28-12-2023, 02:59 PM
I had a semi knee joint implant done 15 years ago and it's still holding its own which is great going according to my orthopaedic nurse sister.
They'll have you up and about with 12 hours of surgery to make sure the area stays flexible. Plenty of pain meds and I had mine done with an epidural so didn't have the GA after effects to deal with. Push button morphine did the trick except for when the night nurse forgot to check and rouse me every 2 hours so got behind on the morphine and woke with pretty full on pain. Second night was Oxycontin which I refuse to take ever again. Put me in a real dark place mentally. I tolerate opiates well but they obviously got the recipe wrong on the synthetic version.
Out of hospital at week's end. Southern Cross as ACC were paying. Slept downstairs for a week or two (can't recall exactly) as not brave enough to navigate stairs with winders mid way. Daily walk to the mail box (~300m) got easier and easier with physio to keep me on the right track. Back to a desk job (surveyor) in about 2 1/2 months and game to ride my motorcycle to work by month 3.
Expect swelling, possibly fluid build up in the foot on that side (due to lymphatic disruption) and probably a permanent numb area below your knee cap. My surgeon warned me about the nerve severing than is pretty much unavoidable, and my foot still swells more than the other with hot weather and inactivity.
My other knee is in bad shape again after PRP (stem cell) treatment 6 years back and hoping my ortho guy okays another PRP round in the next few months as I don't really want to get it done surgically, especially as ACC have refused to front up on this one.
They'll have you up and about with 12 hours of surgery to make sure the area stays flexible. Plenty of pain meds and I had mine done with an epidural so didn't have the GA after effects to deal with. Push button morphine did the trick except for when the night nurse forgot to check and rouse me every 2 hours so got behind on the morphine and woke with pretty full on pain. Second night was Oxycontin which I refuse to take ever again. Put me in a real dark place mentally. I tolerate opiates well but they obviously got the recipe wrong on the synthetic version.
Out of hospital at week's end. Southern Cross as ACC were paying. Slept downstairs for a week or two (can't recall exactly) as not brave enough to navigate stairs with winders mid way. Daily walk to the mail box (~300m) got easier and easier with physio to keep me on the right track. Back to a desk job (surveyor) in about 2 1/2 months and game to ride my motorcycle to work by month 3.
Expect swelling, possibly fluid build up in the foot on that side (due to lymphatic disruption) and probably a permanent numb area below your knee cap. My surgeon warned me about the nerve severing than is pretty much unavoidable, and my foot still swells more than the other with hot weather and inactivity.
My other knee is in bad shape again after PRP (stem cell) treatment 6 years back and hoping my ortho guy okays another PRP round in the next few months as I don't really want to get it done surgically, especially as ACC have refused to front up on this one.