does anyone know how many knee replacements a person can have?

@helenr I presume Orthovist is similar to synvisc. I was getting synvisc shots for quite a while and they did help tremendously. I also exercised my knees a lot and that helps by strengthening the supporting muscles, which also makes recovery from a TKR easier.
Those are both great strategies. I did eventually have a TKR in October 2017 and it was extremely successful.
I agree with you though, as long as the shots give you enough relief, why have a TKR?
JK

Great that the injection(s) worked for you, and others on this forum - envious, too. I had a series of them to delay/avoid TKR, and they gave me perhaps 10% pain relief for maybe 10 weeks, then nothing. Wish they would have been helpful. And I also did knee exercises daily, to no avail. (Still doing them 7 months after TKR, on top of walking and swimming and gardening etc.).

If you access this information regarding 2-3 TKR revisions not resulting in an amputation, please advise.
I’ve endured 3 knee surgeries, & the third being a TKR, which didn’t work out at all! I’m so limited with ambulation or just sitting for short periods of time due to the severe flexion contracture & constant pain.
My 4th knee surgery would be an amputation & I just cannot accept that this type of surgery should be the end result from my original knee injury in 2006, which was a patella dislocation.
Modern medicine???

Hi there, so backstory, I had a torn meniscus surgery in June and have had a slow recovery. Just had a second MRI and found I have bone on bone now from surgery and quite a bit of OA. I have a couple friends that have done a knee replacement, and it hasn’t gone well for them. Because of my age I’m hoping to prolong it, so that I don’t have to have several knee replacement surgeries in my lifetime. I’ve opted to lose 40 pounds, do physical therapy, and my doctor is getting me approved for hyaluronic acid injections. I’m wondering if anyone else here has any other suggestions, or their own experience they would like to share. . I tried Cortizone and it didn’t help. Also doctor said that I would qualify for a partial knee replacement since the damage is inside of my knee, and the outside is pristine. Thank you in advance.

Hello @katienaturegirl, Welcome to Connect. I think you have made an excellent choice prolonging the surgery as long as possible and choosing to lose some weight along with physical therapy and injections. I had my right knee replaced 2 years ago at age 76 and it had been bone on bone for 3 or 4 years and I finally couldn't avoid surgery if I wanted to remain mobile. I also had several cortizone injections prior to the replacement and had asked my surgeon about hyaluronic acid injections but he told me that he didn't think it would help at the stage of my knee. One thing that really helped my recovery and the surgery go well was doing the pre and post knee replacement exercises faithfully and building up the leg strength. Here's some information you may find helpful

-- Troubled by knee arthritis but not ready for knee replacement? Here are 5 alternatives: https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/troubled-by-knee-arthritis-but-not-ready-for-knee-replacement

-- Mayo Clinic's Approach to Knee Arthritis - Both Surgical and Non-Surgical:

Has your doctor recommended any specific exercises along with the physical therapy to help strengthen the knee?

Hi, @katienaturegirl Welcome to Connect.

I have had two TKRs. I had to delay the second one due to other conditions so I did turn to hyaluronic acid injections when cortisone was no longer helping much. Unlike @johnbishop mentioned, I found them very helpful. From what I understand they fill in where you no longer have cushioning in the joint. Of course they do wear out and need to be redone eventually. I presume you are not yet on Medicare since you mention that you don't want to have to face having your knee replaced multiple times. I believe Medicare, and this may be true for other insurers, only allow those injections at six month intervals.

You are smart to have lost some weight and to be exercising. Those both will help with recovery. I had heard that some people do "pre-hab" and when I asked my orthopedic surgeon about that he asked if I was doing anything then. I told him I was water jogging and riding my recumbent bike and he said that basically was prehab! Also, I found that the exercise I did prior to the TKR that had to be postponed, helped my knee to feel much better since the muscles surrounding the knee were strengthened.

Make sure you find the best possible surgeon you can find to do the surgery. That can make a huge difference. Also, ask what kind of knee they use, you might want to do a bit of research on that. For my second TKR, I had a Conformis knee which is custom made for each patient and that helps to assure that the fit is perfect vs an "off the shelf" knee. My surgeon was one of the developers of the Conformis so I felt very comfortable with him. He's in Boston and when I was in his waiting room I discovered that people came great distances to go to him. Before I actually decided to go ahead with the surgery I was seeing an orthopedic doctor locally (southern NH) and she was the doctor who I turned to for injections. You cannot have any of those injections within a certain amount of time prior to the surgery.

Unless you are very young I would doubt that you would need to have a knee replaced a second time. The knees they make now are fairly sturdy. Did your doctor say that you might need to have it multiple times? I guess I never faced that because I was in my 60s for the first TKR and in my early 70s for the second one.

Good luck with your decision. I know that decisions for elective surgeries are not easy to make but you are obviously proceeding very cautiously so I'm sure you will make the right decision. Just don't wait so long that you are really in extreme pain and limping. I think I put my first TKR off for too long and that made rehab more difficult.
JK

Hi @katienaturegirl,

So glad that John @johnbishop and JK @contentandwell were able to connect with you. I wanted you to be able to connect with a few more people like @annahanna and @cobweb so I moved your post to a like discussion.

Can you respond to John's question about your care?

Hi @johnbishop. Thank you so much for taking your time to respond to my question. I appreciate it very much. I actually am currently in PT. And the PT had mentioned it to me. They are helping me keep flexibility, strength and mobility, and have been so helpful. I actually go in today to receive my hyaluronic acid injection, so I guess I will have a more clear idea of if it will help in about 30 to 45 days. Fingers crossed. I have lost 5 pounds in the past couple weeks and have 30 more to go, and that too will give me a more clear idea of how long I can wait before surgery. You have been so helpful. Thank you again!!

Hi Katie! I'm hoping that the hualuronic acid injection prolongs the knee. I'm sure if I would have gotten on the stick and lost more weight 10 years sooner I may not have needed a knee replacement or could have got into my 80s before having it done 🙂 One thing that has really helped me with my weight loss is intermittent fasting. There is another discussion you may find really helpful on your weight loss journey.

Low-carb healthy fat living. Intermittent fasting. What’s your why?: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/low-carb-healthy-fat-living-intermittent-fasting-whats-your-why/

Good luck on your weight loss journey and also with your injection today!

Hello @contentandwell, I very much appreciate you taking your time to reach out! Your info was very helpful. I am 47 years old and am young for this. I have bad OA in my knee which is causing this progression. I actually go today for my hyaluronic acid injection, and am so hoping it will help buy me more time. I also have lost 5 pounds the past couple weeks and have 30 pounds more to lose to be a healthy weight. So with all that and PT I guess I will have a more clear idea.
I had not even thought to ask about the type of knee. That is very interesting. I am in SLC, so not very close to Boston, but will definitely research that more. I had also heard that surgery performed by a robot is sometimes better as well. This is all new to me. And I will keep going down this research rabbit hole, to help avoiding multiple surgeries if possible.
Thank you again. I so very much appreciate it!