It's normal for people with a knee replacement to feel like their new knee is weird or unnatural, this is nothing to be concerned about. And why does your knee feel heavier after a knee replacement? It feels heavier because it is! The new knee joint is on average 0.6 lbs heavier than the natural joint.
Six months after your knee replacement
Usually by the 6 month mark, you're about 90% recovered. 30 out of 100 patients at 6 months will say “My knee feels pretty normal like the other side,” while the other 70 will say, “It's still not quite a normal knee but it's substantially better than what I had before.”
In answer to what it feels like to walk with the replacement – it feels way more comfortable going up and down stairs. I don't have any "creakiness" or discomfort. I would say that it feels 98% normal to walk with the replacement. I am 68 years old and I generally walk 2 or 3 miles each morning with no discomfort.
Timeline for Knee Replacement Surgery Recovery
Most patients are able to care for themselves and resume normal daily activities within 6 weeks and drive within 3 to 6 weeks. Knee Replacement. Mayo Clinic. http://www.mayoclinic.com.
Knee replacement surgery replaces parts of injured or worn-out knee joints. The surgery can help ease pain and make the knee work better. During the surgery, damaged bone and cartilage are replaced with parts made of metal and plastic.
Many people find they have less pain after their knee replacement as the arthritis pain is no longer there. The post-op pain usually settles down within 6-12 weeks although their may be some residual pain and swelling for up to a year.
When quantifying how much pain there is after surgery, it is relative to the patient. The pain after a knee replacement is typically no worse than one of your worst days before you had surgery. However, you can feel this way for the first two to three weeks after the day of surgery.
You shouldn't downhill ski or play contact sports such as football and soccer. In general, avoid sports that require jerking, twisting, pulling, or running. You should be able to do lower-impact activities, such as hiking, gardening, swimming, playing tennis, and golfing.
Recovery is slow
While it's different for everyone and depends on the type of knee surgery you've had, many people are surprised by how long it takes to recover. The time it takes to start doing simple tasks around the home, get back to work and importantly bending your new and improved knee may catch you by surprise.
After knee replacement surgery, you can gradually resume normal activities and there are no permanent restrictions, as long as you stay within your comfort level and follow the guidance of your healthcare team.
Your orthopaedic surgeon and physical therapist may recommend that you exercise for 20 to 30 minutes daily, or even 2 to 3 times daily; and walk for 30 minutes, 2 to 3 times daily during your early recovery.
You would be able to walk for 10 minutes without any assisted devices within 4 – 6 weeks of the procedure. You shouldn't need cane, crutches, walker, and other assistive devices. Your physical therapist will encourage you to walk without an assistive device for longer distances gradually.
Most patients can start walking while still in the hospital. Walking helps deliver important nutrients to your knee to help you heal and recover. You can expect to use a walker for the first couple of weeks. Most patients can walk on their own roughly four to eight weeks after knee replacement.
Overall, patient satisfaction after primary total knee arthroplasty was 81% in our study.
This is normal during the early stages of recovery, as the knee experiences swelling which causes temporary stiffness. This should begin to subside within the first month or so after the operation; if it continues to feel stiff or if the stiffness gets worse, contact your surgeon.
Studies that have asked patients why they have difficulty kneeling have found that the reasons are multifactorial, including knee pain/discomfort, numbness, fear of harming the prosthesis, co-morbidities and recommendations from health professionals.
Spring and fall offer lots of daylight and fresh air. Your physical therapy is another reason to choose spring and fall for your knee surgery. Part of your therapy will be performing exercises indoors and outside, which will be more appealing when the temperature isn't too hot or cold.
Delaying Knee Replacement Surgery May Diminish Health
Patients who are relatively healthy when they have a knee replaced are more likely to recover sooner. The longer patients wait and allow their knee issues to affect them, the more it impacts overall health.
The hip is really a much simpler joint. The knee has to balance off-center loads and move side to side. And with a total knee replacement, you are removing a lot of tissue and bone. Postoperative pain is higher with knees since the soft tissue affected by the surgery must stretch more than soft tissue around the hip.
Crossing your legs
Shortly after your total knee replacement, it is not recommended that you cross your legs. This is most likely due to the lack of range in your knee to be able to cross your legs. If you have ever seen someone sitting cross legged, you know how much their knee needs to bend.
Knee Replacement Surgery
If the painful osteoarthritic knee has reasonable degree of knee bending prior to surgery (say up to 130 degrees of bending), than it may be possible for the patient to squat after surgery.
You're not alone. Having an orthopedic surgery can leave you feeling tired for weeks or months after the procedure. Here's a list of 7 main causes of fatigue after surgery: surgical stress, blood loss, medications, pain after surgery, energy of healing, dietary changes, and sleep disturbance.
Your second day can begin with more pain than you experienced on post-op, day one. You probably didn't sleep great, getting to the bathroom with your walker is a fiddle, but you take your medications, ice and elevate, and work on walking.
The most significant pain occurs while the knee is inflamed and recovering from the acute inflammation after the surgery. The first six weeks are the toughest. Of that six weeks, the first week is the hardest.
It is still possible to have arthritis after knee replacement surgery. However, people who need the surgery are less likely to experience pain from arthritis after they recover from the procedure. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of arthritis that affects the joints, particularly the knee joints.