A Phrase You Don't Want Your Surgeon To Use

[MichiganShootist]

I twisted a knee badly and fell at a September match and put up with the pain until October. After an MRI in late November.... arthroscopic surgery was set of December 27th.

Today was my post-op visit with the Doc....... and right out of the box he said. "I'm going to show you some digital pictures of the inside your knee... and it itsn't pretty".

Bottom line.... I have tore up the cartlage to the point that I am running bone on bone on nearly 1/3 of my knee joint. Next step is physical therapy and pain management..... the only cure is a knee replacement.

Bring on the scotch

[bountyhunter]

That sucks. I have constant knee pain from various ailments but I think I still hav some cartiledge left.

I assume you are already on the glucosomine and chondroitin supplements?

Worked great fro my knees.

[chuckbradley]

Sorry, that sucks. My UPS man is looking at the same thing. He says everybody he has talked to said it was the best decision they made but I am sure there are some bad stories as well. Its a major surgery. He is trying to nurse his, supposed to be a new injection out that acts as a lubricant you have to do once a year thats 300.00. He is going to give it a try.

[driver8M3]

supposed to be a new injection out that acts as a lubricant you have to do once a year thats 300.00. He is going to give it a try.

http://www.synvisc.com/

[Kyreb]

My wife is a PTA. She says there are new surgery techniques now that are not as radical as they used to be. Also a lot of the success depends on how had you work at re-hab afterwards.

Good luck with everything! Rick.

[cking]

Knee replacement can go wrong, my uncle got a staph infection [thank you VA along with 13 others] and they will now have to remove the leg 5 inches above the knee.

[MichiganShootist]

Thanks for all the thoughtful comments. The shot treatment suggested is for arthritus and probably wouldn't help me.

I have to admitt the idea of a knee replacement scares me sh$tless. A good friend (a 50 year old lady jogger) had one replaced and went down the staph infection amputation road too..... And she was at one of the top medical centers in the country. However... a neighbor who is nearly 80 has had both knees and both hips replaced and he can power walk past most people half his age.

It's amazing that it all started with just a slip. I was at a match where the starting position was on a 3' square of treated plywood. It was damp and slippery... so when I launched off it... my foot snapped to the rear in a hyper-extention position and the RO said he heard it pop with his electronic ears on.

My wife says that this is what I get.... for playing 20 year old games with a 60+ year old body;(

Edited January 5, 2007 by MichiganShootist

[Micah]

Heal up soon brother! We're rooting for you.

[JFD]

Go for the knee replacement as soon as possible.

I've had a hip replaced (when I was 23) already and will be doing my knee before too long.

I've had my replacement hip 19 years without a problem. I know a bunch of folks with replacement knees that are thrilled with the results.

It gets really old putting up with pain that you don't really need to put up with.

If the VA was involved, then I'd change my opinion, but I had my share of horror stories about hip replacements and they all had the same thing in common (VA).

Personally I think horror stories about someone's upcoming or considered life-altering surgery is in extremely poor taste, but it seems to be a popular activity for some people.

[BritinUSA]

Now's a good time of year to get it done. That way you can be back shooting when the sun comes out. Good luck either way, I hope it all works out for you.

[MichiganShootist]

JFD..... My gut reaction is to go for it too..... but I've got a couple other things to consider.

I'm self employed and the cash flow stops if I can't do my work... and I'm only 3 years from full pension.

Secondly my Doc. said that even though I have excellent insurance... they won't generally pay for a replacement right after "scope job" has been done... So I have no choice but to wait a while and put up with the pain.

Thank God the VA isn't involved with this transaction.

[tightloop]

Knee replacement can go wrong, my uncle got a staph infection [thank you VA along with 13 others] and they will now have to remove the leg 5 inches above the knee.

Man, don't tell me that, the VA wants to replace both mine....damn..

[BSeevers]

Hope it works out.

Better than your surgeon saying "Oops"

[wide45]

My Dad has had both knees replaced. First one about 10 years ago. After that one, he was reluctant to do the second, so it took about 7 years for it to get bad enough. He sez the second was a huge improvement over the first.

His advise is to talk with the therapists doing the after sugery rehab. They have better knowledge than the sergeon about what you are going to have to live with.

[CSEMARTIN]

Better than your surgeon saying "Oops"

Some of my favorite surgeon sayings:

Wow! I've never seen that before.

Geez, what do we do now?

What do you mean the sponge count isn't correct?

That's the weirdest thing I've ever seen.

Seriously, I'm sorry to hear about the news Mark! I think everything is going to be fine!! My offer still stands- I'm still willing to be your squad bitch at the SSC.

[SiG Lady]

I've had one hip replaced (four years ago) and know lots of people who've had knees and hips replaced. I healed VERY quickly, was driving the car in a week and back to work at the office part-time in two weeks. Back shooting at the range in three weeks.

One of my shooting friends had both knees done just seven weeks ago... I finally had a chance to look at his knees last weekend and chat with him about it. Hell, he was already riding his bicycle 5-10 miles a day. He was in good shape to begin with, but his knees weren't. His gait is totally different now and he's not bow-legged any more.

My apartment complex manager had her knees done six months apart a little over a year ago. She's doing great--healed quickly, had no problems. Everybody that I've known, heard of, heard tell of, has NOT regretted their surgical decision one little bit--including me.

Joint replacement is very routine these days. Done properly by competent surgeons, there are no problems.

It IS important to get the proper exercise and physical therapy post-op, though. But that's entirely the responsibility of the patient, and a good motivated patient will heal thoroughly.

Best of luck to you. You'll be fine. Go do it.

[Lee Bell]

I twisted a knee badly and fell at a September match and put up with the pain until October. After an MRI in late November.... arthroscopic surgery was set of December 27th.

Today was my post-op visit with the Doc....... and right out of the box he said. "I'm going to show you some digital pictures of the inside your knee... and it itsn't pretty".

Bottom line.... I have tore up the cartlage to the point that I am running bone on bone on nearly 1/3 of my knee joint. Next step is physical therapy and pain management..... the only cure is a knee replacement.

Bring on the scotch

Forget the scotch, bring on the knee replacement. I've got a couple of friends who have gone through the process. They report a great improvement in both function and comfort. Why suffer if there is a choice?

Lee

[SiG Lady]

Most people that finally have that joint replacement procedure end up saying, "Jeez, why didn't I have that done sooner??!!"

[Bear23]

Check out Chondral grafting.....and OATS ...they take a plug of normal cartilage and bone from a normal area in your knee and graft it to where the bad juju is...

Hope this helps...

Damnit Jim, I'm just a good ole country doctor.

[Pensfan]

I have had 5 knee surgeries and and 2 shoulder surgeries, all a result of 20+ years of hockey. I would strongly recommend getting the surgery done quickly if that is the route you are going to take. The sooner you get it over with, the sooner you can get on with rehab, the sooner the pain ends and you can get back to life as normal.

And honestly man... don't fret over the one or two cases of staph infections you are hearing about. Hundreds and thousands of surgeries happen daily with people walking away healthy and all patched up.

Best of luck with your knees. It is a bitch to recover from, I know first hand, but it is worth it in the long run.

Take care.

[Round_Gun_Shooter]

Sorry, that sucks. My UPS man is looking at the same thing. He says everybody he has talked to said it was the best decision they made but I am sure there are some bad stories as well. Its a major surgery. He is trying to nurse his, supposed to be a new injection out that acts as a lubricant you have to do once a year thats 300.00. He is going to give it a try.

Not to interrupt the HATE, I have just completed the Synvisc injections on both knees and wioll have my 6 week check up next week. I was told at the onset it does not work for bone on bone. I am not there yet and the pain is severely reduced. It is different with everybody, but I am glad I had it done. It was three shots in each knee one a week for 6 weeks. Glad I did it.

For the HATE part, I hate knee pain but hand pain is worse Arthritis sucks Acupuncture works for pain relief on both.

Edited January 17, 2007 by Round_Gun_Shooter

[MichiganShootist]

Thanks for all the support and suggestions. It sounds like a lot of us have been down this same road.

I had my 4th session of Physical Therapy today and it is going better than expected. My crutches are gone... Last weekend I retired my cane... and I can now motor around with only a slight limp. I did learn today that single digit weather hurts like hell.

I'm going to an indoor IDPA match this weekend... and give it a try.

Hey.. even if I have to just stand and shoot.. or walk between positions.. so be it!!!! It beats looking out the window at the snowmobilers that I can't join:(

On the positive side... I'm over a third the way through re-loading all the pistol ammo I'll need for all of 2007.

[Round_Gun_Shooter]

I did learn today that single digit weather hurts like hell.

Your new friend THERMA CARE

[SiG Lady]

"And honestly man... don't fret over the one or two cases of staph infections you are hearing about. Hundreds and thousands of surgeries happen daily with people walking away healthy and all patched up."

He's right. And yes, the deep cold weather has made a few of us joint-conscious folks around here really achy. Damn.

[Hank Ellis]

Sorry guys (and gal) a bit off topic but hear me out.

My wife is in the hospital at this moment recovering from a spontaneous pneumothorax. In English a collapsed lung for no freaking reason (no trauma). She was filling a pet food bowl when the lung collapsed. For further info: WebMD, and Divers Alert Network.

Yes, thank you she is doing as well as you can expect with a garden hose stuck in your chest wall attached to a vacuum pump. Full recovery expected and the chest tube should be out tomorrow. Home in another day or two. Two weeks off work.

When we got the diagnosis we were shocked as we had never heard of such a thing. Then major bummed as everything we heard in the diving community about a pneumothorax and from the ER doc was that her diving days are over. However one of the other docs in the pulmonary practice is a diver and is very aware of the mechanics of hyperbarics as related to scuba. He took over her case.

Short story she had to have surgery to close the hole in her lung caused by the bleb. Having this surgery reduces the chance of reoccurrence to nearly zero. Once this lung is a go for diving in about 3 or 4 months then its off for a high res 64 slice CT scan (don't know what it means but it sounds expensive) and a trip to one of the few certified dive medicine docs in the country. It just so happens he's 6 blocks away. This CT scan is to ensure that the damaged lung is in good shape and that there isn't something in the other lung that may cause a problem. If all is a go, she will be one the very few to beat the odds and be able to scuba dive after a pneumothorax.

It's funny though. In the ER the doc asked what sports we do. Skydive and scuba dive. The gun thing is strictly mine. He drop kicked the scuba but stated that there was absolutely no reason not to skydive again. ???

As for me I'm looking at rotator cuff surgery in the semi-near future. Tore it up in 1999 chunking beads at a Mardi Gras parade. Come on. It was a pair of DDs and had to chunk the beads clear to the back row. Rotator cuff and neck injuries are common to skydivers who have been in the sport a while. Especially once you hit the 2000 jump number or so. The shoulder is starting to bother me more and more. Shot 175 rounds of 12ga on Sunday and I'm still feeling the hurt on Wednesday.

If you really want to know the limits of what modern Western medicine can do, please go to www.deadmike.com. Mike is an old skydiving buddy of mine and I was there when he bounced. His site chronicles his life changing event and in a very black humor sort of way. Warning, don't surf there if you have a weak stomach.