Knee Replacement....

So due to a very serious accident in my youth I suffered some pretty massive injuries. One of those was a displaced and fractured knee with serious ligament and muscle damage, it was also pinned to a rod that ran through my thigh bone as that fractured too.
I was warned back then in the early nineties that I would suffer in later life, maybe from wear and tear but also from possible arthritis. This year is the first year where the discomfort and pain has gone into the warm weather so I may be looking at an op to replace it, I would rather act now than later and go private like I did with my disc in my back a few years ago.
I have great cover from work, 9 months full pay etc and I’m not worried about the op but I was wondering if anyone on here in their “ahem” mature years has had the op and how it affected work. It’s my left leg so can be less used whilst driving.
Any experience will help.
Also sarcasm as I expect…

Hi Mate,
With regards to having a total knee replacement, I had mine done 6 years ago when i was 59 years young.!!
The operation was a success, i had the epidural in the back so was awake the whole time.
After spending the night in hopspital i was allowed home after completing certain tasks.
The one bit of advice i can offer is work hard at the excercise regime they give you,
myself after five days i put my mountain bike on a turbo trainer and did some gentle cycling for about
5 mins a day. by the time i went back to see the surgeon i was walking ok without the help of a walking stick
the surgeon couldnt believe what he saw and asked what i did.
Good luck with the Operation

I had both knees replaced eight years ago, two years before I retired. I was bothered about having it done at first, but it actually turned out to be the best thing I have ever done!
I was off work and not allowed to drive for six weeks and the only advice I can offer is exactly what my surgeon told me - “I can give you the tackle - it’s up to you what you do with it!” Go to the physiotherapy offered, do exactly what they tell you, and then do a bit more. If they tell you to do 10 stand-ups, then do 15. If they tell you to lift a weight on your foot 20 times, then do 25. Push it 'til it hurts, and then push just a little more. The physio sessions last for six weeks but I was discharged from both in less than three as they could do no more for me! A couple of friends who have had the op have followed this and are doing brilliantly. A friend of my wife who ‘couldn’t possibly attend these sessions’ is in more pain now than she was before she had the op five years ago.

The only downside is that, as I now spend quite a lot of time in Spain, the metal detector at East Midlands Airport goes berserk and they treat me like some international terrorist!

Hope you find this helpful

Steve

Take any tablets / inhalers your currently on into hospital when you go lol. Also a wash bag. And what they said lol

And some form of entertainment. A lot of hospitals no longer have a telly room. Boy can hospital be boring lol

Norfolkinclue1:
So due to a very serious accident in my youth I suffered some pretty massive injuries. One of those was a displaced and fractured knee with serious ligament and muscle damage, it was also pinned to a rod that ran through my thigh bone as that fractured too.
I was warned back then in the early nineties that I would suffer in later life, maybe from wear and tear but also from possible arthritis. This year is the first year where the discomfort and pain has gone into the warm weather so I may be looking at an op to replace it, I would rather act now than later and go private like I did with my disc in my back a few years ago.
I have great cover from work, 9 months full pay etc and I’m not worried about the op but I was wondering if anyone on here in their “ahem” mature years has had the op and how it affected work. It’s my left leg so can be less used whilst driving.
Any experience will help.
Also sarcasm as I expect…

I have a mate who has had both knees ‘done’ in the last year, he was back to work within 12 weeks after each ‘op’. He is 70years old, but the daft bat won’t give up working. His surgeon is amazed at his recovery, so go ahead and get the job done. Good luck. Regards Kev.

I need a TKR in one knee (Stage 4 OA) but as I’m not near 60 yet, I’m holding off on the op as long as i can, and the surgeon who has looked at the x-ray and examined my knees agrees that waiting if possible is the best option, as they tend to only last 10-15years tops, depending on types of activity, and activity levels and your weight etc and the op is never as successful second time around and you end up with a slightly shorter leg as a result , plus it ain’t something i wish to repeat, So after he referred me to the orthotics dept for an unloading knee brace which helps quite a bit as far as walking around goes though i dare not run or jog /jump

My first reply so be gentle.
I had a right knee replacement in January. I do 18 ton multi drop around Dorset and Somerset.
I thought I knew it all…quick op. A few pain killers 3 weeks and I would be back doing the gig. Got back in the cab in April…exact
Y 3 months later.
I will list my tips for you

  1. Do some pre op exercises…I didn’t because I knew better…but if the knee muscles are strong then you will heal quicker.
  2. Ask for an extra sedative during the op unless you want to hear them ripping some cartilage…
  3. Within 12 hours of the op get walking around on crutches.
  4. Take all and I mean all of the medication that they give you…mostly paracetamol and ibuprofen.
    5.Get home and try and avoid lying on the bed and or sofa feeling like you are about to die but instead read the physiology booklet they give you.
  5. Even if it all feels really wrong use the bottom step of the stairs to try and bend your knee…I didn’t and I really regret it.
  6. The doctor surgeon will asses you on the angle of your kneee…180 degrees is your leg flat out. They will expect 90 degrees for you to be back trucking your drive.
  7. I thought I knew better and didn’t bother with the exercise…big mistake.
    9 DO NOT go back to driving a truck until you can get 90 degrees…you think that the whole thing is going to burst open and spill blood and cartilage over the stairs…it won’t…it’s just the scars in the knee muscle.
  8. Get back back to driving a truck at about 11 or 12 weeks.
    11.climbing into the cab…climbing up on the bed…fighting the pallets truck…walking around looking for a fork lift driver and general work is the best exercise for your knee…
    12.I can’t kneel down with both knees but I am not far off.

In summary…EXERCISE the thing.

Good Luck !

I need both knees replaced due to extensive wear and tear received in the army 30 years ago. I’m trying to put it off till I retire in 15 years. My doctor is giving me grief as I’m still doing extensive training to compete in another half marathon this year. I did one last year and he wasn’t too happy! :smiley: