General knee replacement questions

kjckneesearch, I am a little younger than you and I can only tell you my experience, ok?

I did the cortisone shots for a few years and did the gel injections for 2 years in my left knee. My knee was bone and bone. It got to where it ached and hurt to walk. It kept me awake at night. I couldn't get in and out of the tub anymore. I also, loved to get on my knees and pray and I couldn't do that anymore due to the pain. The cortisone shots were no longer working. I have osteoarthritis in both knees. I stopped the gel injections because they made my knees stiffer. I rode this out for a few years until I couldn't anymore as nothing was working. My knee was slowing me down. I had already had a torn meniscus in that same knee in 2018 and the doctor told me then I would eventually face knee replacement. I had knee replacement in March of this year of the left knee.

I am being honest with you. I did my research about which surgeon to choose. Knee replacement is major surgery, it is painful, PT is painful, not much sleep for a while, you will pamper that knee for many weeks and still need to do exercises after you are released from PT. You must stay on top of the pain with pain meds and ice it. I slept in the recliner because it was easier to elevate my knee with pillows for 4 months. I am almost 5 months out and I still have stiffness and do my exercises every day. I bought a recumbent bike so I could use it daily to help loosen up my knee.

My surgery was successful and I am so grateful. I do not have the pain anymore and I can move my knee much better. My knee is straight and I have a perfect bend. I am working my way back to doing the things I used to do. You have to keep moving regardless to get the motion back. My right knee is bone on bone and I am in no hurry to have it done because the cortisone shots are still working and it is not in as bad a shape as the left one was.

The Lord and my wonderful family and church friends got me through this with their prayers, love, visits, meals, cards and phone calls.

I am praying for you in your decision. I know it's a big one.

Blessings & Prayers.....

I am an 81 YO male. My right knee malfunctioned at the beginning of 2025 and I became severely misaligned with a nerve impingement resulting therefrom.

I had previously done a ton of research and found a great hip/knee replacement surgeon who replaced my left hip five years ago. So I already Had an extraordinary surgeon. We tried some non surgical methods (such as a cortisone shot in the knee) but they didn't work. So we scheduled the right knee replacement.

One of the things I wanted was a bicruciate retaining implant (BCR). My ACL appeared to be strong and I saw no reason to remove it if it still worked. The surgeon I had selected for my left hip is one of the very few who has been doing the BCRs for a long time (a decade). I was not afraid of the surgery but I was of general anesthesia so I made sure that it was done with a regional.

My surgeon did a mid vastus procedure (minimally invasive); did not use a tourniquet; used a robotic assistant (CORI); put in a BCR; fixed my severe valgus misalignment with a Functional alignment; and did a plastic surgery close.

A few days before my surgery I met with my surgeon and told him that I wanted to be back on the golf course by the end of the fourth week. he replied that it was an aggressive target but he was up for the challenge if I was. He was. I was. On the 27th day after my right knee replacement, I was playing golf (my surgeon's PA had cleared me to resume driving after one week). I had an RX for oxycodone which I filled but I still have the bottle which remains unopened. I had zero post surgery pain.

I believe that the traditional standard still should apply. Assume you will have pain, meaningful pain for a number of months (semi worst case). Is your current pain and discomfort such that it is interfering with your enjoyment of life and the ability to do what you want to do? If yes...then I believe you are ready. If no, you probably should wait.

As @covidstinks2023 said, IMHO once you decide to proceed surgeon selection is the single most critical decision you will make. There are many hip/knee surgeons. Like all professions, some are extraordinary, some are terrible and most are somewhere in the middle. Find that extraordinary surgeon and you will have maximized your chance at a pain free or pain minimized recovery and a great after life. I did. At my six month checkup my surgeon told me I had no limitations. I asked him if that meant I could go on trampolines with my grandkids; he said yes. I asked if that meant I could run; he said if I wanted to. Yesterday I went walking in the mall; I did four miles.

I was 77 when I had my TKR three years ago. Before the surgery I had the cortisone shots (3) about 4 months apart with some relief but finally accepted the idea that surgery needs to be done. My surgeon had a MRI done to build the replacement parts and give him an accurate look into the knee before surgery. After surgery I was fitted with a prescription leg sleeve to control the swelling along with a water/ice & pump cooler. I wore the sleeve 24/7 and attached the cooler wrap whenever I was sitting down including in bed. My suggestion is to ask for a replacement sleeve because they get dirty after wearing it 24/7 and it needs to be purchased from a doctor, I think I found a vein specialist that sole them in pairs for about $50-70 a set.
Shortly after surgery I made my first walk while I was in the hospital, only about 20 feet out and back of my room (with a walker), but each day after I added another 20 feet to the exercise. By the time I had a PT therapist at home I was doing about a quarter of a mile a day (with a cane or walker, mostly for stability).
Before surgery I had 5 goals:
1. Walk & sit without pain
2. Sleep without pain
3. Walk up stairs without pain
4. Walk down stairs without pain
5. Get down on my knees without pain
Within a few days I accomplished #1, #2 came after a few weeks, #'s 3 & 4 took me a year to do with confidence and #5 I do with kneed pads, mostly because my knee cap is numb and it feels funny.
One last note, a few years prior to my journey with TKR I lost a lot of weight, about 70lbs, for another reasons and I believe it made a difference.

@steveinarizona it sounds as if you have a great amount of confidence in your surgeon. And that is what we were hoping to hear. If I may, what is the name of your surgeon and where is he located and …do you have a phone number and/or a website?
Thank you for sharing your story. That is what we were looking for!😊

@steve161 I loved your goals and mindset on this.

So happy for you. God Bless.......

@kjckneesearch

I do. The one caveat is that he does not participate in Medicare nor take insurance. But his fee is a reasonable $5,500 (well less than a Nano Knee for example) . I had zero pain each time. A friend of mine went to him for his knee and he is currently in the recuperative stage but he has had some pain. Nonetheless, he says he is very happy with the decision to use my surgeon. My buddy is 6'11" tall so he must be putting an incredible stress on his knee joint.

Jimmy Chow is the surgeon. He is in Phoenix and uses the outpatient center at the Abrazzo Scottsdale Hospital campus. He has a traveling practice:
https://www.chowhipandknee.com/

Thank you so much.