TKR at 49

[travis50]

I am 49 and been told that the only option left to me is TKR of my right knee. Can anyone give me any advice or pointers. Like, will I still be able to cycle afterwards.

Trav

[Tee_Jay]

Travis,

I had TKR to both legs in September 03. I was told at the time that any and all forms of exercise and recreation would be possible in time. The only proviso was that high impact exercise would reduce the life of the joint. So that's me off the squash court while rugby, football and running are also a thing of the past!

But I have been out cycling and suffered no ill effect; of course this depends on the amount of bend you achieve with the joint and also the style of cycling you want to do (mountain bike racing or BMX stunt riding may cause problems!)

The best advice I can give you is to exercise hard every day after the op. You will have a little pain in the muscles and tendons, plus pain at the back of the knee caused by tightening of the cruciate ligament, but prevail or your knee may stiffen and you will only get limited bend/movement.

I pushed my knees to the pain limit for bending (straight leg extensions came fairly easy) and I still do 6 months post op, but I get over 125 degree bend which is pretty much as far as a replacement will go (I think).

I hope the op goes OK.

TeeJay

[Jan_L.]

Hi Trav,

I had a TKR done this past December.  I went with the Oxinium knee replacement, which I would suggest you consider.  I posted some info on it, on "young and need a TKR".  

The only drawback is the cost.  But if it lasts twice as long as the regular implants then the insurance company would save money.  I just got a copy of the hospital bill and they are billing my insurance company close to $9,600 for just the part, which is a lot more than most implants.  I am waiting to see if my insurance company will pay for it.  

The web site for the Oxinium knee is www.strongasanox.com  

My doctor agreed with me if he neeed a knee this is the one he would want put in his leg, it's a shame that the company is charging so much for it that most people can't afford to get it.

good luck!

Jan

[travis50]

 :-*Hi Jan, and TeeJay,
                                   Thanks for your replies. I have visited strongasanox.com, and have printed it off for my OS to have a look at. But, living in the UK it may not be available over here yet. Unless anyone knows different.
Regs
Trav
               

[Trev]

Hi Trav,

I'm in a similar situation, left knee shot and the right one starting to go.
I've been told that I will need a TKR, but not at my age (43).
I'm also in the U.K so am watching with interest at how you get on.
It seems that we are lacking compared to the U.S.A.

Good luck

Trev.

[Jan_L.]

Hello all,

For those of you considering getting an Oxinium knee replacement, I want to let you know that my insurance company paid for the implant in full, without even asking a single question.  The implant alone cost around  $9,600.  

[Rhonda_K]

HI,
  i am 49 and just had a TKR on my left knee 5 wks ago.
Doing good but its harder than I thought it would be. Have bouts of depression but its getting better am walking with a cane now PT says I am doing good but seems like it should be bending more by now. I am up to 86 on the CPM don't know how good that is but was only on 30 when I came home from the hospital was in there 7 days had a rough start at first with pain control the first 24 hrs morphine pump wasn't working right so when i did get pain under control had alot of depression. They say that isn't unusual. I am doing better will get the other one done before the end of the year because have met all my deductibles on insurance for this year. Have to try to save somewhere this TKR cost around $52,000.00. Good Luck to every one

[Jack Smith]

Hello all,
I am male 49 years old and just had a TKR on my left knee less than 5 weeks ago in Madras India for $6,500 (not including hotel, if necessary, and flight). I am walking without any aids and doing great. My extension is almost full; the only thing to work hard on is my flexion which gets better everyday. Just wanted to give you my experience.

[L. Thomas.net]

I'm 57 and the staples were removed @ 10 days post-surgery.  I could ride the stationery bike 3 days after the staples were out.  I have a recumbent bike and it took a little longer because of the difference in the range of motion needed for a recumbent bike.

I went to physical therapy for 10 visits.  After the 4th visit the therapist told me I wouldn't need anymore when I went back to the OS.  By the last visit I was having no problem riding with as much resistance as I would need for outdoor biking.  It's close to biking weather and I am looking forward to biking in the battlefields.

I specifically asked my OS if I would be able to ride a bike post-surgery and he said I would be able to enjoy most things that I was able to do before surgery.  But he didn't think you should learn anything new that required knee stress, like downhill skiing.   But doubles tennis and golfing were a go.  NOT singles tennis though.

I have a nickel allergy so my OS wanted to use a nickel free joint.  Zimmer released one in Nov. before my surgery in Dec.  It is zirconium coated. Zimmer has more than 1,000,000 joint replacements in use.  From what I understand the Oxium is zirconium.   I am in the "learning curve" but he thinks the Zimmer will wear longer than other joints because there will be less friction.  That is what wears the joint out.

My joint was billed at $11,000 but who actually knows what the insurance company paid.

[Teresa_S]

I had already started a post about cost of tkr. My total bill was almost $92 000. The Zimmer LCCK knee prosthesis was billed at $49.800, and the insurance company paid it at almost $9000, and the hospital had to write off the rest. The surgeon fee was $15000 and they paid him a little under $2500. I was told that this knee was customized to fit me only. They use different size parts in different parts of your knee. so not just a one size prosthesis. The augmentation required from my old tkr made a difference of twice as much on one side as the other, and the Old prosthesis was size 6 while the new was a 3. Most people have a 2.5-3 in terms of size. It is amazing to think of these expenses, but knew that insurance would have a big write off. Had my first tkr at 50(one month after birthday) Teresa

[macktheknife]

Good post ,I w ill be 49 this fall and really concerned about having this done at this age because I'am really active . Don't get me wrong my knees hurt al lthe time and have losss tremendous range of motion , probably could not survive without anti inflammatories , as a matter of fact . So I want to have this done to get rid of arthritis pain and fixe the old cowboy bow legs but fear wearing em out. Have any of ypou heard about the new oxidized zirconium knee replacements ? They cost 9500 more but are supposed to last 20 -25 years ?

[SueLB]

My husband just got an oxidized zirconium knee replacement on March 5. It's the Smith & Nephew Journey knee. It is supposed to last longer than those older chrome knee.

[macktheknife]

That is what I have heard , what are they giving your husband time wise on that zirconium knee ?

[SueLB]

The doctor wouldn't give a time span on how long it will last. Just said it should last longer. Since all of the testings on this material  and type of knee is in the laboratory, he couldn't/wouldn't say how long it would last in the real world and how active you are. I asked him the question a few times about longevity, sort of frustating. He chose this type of knee because my husband is/was very active.

[knee deep in Goo]

You have to understand nothing is written in stone on how long a replacement will last for each person.  Some people can have 30 good years with a knee. Others will never see productive results.

I believe it is one of those mental questions they put before you to make you think long and hard.   It is like asking an OS will you win the lottery this week. 

What motivates you?  What is your drive? How hard are you willing to work for mobility? Are you going to be ok if you can never achieve the same mobility you once had?  That is the better question to ask yourself..

An example I can speak of is my mother.  She will not go to an OS and the only time someone has seen her leg was after my replacement.  My OS tried to encourage her to get an Xray out of his concern that her mobility level can never be corrected.  But she wont do it.   And my OS keeps asking about her out of concern that there is an ugly future.  But on the flip side if your motivation is not there how successful would this type of operation on someone be who is not motivated for it.