Wow, what genie15 says might scare anyone away! I've had a good outcome, and most of us do, but it's had its ups and downs. Someone, somewhere on this forum, made the point that you should choose a specialist for this surgery -- someone who does nothing else. I agree. My surgeon only does knees and hips, and he's been doing this for years, is up on the latest technology, but isn't over-eager to be the first onboard. I looked him up online and read reviews. Nevertheless, I also agree with genie15, that a doctor will often only see what he is looking for, and I've had that experience. I was fortunate that I had no complications following my TKR. In response to irishtrish, it isn't an easy road, but if your arthritis had you going downhill and was slowly lessening your quality of life, it's worth it. Get past all the pain and stiffness, and you will start to see improvement. You will be going uphill instead of downhill, regardless of how slowly you feel you are going. At 16-months out from surgery, I finally feel like I am almost back to my pre-decline self -- NOT my pre-surgery self, but my pre-decline self! That's amazing! Surgery doesn't just halt the decline arthritis puts you in, it can set you back to start! That is worth a year of recovery.