Getting a new knee
I had a hip replacement in January this year, and I was in line for a knee replacement as it was obvious that this was the joint that was most damaged. However, after the hip surgery, the knee pain decreased and I felt a lot better, up to the point where I questioned the need for a knee replacement. Following the discussions on three different patient groups on Facebook didn’t help: gory photos of horrible scars and complaints about terrible pain and mobility problems several month/years after the surgery. I was still able to walk distances, climb stairs and do most of the yoga postures.
Finally, I decided to go for it. I knew I would have obsessed about it forever. The orthopaedic surgeon who did my hip surgery was not available, so I had to start from 0. I got a referral, and finally I got an appointment about two months later. While waiting to go in, I got the date of Ray’s hip replacement surgery via text, and I was able to give my surgeon a date in November when I was available for surgery.
As luck had it, I had retired and I was able to focus on my recovery without any other worries. I had wonderful care in Bonsecours Limerick, and everything went better than I expected. I had more mobility than after the hip operation, and the pain was continuous, but bearable.
As I rejected opioids, I was getting just 2-3 hours of sleep every night – for the rest of the time, I was walking around the room.
It seemed to get better after the second week, but then the pain got worse again. Stitches came out after two weeks and the wound healed nicely
My kneecap still feels like it doesn’t belong to me. According to my discharge letter, my patella was “resurfaced”. That means that the ligament that holds it in place was detached, the patella was cleaned, a piece of plastic added to make it fit perfectly with the joint, and then the ligament was reattached. For a long time, I couldn’t feel the area at the front of my knee. But I am happy I went through this. I have more mobility than before, and the pain is bearable. And I’m thinking forward to gardening and swimming next spring!
December 24 2023 08:35 pm | Limerick