New knee needed…

After just under a year, I finally seem to have a way forward for my knee. I have honestly tried to do exercises, ride my bike and go to the gym, but nothing has helped and I still have pain.

Over the last two weeks I have seen the Orthopaedic Surgeon twice. The first time we got a clear message from him that challenging ACC was going to be a waste of time and energy as he was firmly of the opinion that my issues all stem from my arthritis. This was a bit of a bitter pill to swallow as we thought we had a case to get the ACC decision reviewed, but without his supporting us in a report, things basically were never going to go in my favour. That was the first visit.

Second visit this week – which my husband couldn’t attend due to work commitments – we talked about where to from here. At the beginning of the consultation he was actually very nice and apologised for having to tell me the bad news last week. He said it is a part of his job that he never likes doing. I assured him, that while I didn’t particularly like what he had to say, that as a clinician he has to be honest and I appreciated his honesty. The next thing was to move on and formulate a plan.

First, he showed me my X-rays taken last Friday compared to the X-ray that was taken a year ago. In the previous X-ray there was a definite narrowing of the gap between the bones of my knee. However, in the latest X-ray there was a marked narrowing of the gap to the point where there is bone on bone. The knee is so badly affected that it is both out of alignment and also the bone itself is starting to be worn down with every movement of my knee. No wonder it is sore!

He was actually very helpful and advised that I need a full knee replacement and that as all lower level treatment options had been exhausted that the knee replacement is the only real option. He said if we did a partial replacement that it would maybe last for five years if we were lucky and then a full one would need to be carried out. He recommended going for the full replacement and getting it over with. I agreed and he has hopefully now put in a referral to the hospital to get me on the public list for an operation. He stated that he thought that the current list is not too long and that I should be seen within about a month and hopefully an operation could be on the cards for a couple of months’ time.

The surgeon advised that the recovery was likely to take 8 weeks on average, some a little more some a little less. He also said that for the first two weeks, I would probably wish I hadn’t had it done and then from there things would start to improve. As long as it ultimately fixes the pain, I am happy we are at least getting to the point where I may be able to walk like a normal person again.

I have had quite a few operations over the years and up until the most recent one, I had often vomited for days afterwards. Luckily, I have found the cause of the vomiting, which is when the anesthetist uses gas. When I discovered that and told the anesthetist and the operation proceeded without the gas, I had no nausea at all. So, I will need to make sure I tell the next anesthetist not to use any gas.

I have seen a recent post on a FB group for people with Parkinson’s and their carers/supporters talking about recovery from the anesthetic. Apparently, some people notice now that they have Parkinson’s that they get a bit confused and coming back to normal takes longer. Perhaps that is people further along than me? I hope so. I’m not keen on the confusion side of things and hope to recover soon as possible after the operation.

One thing I wasn’t sure of was what I would be able to wear home. As it is a knee operation, I can’t really wear jeans, because it is likely I wouldn’t be able to wear them home. This could be difficult for any sort of trousers, because if I have any sort of dressing or a cast or anything on the knee, I won’t be able to put any sort of pants on over them. Perhaps I will need to wear a dress? The problem is, with it being cold and not being able to wear tights it could be a bit drafty!

I also thought about what to wear in hospital and to bed after the operation. Again, trousers or pants may not be possible. So, I went to K-Mart today and bought myself two nightshirts to wear, so I don’t have to worry about putting anything over my leg. I will look like such a granny!

No word yet as to timeframe for the operation, but hopefully it will be soon.