TKR Lateral Approach 11/1/18

[redjim]

Hello Everyone

After three years of research I have lateral approach replacement scheduled with Dr. Steve Nguyen in Orlando. Have spoken with 34 different people who have had the procedure and have had 33 RAVE reviews regarding procedure and especially recovery. I am guessing there are others here that have replacement via lateral approach too?

The procedure involves the use of proprietary techniques to place the same clinically proven implants used in standard surgery, but through an incision that avoids any trauma to the quadriceps muscle and spares the medial ligament as well. This unique approach dramatically reduces pain by sparing muscles and tendons that historically have been cut during standard total knee replacement surgery.

Thanks,.....

 

[Josephine]

Hi and welcome to BoneSmart! I'm so pleased that you have got yourself fixed up. You won't know yourself once you have that new knee!

However, there are a few variations on the lateral approach. It can vary some from surgeon to surgeon. One does it a little more to the front and another a little more to the back. It's not an exact science by any means. But you are right about the rave reviews - it a really good approach anyway.

Let me leave you some information

New BoneSmart members like you are in various stages of their journey to joint replacement. Making the decision whether or not to have surgery and preparing for surgery can be easier once you have done your research and know what lies ahead. Here are some tools that can help you decide what is best for you.

If you are at the stage where you have joint pain but don't know for sure if you are ready to have surgery, these links may help:

Score Chart: How bad is my arthritic knee?
Choosing a surgeon and a prosthesis
BMI Calculator - What to do if your surgeon says you're too heavy for joint replacement surgery
Longevity of implants and revisions: How long will my new joint last?


If you are at the stage where you are planning to have surgery but are looking for information so you can be better prepared for what is to come, take a look at these links:

Recovery Aids: A comprehensive list for hospital and home
Recliner Chairs: Things you need to know if buying one for your recovery
Pre-Op Interviews: What's involved?


Regardless of where you are in the process, the website and app My Knee Guide can help you stay organized and informed. The free service keeps all the information pertaining to your surgery and recovery in one place on your smartphone. It is intended to be a personal support tool for the entire process.

And if you want to picture what your life might be like with a replaced knee, take a look at the posts and threads from other BoneSmarties provided in this link:

Stories of amazing knee recoveries

And these
Here are the recovery guidelines, the articles are short and will not take long to read.

Knee Recovery: The Guidelines
1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary
2. Control discomfort:

rest
elevate
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)
don't overwork.​

3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.
4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these

the BoneSmart view on exercise
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy​

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this

Activity progression for TKRs​

The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?
Energy drain for TKRs

Elevation is the key
Ice to control pain and swelling
Heel slides and how to do them properly

Chart representation of TKR recovery
Healing: how long does it take?
Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds


We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery. While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.

 

[redjim]

Why was my thread moved from knee forum to hip forum?

I am NOT having a Lateral hip I am having a lateral knee replacement.

 

[Mojo333]

Hang on...will swing you back over.

 

[Pumpkin]

@redjim ,
Your thread has been moved to the TKR pre op forum, your signature was updated to a TKR, and I added TKR to your thread title to avoid further mix up.
If you would like another thread title, just post it here, and a moderator will update it for you.

 

[Pumpkin]

This article on the BoneSmart website has an explanation of the various approaches.
https://bonesmart.org/knee/knee-replacement-approaches/

 

[redjim]

Thank you!!!

 

[Josephine]

Sorry, that was me. I got confused because there is no such thing as a lateral approach in a total knee! Unless you are having a partial, of course!

 

[redjim]

Hi Josephine

This is a TOTAL replacement.

OPTIMOTION KNEE REPLACEMENT LATERAL APPROACH BY DR. STEVE NGUYEN
When it comes to minimally invasive total knee replacement, Dr. Steve Nguyen, a joint replacement specialist and pioneer in ground-breaking joint replacement techniques, offers the most advanced, innovative procedure available today. In the nearly 40-year history of contemporary knee replacement surgery, this exclusive and revolutionary surgical method is unlike any other in the entire U.S.

The procedure involves the use of proprietary techniques to place the same clinically proven implants used in standard surgery, but through an incision that avoids any trauma to the quadriceps muscle and spares the medial ligament as well. This unique approach dramatically reduces pain by sparing muscles and tendons that historically have been cut during standard total knee replacement surgery.

Developed for people who are on the go with busy schedules, the process involves an incision through the side of the knee that not only saves the quadriceps muscle, but gets you up and walking in less time than a traditional total knee.

Because there is less damage to the tissue around the knee, patients who undergo this procedure can expect a shorter hospital stay, a shorter recovery, and years of pain-free living.

I have spoken with 34 random patients that have this done and the results are AMAZING.

Usually, two to three weeks of rehab and just about 90% back to normal after that. Get ready for this, most of his cases are done as OUT Patient and some walk unassisted out of the building. This great Dr has been doing this for close to 12 years with 9,000+ cases.

The quadriceps and medial ligament are NOT cut, that was the biggest selling point to me. I actual spoke with another patient on Monday that was 14 days post-op and he had just completed walking nine holes of golf.

Just wondering if there were others that had this done? I believe he is the only one in USA doing this procedure. He usually has about an 8 month waiting list, but it did not matter to me.

 

[Josephine]

through an incision that avoids any trauma to the quadriceps muscle and spares the medial ligament as well.
This unique approach dramatically reduces pain by sparing muscles and tendons that historically have been cut during standard total knee replacement surgery.
The quadriceps and medial ligament are NOT cut

Well, get ready for this from me! My surgeon has been doing surgery very similar to this for years. I also know of NO knee surgeon that cuts quads and medial ligaments either. It's a very archaic procedure.
Plus, my surgeon also does his cases now with same day discharge for morning surgery and next day discharge for afternoon surgery. It's a practice that is widely gaining favour for a whole variety of reasons: financial, freeing up beds, enabling patients to get out of the potentially contaminating ward environment and being able to carry out more cases thus shortening waiting lists.

I think you are falling prey to a lot of commercial hyperbole as I see nothing in what you so far posted that is different or remarkable. However, that doesn't mean that you won't have an excellent experience and I sincerely hope you do. But it behooves me to ensure there is an equal portion of information on this forum which shows that there are different ways of doing things which may or many not result in good outcomes.