped and mailed off gifts yet and usually this is done before thanksgiving. Maybe next week. I DID do all my shopping online over the year...


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Well, I survived Thanksgiving (a near run thing). That afternoon though as I was finishing unpacking from the trip to my mother's, I went off a short step (about 2 inches) on the sidewalk (ok, it's new, we had it put in during the surgical trip, the sun was in my eyes and the dog ate my homework) with the bad knee and didn't find the ground where I expected it. A lot of pain from overstraightening, and spent the rest of the day on Ibuprofen and Tylenol. Yesterday was mostly rest and recovery, today I did 30 on the recumbent and 10 on the elliptical. Knee is still a bit stiff, and there is some heat in it. Was back on the cane yesterday and today. If I can stop hurting myself, the recovery is still going on great. Still taking some OTC sleeping aids, but I think I will try trailing off of them after the current injury is healed.

My next thing is to try getting the knee back into "locked" position. It will go straight fine, but the knee passing back into negative angle to lock isn't happening yet. Still working on it though, and "it's never too late for ROM"...
 
Well, I thought I would check back in at 3 months (+/-) after my 3 month followup at Mayo. I hit the first problem with Mayo on this trip, although I knew it would happen. It is located in Minnesota. MN has broken weather, I mean I got up, looked at my phone and it said 0. How can you have No Temperature???

Anyway, it snowed, and then sleeted and snowed again. December, of course that is when my 3 month falls. Actually wasn't horrible just because I went to LL Bean and bought a coat rated "comfortable to -45". I thought that I might have to test it on some days...

Knee is doing well, but walking on the uneven snowpack didn't help much. The Dr was very pleased with the recovery, I am at 0-130, still would like to get the lock back, although she said that might never happen. I am at about 80% of the OEM knee, which is about 20% better than when I had the surgery after the accident. Hour on the recumbent a day, 15-30 minutes on the elliptical, and starting with 30 min to an hour on the treadmill. I don't think I am walking enough yet. Still doing the trainer 3 times a week. Was told the last 20% will come back over the next year, and I believe it.

Walking on smooth surfaces is going pretty well, walking on rough ground is a bugaboo. Standing up is sometimes a painful experience (often), but it seems to be getting better. 10 hours in the car nearly crippled me for an hour or two. I am keeping a cane in the car just in case, but I haven't needed it yet. Stamina is still a problem, I try not to get to the end of the day completely done in, but it happens more than I want. Weight is one bright spot, I gained back about 10 of the 22lbs I lost after the surgery, and now seem to be dropping some of that back off. I understood it was about 50/50 on weight gain/weight loss after the surgery, about time the coin came down on my side with something having to do with weight...

And, I am now the expert. My wife's jeweler (it makes birthdays and anniversaries easy, just not cheap) caught me for 45 minutes while I was picking up her graduation gift (PhD, ChemEng), to ask me about my experiences with the knee replacement as she was looking at one (maybe, the local B-B-Q and knee replacement shop doesn't know). Told her the local flights run directly to Rochester. So now I am the robotics guy, the guy you talk to about in-flight fires, and the guy you talk to about knees. Who knew?

I plan on coming back of course, but I wanted to thank everyone here for their support and ears (eyes?) when I was having a 3am moment. Knowing there were other people around doing and having done the same thing was quite motivating. You guys are the best.
 
Your doing great!!!! It can only get better from here.:sleigh:
 
Good to hear how you are progressing. Lee
 
Survived Chrismas, now if I can make it past the drunks on New Years, I will be home free into 2014. Short travel for Christmas to my mother's, top down in 40 degree weather (an old tradition). Top back up for the way home, it is only fun for awhile. Knee is doing well, although still gets stiff after setting in the car. By the time I get my Flight Medical back, it will be February (which will probably beat the plane being ready...).

While I was at Mayo I mentioned I had a skin place I wanted to have looked at, and they got me in to a dermatology consult in under 24 hours. My joke now is "Open Heart surgery? We could get you in at 2..." So I have been bandaging the two places that they excised the following morning. If it ain't one thing...
 
One thing that did surprise me is that my Doc said I should keep icing the knee until it got down to exactly the same size as the other. I have some minimal swelling left, really only visible if you stretch them out beside each other, but she wanted me back on the ice packs. So, an icing we will go...
 
Well, decided to put in the second video card in my desktop to drive the 3rd screen. Been meaning to do this for months, and decided today was the day. So down on both knees between the desk and the chair to get at the tower, and then reroute cables. Was feeling quite good about things as kneeling has been one of my fears with the knee, and spent about 15 minutes on it (with carpet and robe underneath) and felt pretty good about it. Everything done, and ready to try, need to get up and turn things back on...

Hmmm, getting back up....oh, dear.

I did manage to get up, but only because I had a chair and a desk within arms reach. The combination of tight quarters, the robe stuck under me and my knee came very close to defeating me. I did have my phone to call my wife if needed, but still humbling. I need to work on a couple of different methods of getting up. The idea that I might be stuck if I fell is not one I like.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
 
Still a victory, you managed to deal with the cables and you did get up. Just a little tweaking needed on your technique.

I have not tried kneeling on the newest knee -did kneel on my almost one year old and got up with leaning on chair just for practice. OS said no kneeling for 6m so have to wait to try the rt lknee. Hoping I can since I have not been able to knee for about 12yrs since my knees got so bad.
 
[Bonesmart.org] Right knee 9/24...so far so good...
Hope you and yours have had a wonderful Christmas holiday with lots of family fellowship and sharing of gifts and lots of good food to eat.


I’ll be looking for you at the BoneSmart annual New Year’s Party. It’s been a very eventful year for most of us---and will be a very eventful year coming up for others of us looking forward to surgery in the new year.


Remember to bring food and drink to share---and pictures are always appreciated and loads of fun to share.


SEE YOU AT THE PARTY!!!!!
[Bonesmart.org] Right knee 9/24...so far so good...
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