KNEE ARTHRITIS - Autologous chondrocyte implantation (A.C.I.) :
Carticel in 2 weeks - yikes! - - Posted by ace (ace), 22 January 2004
Hi - I've been reading posts, waiting for a "go" on my ACI date and trying to get mentally prepared. All the information on the posts has really helped - I've learned more here than from anyone else.
This sure sounds like a fairly rigorous surgery and rehab. Hope I'm up to it - no turning back now!
I'm having an ACI on my left patella to repair a lack of cartilage (defect) due to a car accident 2 years ago. I'm also having a mosaicplasty on the left medial femoral condyle to repair a defect due to cartilage problems that I've always had on both knees. (I'm bone-on-bone in both knees)
This will be my 4th surgery on my left knee - last 3 were scopes and I know this one will be the mother of all surgeries.
I have one more appointment with the surgeon before my Feb 6 surgery date. From what he's said and what my physical therapist told me, I'll be 8 weeks NWB because of the mosaicplasty (spelling?). I'm a single parent and I live in a house with two flights of stairs, so the logistics will be fairly challenging.
I'm also hyper-sensitive to almost all pain meds (really severe stomach upset ) but I'm willing to try anything if I could start sleeping! And if it would stop hurting... that would be something new.
I could use advice re: what to be sure to do before surgery - around the house and stuff; also ideas for pain meds. My GP has worked with me re: pain control for years and I'm open to any new ideas.
Thanks for reading this long first post -
Posted by blue_ezzie (blue_ezzie), 8 October 2004
Hi ace,
I don't have much to offer with your pain medication question that I'm sure you don't already know - I get ill after morphine so I had pethadine straight after the operation. I asked the anaesthesist to give me anti-nausea medication when I was under anaesthetic and after I came out of the op I had a lot of anti-nausea stuff in my drip too. Comparative to an earlier operation where I didn't have anti-nausea medication, I wasn't too sick. In the week or so after the operation I took some traditional pain tablets but also found that orally taking tablets of Arnica, a natural medicine, helped too.
In terms of around the house, cook up lots of meals before the op and freeze them. Line up lots of people to help you and your children. I found that sitting on an office chair and scooting around the kitchen made food preparation a little easier while I was crutches. I definitely needed assistance for 2-3 days after the op and would have found it difficult to look after kids...can you stay in hospital for a few days and have someone look after them?
good luck on getting your date for the ACI
ezzie
Updated Thu Apr 29 2010
