TKR TKR scheduled for July 5th

Razorback 1983

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Have my preop scheduled for June 27th and my TKR is set for July 5th. I tore my ACL 40 years ago and had it fixed then tore my meniscus in 2020. The doctor told me it was just bone on bone and he expected me to need TKR in 5 years. It has been 3 1/2 years and if I am on my feet for more than an hour or bend and squat a lot it takes a few days to recover and get the pain to ease up. So I went to see him last week and he said he could give me a shot and I would be back in 9 months wanting another one or I could have it replaced. He said it had to be replaced eventually and it was up to me to decide when. So I set up the surgery and I am just waiting for the day to get here.
 
Welcome to Bonesmart, @Razorback 1983 :flwrysmile:

Here are some articles to help you prepare for your TKR. July 5th will be here before you know it!

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


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:

 
Congratulations on getting your surgery date, @Razorback 1983 ! It will be here in no time.

I was in a similar situation prior to my TKR, but after having to put it off because of the pandemic, I was so happy when it was finally scheduled. I'm even happier today that I have a working knee, again!
 
Thanks. I was eager to get it done but now that I have it set I am wandering if I should wait or get it over with. Ever since I set the date my pain has been manageable but I know it will get worse again.
 
I think there are pros and cons with having early surgery versus waiting until things get bad…
If you’re already bad when you join a waiting list, as I was, the extra wait can be really awful. I’ve had a miserable year - I became housebound and had a stroke, which they think is probably because of my immobility.
But on the other hand, if your pain isn’t too bad and you’re not too restricted before surgery, I think the first few months can be really tough - some people even wonder whether they’ve made a mistake having their knee replaced at all.
 
I have had severe pain when I am on my feet a lot. I limp on this knee so much my opposite hip hurts and is out of line. I have had to go to the chiropractor several times with the hip. I know it needs to be fixed and will follow through with it.
 
Agree with @FionaW it is a real balancing act deciding when to go for surgery.
My knee wasn't that painful and I slept OK before surgery. My reason for going for surgery was that my leg was getting increasingly knock kneed and it was causing horrible hip pain and sciatica.
For several months after my partial knee replacement I had much more pain in my knee than pre-op and more pain at night. The surgery did cure my hip and sciatica pain but for a good while I felt I had just switched pain locations.
At least if you wait until the pain is bad you know that you had no choice- even if something goes wrong. On the other hand waiting could make both the knee and other joints worse and increase your recovery time. Also every year older you get makes you a slightly worse anaesthetic risk.Only you can decide what's right for your body.
 
Ever since I set the date my pain has been manageable but I know it will get worse again.
Once your knee is bone-on-bone, it will only get worse -- it can not improve. And there is risk to delaying -- you can do additional damage to your leg and make the TKR recovery more difficult.

In my case, my delay caused my leg to become badly bowed, which the OS had to straighten during surgery with an osteotomy. :groan:

I think we've all had the experience of our pain seeming to "improve" once we sign on for surgery. There's really no benefit to putting it off.
 
Thanks for the advice. I am not going to back out , I have dealt with the pain to long to not go through with.
 
I am still 4 weeks out from my TKR and my knee has started buckling on me constantly. I have started using a cane to keep from falling. Does anyone have any suggestions of things that might help with buckling?
 
@Razorback 1983 The exact same thing happened to me a couple of months prior to surgery. In fact, it's what finally made me schedule the TKR.

I don't have any great solutions. I found using the cane for support was important. I also tried a hinged knee brace, but I it was really hot to wear in August! (My surgery was in September.)

Also, be very careful to "double step" and hang on to the bannister when you are doing stairs. That's when mine was most likely to give out and I had a couple of near misses with falls.

I'll bet you're glad you already have your surgery scheduled!
 
Yes I am. I was having doubts about having it since my pain had improved but this past sunday June 4th I stood up and started to walk and it just buckled on me. That was this first time it had happened but it buckled 3 or 4 more times that evening. I went to work on Monday and wore a hinged brace that I had from my meniscus problems to see if it would help but it still gave way several times. Yesterday I almost fell three times so I went and got the cane. Since I have used the cane it hasn't happened. I am glad that my surgery is only 4 weeks from today.
 
Does anyone have any suggestions of things that might help with buckling?
Sounds like you are doing all that you can do with this knee. Just take great care and move slowly. You don't want injury to delay/complicate your surgery.
 
Have my preop scheduled for June 27th and my TKR is set for July 5th. I tore my ACL 40 years ago and had it fixed then tore my meniscus in 2020. The doctor told me it was just bone on bone and he expected me to need TKR in 5 years. It has been 3 1/2 years and if I am on my feet for more than an hour or bend and squat a lot it takes a few days to recover and get the pain to ease up. So I went to see him last week and he said he could give me a shot and I would be back in 9 months wanting another one or I could have it replaced. He said it had to be replaced eventually and it was up to me to decide when. So I set up the surgery and I am just waiting for the day to get here.
Sorry you have to go through this. I had my surgery on 1/5/23, it was tough, but now I can say it’s much better. I still experience stiffness in the mornings or if I’m sitting for a long period of time, but 100 better then before the surgery. If you can, stay off the narcotics, only take them the first few days, I had very bad withdrawal from the Oxycodone, it was the worse part of my surgery. It’s bad enough that your in pain, dealing with the pain and withdrawal was tormenting. I thank god I overcame that and did not continue to want more. If very uncomfortable in the beginning, I didn’t get to sleep well until after 12 weeks and from then on everything started getting better little by little. You just can’t stay still, make sure you go to PT, so whatever you can on your own and everything will be ok. Good luck and get all the rest you can get.
 
Sounds very similar to my circumstance. Immediately after the TKR, pain of recovery, I asked myself was it worth it. After six months I was so glad I did.
The longer it is left the more muscle is lost the more misalignment you legs get and the older you get. My experience was the journey to full recovery quickly becomes more defined by these issues rather than recovery to the knee capsule itself.
Hope this helps.
 
@Razorback 1983 Pre-op can be a very stressful time. We will be with you all the way!
 
It looks as though we are having our surgery on the same day! Jacey is soooooo right pre-op is turning into being a stress filled time! Like you my knee is buckling and sharp pains emanate episodically when I take a step. Ditto your experience with using a hinged knee brace. I am having to wear the brace and use the cane. Never thought I would look forward to July 5th. It provides me with a hope for improved mobility and quality of life. I wish the same for you!
Onwards~
 
Yes I am anxious to get it done. Hopefully we will both come through it and have a speedy recovery. I am tired of hurting all the time and it’s hard to do my job and walk with a cane. Good luck.
 
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