Mako Robotic Arm TKR WEEK TWO

Bandages came off and the stitches turned out to be the dis-solvable kind under the skin, so no removal necessary. Great to have that heavy ace bandage and pads off. Some numbness on outside of knee, some weeping from the stitches, but overall feels okay. First time for a more painful therapy as Alex pushed harder on both bending and straightening. Numbers are about 3-4 deg. off perfectly straight (so 96-7) and 105 for bending. He wants to get to 110 next week. and lose two for straightening getting me to 98-9). He said scar is about 2-3" shorter than for traditional TKR. He warned me not to be obsessed with numbers or treat it like a competition as there are so many variables, including how much meds are in action at the time of measurement. That explains why I didn't feel much pain at the start when bending (shortly after surgery), as I was on heavy meds. I'm starting stationary bike today and Alex also again showed me how to walk correctly and not favor the knee. Alex and the dr. told me to keep taking meds if I need them to do the exercises so I will do that.

Mako for partial knee replacement has been around since 2006, but for full TKR only approved by FDA since 2017, so no long term studies are available yet. There are a few short term studies that show faster recovery and less pain, but at the one-year point, little real difference. For the 10-20 year studies (durability, complications) we'll have to wait.

Now I can take a shower!