Arthroscopic Knee Surgery Soon: Advice? Comments?

cosmonutcosmonut
Posted:
in AppleOutsider edited January 2014
Ever since wiping out and twisting my left knee while sledding in Dec. 2000, I've been having issues with my knee. The pain has never been all that terrible -- but I DO have a fairly high threshold for pain -- but it's been reoccurring since the accident. MRIs have never showed anything, but the orthopedic surgeon I recently went to see said that I probably have a "chondral" injury. After doing some research, he's talking about the articular cartilage on the end of the femur and back of the knee cap.



Long story shorter, I'm going in Tuesday, Aug. 30th for arthroscopic surgery on my knee. He's going to go in and see what he can see, clean up whatever's not right, and I'll be all done. His office has told me I should be on crutches a day or two, and then about a week after surgery I need to return to get my sutures taken out.



I have to say that I'm getting a bit concerned because I've only found "horror" stories on the Web about people's arthroscopic surgery, but surely there are much more success stories. My concerns are eased a little in knowing that my O.S. is the CEO of the Kansas City Orthopedic Institute, so I figure he's been around a while and knows what he's doing...or he wouldn't be CEO.



Have you ever had to go through arthroscopic knee surgery? Have you ever dealt with the same issue (i.e. the ACL, meniscus, and everything else being okay but articular cartilage be bad)? Any words of advice for before or after? Thanks in advance for whatever you have to contribute.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 9
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    My advice would be to seek recommendations from doctors alone and ignore the Internet, which is full of idiots.
  • Reply 2 of 9
    aries 1baries 1b Posts: 1,009member
    They're doing amazing things with prosthetics these days.



    Good Luck.



    V/R,



    Aries 1b
  • Reply 3 of 9
    shetlineshetline Posts: 4,695member
    I hear the arthroscopic technique is much better than the thing they used to do using leeches, a pick axe, and goat testicles.
  • Reply 4 of 9
    kishankishan Posts: 732member
    The most immediate concern you should have during the surgery is the anesthesia you will receive. If the surgery is to take place in an ambulatory center (instead of a hospital), I would check out who exactly will be administering anesthesia and what provisions they have to get you into a hospital setting if, God forbid, something goes awry.



    In the post-operative period, it is probably important for you to find a good physical therapist to work with. If I read your post correctly, you have a problem with the articular cartilage in your knee. Cartilage has a very poor blood supply and its ability to heal itself is thusly limited. Surgery alone may help, but surgery combined with good PT should yield the best results. If your coverage provides for it, PT is probably a good idea.



    In the end, your orthopedist is the man(woman) on the spot and will be able to answer your questions best. Don't hesitate to be a (polite) pain in the ass in pursuing every answer your need. Surgeons can forget that not everyone has their particular kind of education.



    Best of luck to you and your knee.



    PS: instead of reading internet testimonials written by those unlucky individuals who were part of the minority that have negative experiences, try sites like WebMD or emedicine. Both are free and have excellent information.
  • Reply 5 of 9
    powerdocpowerdoc Posts: 8,123member
    I don't practice arthroscopy of the knee, but my friends do. This is a common procedure, as common as appendicitis removal.

    Bad stories related by non expert (read twisted) are common, but in practice, I would not be scared at all to go throught this kind of surgery, althought that I will prefer to keep my knee OK as it is the case today.



    Don't worry, I am ready to bet, that your pain will vanish in the days following your surgical procedure. Menisc problems are very painfull.
  • Reply 6 of 9
    aries 1baries 1b Posts: 1,009member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Kishan

    The most immediate concern you should have during the surgery is the anesthesia you will receive.



    Acutally, in light of a few leg amputation horror stories floating around, you might want to write "THIS ONE" on the knee to be repaired and "NOT THIS ONE" on your good knee. I would; you can count on it.



    Good luck and speedy recovery.



    V/R,



    Aries 1B
  • Reply 7 of 9
    aplnubaplnub Posts: 2,605member
    Your cracking me up and over dramatizing his situation.



    I have had two knee surgeries, on the same knee. Don't sweat it. This surgery is a lot like my second one and was a cake walk. Just get ready for arthritis in - 10 years (I was 18 at the time of my surgery and now at 28, I have arthritis (MRI diagnosed) but that is the way it is when you screw something up).



    I walked out of my second surgery (I think I was 21 at the time)...







    Quote:

    Originally posted by Aries 1B

    Acutally, in light of a few leg amputation horror stories floating around, you might want to write "THIS ONE" on the knee to be repaired and "NOT THIS ONE" on your good knee. I would; you can count on it.



    Good luck and speedy recovery.



    V/R,



    Aries 1B



  • Reply 8 of 9
    cosmonutcosmonut Posts: 4,872member
    Everything went pretty well with the surgery. The doctor ended up cleaning up the "plica" in my knee, which I understand is part of the smooth, thin lining. It had been damaged/scarred from my initial injury years ago, so he took care of it.



    I've been on crutches a little longer than I expected, but now it's doing all right. The worst part was after I took the ace wrap and dressings off, because my knee was quite weak and stiff. Going to work yesterday helped to get my knee back into "normal" operation even though I was still helping it out with crutches.



    Now I just need to rebuild range of motion and strength in my leg and I'll be fine. I was lucky that nothing worse was wrong with it.



    I set up a little .Mac site if you're interested in seeing pictures or video of the procedure and aftermath.
  • Reply 9 of 9
    aries 1baries 1b Posts: 1,009member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by CosmoNut

    Everything went pretty well with the surgery. The doctor ended up cleaning up the "plica" in my knee, which I understand is part of the smooth, thin lining. It had been damaged/scarred from my initial injury years ago, so he took care of it.



    I've been on crutches a little longer than I expected, but now it's doing all right. The worst part was after I took the ace wrap and dressings off, because my knee was quite weak and stiff. Going to work yesterday helped to get my knee back into "normal" operation even though I was still helping it out with crutches.



    Now I just need to rebuild range of motion and strength in my leg and I'll be fine. I was lucky that nothing worse was wrong with it.



    I set up a little .Mac site if you're interested in seeing pictures or video of the procedure and aftermath.



    Congratulations!



    V/R,



    Aries 1B
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