Bad Knee

[Time2Go]

Ann is 110 % right on the money.
The most important part of successful replacement surgery
is Active Pre-Hab
Any PT worth their salt will tell you that going in prepared as best you can
Makes recovery so much easier. 10 percent before is worth 50 after.
It's the reason pro athletes come back so quick
Also active rehab after, Insurance companies want to cut you off ASAP
Tell them to stuff it. 3 months minimum 3 x week
Another tip would be to get yourself out of the hospital as soon as
You can and into a rehab facility.
Huge difference. I spent just two days in the hospital but then
a week in a rehab facility.
The reason for this is that you are less likely to pick up an infection
In a rehab facility than at a hospital And in the rehab facility
You usually get two PT sessions a day.
Plus they have much more specialized equipment.
My favorite was standing one footed on the balance ballon while playing catch
With a softball thrown against a trampoline.
Ann you are an inspiration.
Fair Winds to you

[skipmac]

Friend just did in his knee playing soccer. I think the doctor's official diagnosis was "messed it up real bad".

Will need surgery but they told him to take six months to heal the injury and do PT and strengthening first.

[DeepFrz]

Ann, COBG, you guys make me want to throw on my backpack and go jogging in the mountains. Wow... I'm impressed.

[Time2Go]

Originally Posted by skipmac

So far my knees are doing good. It's my rotators and lower back that are slowing me down. Had adhesive capsulitis (frozen shoulder) on both sides. Did surgery on the right side. A new doctor recommended against surgery on the left so went through six months of excruciating PT and it finally got better.

Eight years later both sides seem about the same. Not perfect and they do give me a twinge if I move the wrong way but I don't feel significantly restricted in what I can do. Exercise really, really helps. I was swimming a mile three days a week but had to stop due to a few broken ribs. Several months without exercise and both shoulders started to get painful and I had problems reaching back or up to the side. Once I could start swimming again it got much better.

Now if I could figure out what to do about the lower back. What really aggravates that is working or standing in an awkward position for a while. Don't have to do any heavy lifting at all. Next day I have trouble getting out of bed.

Time to go before it all gets worse.

Hi Skipmac,
Look up the
"McKenzie Protocol" for lower back pain
Could work wonders for you
It's not a crackpot theory, but a widely used method of PT
Recommended by lots of Dr's and PT's
I found out about it because it was prescribed by my Orthopedist to
The PT's
Curious that we have a lot of beat up folks here
How did it happen to you?
Boat related or other?
For me, 50 years skiing, 15 years Hang Gliding
And another 20 or so Scuba

[DeepFrz]

How did it happen to me? Birthdays mainly but was aided and abetted by running, hockey, car accidents, hiking in the mountains, backpacking, canoeing...

[Kenomac]

I was very crippled up with arthritis in both knees 12 years ago, thought I was done and felt 80yrs. Took up competitive cycling, lost 50 pounds and never felt better over the next 12 years. I did exactly what the doctors told me not to do. They said to start taking it easy, instead.... I slowly built up over the next year and never looked back.

[Ex-Calif]

Man, I gotta put this thread on "ignore" - I am in total denial. My older siblings (I am 6 outta 7) are all started on daily piles of meds and pills and they all talk about their ailments.

I am not looking forward to the next 10 years :-(

Ankles completely shot from 9 years of competitive soccer. Last scan the doctor said, "The good news is you didn't break your ankle but it has been broken at lest 3 times..."

Who knew? I used to just play taped up until the season was over and the swelling would go down.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Man. Y'all have some serious bucks to blow.

Actually, I'm quite a cheap bastard. But like I said, it got to be an addiction. Addicts don't care about what it costs or what it does to their bodies. I broke two helmets, a few ribs, and several teeth in the process. (but my knees are better!) Like when you see runners (or cyclists) doing their thing in crazy weather.

I started with a Trek 1000 $600.00 . That bike fixed the knee then the other I used with the racers and triathletes later after I could do their crazy distances.

I have put about 16,000 miles on that Litespeed. 6,000 of that though was mostly up here cycling solo and dodging cars.

I've had back problems also but tacking on the beach cats and coming and going from the trapeze would usually fix that.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by Time2Go

Hi Skipmac,
Look up the
"McKenzie Protocol" for lower back pain
Could work wonders for you
It's not a crackpot theory, but a widely used method of PT
Recommended by lots of Dr's and PT's
I found out about it because it was prescribed by my Orthopedist to
The PT's
Curious that we have a lot of beat up folks here
How did it happen to you?
Boat related or other?
For me, 50 years skiing, 15 years Hang Gliding
And another 20 or so Scuba

Thanks. Will look that up.

For me I think the slalom skiing did it as well, at least for the back. But I'm in Florida so it was on liquid instead of frozen water. Not sure what did the shoulders. It could have been self inflicted by poor technique using workout machines.

The only boat related was 5 broken ribs but that's another story and that seems to have healed 100%

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by DeepFrz

How did it happen to me? Birthdays mainly but was aided and abetted by running, hockey, car accidents, hiking in the mountains, backpacking, canoeing...

Those damn birthdays are really tough.

[sailorboy1]

Damn, reading the thread has my knee feeling better.

I tripped on the rug yesterday after I started this thread. It hurt like hell, but now my knee seems better. And since I made a doctor appointment for tomorrow my elbow also feels better now.

[a64pilot]

Myself, I'm overweight now, but the best thing I ever did for my knees was to lose weight.
It's just simple Physics. When I was 50 lbs lighter, my knees weren't nearly as problematic.
If you can lose weight, do so.

On the bicycle thing, for me that was 18 yrs ago, but riding in the mountains of Germany was worth it. I was in the best condition of my life at that time. Called a bicycle club in Frankfurt one day to inquire about a ride that weekend, they passed me to someone that spoke English. Turned out I had been talking with Eddy Merckx.

Good lord, how often does something like that happen?

[Canibul]

I bent my left knee to a 90 degree angle straight out from my body in a motorcycle accident when I was 27. Destroyed MCL completely, and you cannot walk at all without an MCL. So the surgeon did a Slocum Procedure, in which he removed my ACL and grafted it to replace my MCL. I spent the next 35 years working and boating without an ACL. The joint ground down to the point where it was not only bone on bone, but I lost over an inch in height.

Now, six years later, I have two new metal knees. It's absolutely great. I wish I had done it earlier. I regret all those painful years I lost forever, because I waited until I was older to get the first knee replaced. All those estimates and telling people to suffer until they're old so they won't have to get a revision someday? Forget that. That's ancient info, from back when they thought the new knees would only last 15-20 years. The TKRs they did 20 years ago are still going strong in most cases.

Early re-hab is critical to a successful outcome. I didn't even visit a physical therapist after my second TKR. I went from the hospital to a cane, skipping the walker and crutches entirely, and I kept walking. And climbing. And paddleboarding, and one of the best knee rehabs I have found yet is kicking a Hobie Kayak with their Mirage Drive for a few hours. I've run into people who had bad TKR experiences, and in almost every single case they did the same mistake. They came home from the hospital, sat around munching their pain pills, and waited for a few months for the pain to subside before starting to use their new knee. This does not work. You HAVE to start moving it immediately and keep moving it for those first two months. And by the third month you'll be grinning.

I got my second knee done at an Orthopedic Hospital, instead of in the orthopedic ward of a "normal" multifunction hospital. I can't stress how different the experience was. The orthopedic hospital was wonderful. The staff is great, everyone is there to improve. None of the operating rooms have ever had an infectious disease in them, as they won't operate on anyone with an infection. Nobody is dying there. The staff does only one type of surgery, over and over and over, and they're damned good at it. No surprises that they haven't already seen and dealt with a thousand times. I flew up to McBride Orthopedic in Oklahoma City, and I'd go back to them in a heartbeat if I had something else that needed replacing. It was actually a pleasant experience, after the previous TKR.

[chris07732]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Sailorboy1, and all the rest of you,

My other advice is to stick with the therapy, some people's bodies need longer than others, don't let anybody encourage you to stop if you think there's still room for improvement. [Example: my boat's companionway stairs are 250mm apart (about 9-3/4"). I thought I should be able to go up them like normal stairs. It takes time and effort to get that strength after the inactivity forced on me by the pain.]

It is reasonable to expect a complete recovery.

Ann

Ann's comments are absolutely right on. I'm 3 yrs past bi-lateral TKR, sorry I didn't do it sooner, still improving in ability to do things. What I'm finding is at my age, 72, other things are impinging on ability to do boat stuff. I can kneel, with pads, I can clamber up and down around engine room, negotiate companionway steps, etc. Bending to crawl into tight spaces, not so good, but not a knee issue.

Post op professional rehab is key, self directed rehab at home for 6 months, essential, on some sort of equipment (bicycle, etc.) Constantly check your knee bend angle, stick with it.

As Ann says, it is reasonable to expect full recovery

[Vasco]

Whenever a bunch of cruisers get together, sooner or later the discussion turns to ailments. I see this group isn't much different. There are folks out here with all sorts of medical and physical problems. But they're still here and some still do long voyages. For the most part Bahamas cruising is fairly accommodating to those with problems. As long as you're within VHF range help is usually available.


Toronto in summer, Bahamas in winter.