Tibial Osteotomy

[annab13]

Hi there,
I have had 5 arthroscopies on my right knee in the past 8 years, including an OATS procedure early on in my surgery history which involved drilling holes around affected knee area and filling with cartilidge from elsewhere on my knee.
Unfortunately none of the procedures have worked and my knee although remained the same is now starting to deteriorate. During the past 4 years I have had 2 children, which has not helped my knee pain and having children has made me realise that I need something more drastic done so I can play with them and run around with them instead of limping around! (I'm 34).
My consultant has said I am too young for a knee replacement and has recommended a Tibial Osteotomy. I have been doing a lot of research and seen horror stories and happy stories about this procedure. It will have a huge impact on my life (with 2 small kids) for the first 3 months and I need to seriously consider if I should have this done..
Has anyone had this done, what was it like (my consultant said coming out of surgery will feel like you've been hit by a bus!), any good results, any advice would be very welcome.. thanks for listening!

[rkd1987]

Hi Annab13!

I had a tibial tubercle osteotomy about 2 years ago, and i'm going in for one on the other leg in a couple weeks.

I can't really attest to the pain right after surgery, because i requested an epidural for post operative pain before i even went under. By the way, I strongly recommend doing that if you can. Judging from the pain I experienced a day and a half after the operation when they took out the epidural (two days by the time everything wore off)... it is a very painful procedure.

as far as the post op goes... i was told very clearly not to so much as flex my quadricep for around 6 weeks after the operation. therapy was painful, but not too bad. and as i'm typing this, i couldn't be happier I was back up and running about 4 months after the procedure, and the knee feels more stable as it was before my first injury.  after all is said and done, i'd recommend it. it is a very effective procedure, and i had amazing results.

If you want to hear more about what i had done, let me know and i'll be happy to tell you more specific details! 

Good luck with whatever you decide!

[Sarz18]

Hi,

I have recently had two tibial tubercle osteotomys. I had one on the right leg in the middle of april and the other in the middle of july. I took a year off school to hae the surgery done because it was decided that sitting fr long periods of time and walking to different classrooms would be too difficult for me. The surgerys have been really good but they were quite hard work. I have had lots of time off to be able to do my rehab quite thoroughly. However, some people aren't as fortunate as me to be able to do that. I spend at least two hours a day getting my knees right. I am a really sporty person so getting back to playing sport is a huge motivation to my rehab.
The pain straight after surgery is quite bad but if you keep ahead of your pain with meds then it is manageable. I was in hospital for 2 nights and I was on a PCA pump because of my age. I was lucky to have my mum to look after me when I got home to get me ice, meds, comfort me and help me to achieve my goals. I think you would need some help to look after your children because i certainly couldn't have looked after anyone other than myself after surgery. I was in bed for about 3 weks only going out for a small outing (normally the physio or the pool) each day.
I am back running and doing cricket training. I have had a very quick recovery although it is nowhere near complete and i think that is because the past 6 months have really been dedicated to getting better.
If you have any more questions please ask me.
Sarah

[annab13]

Hi,

I have recently had two tibial tubercle osteotomys. I had one on the right leg in the middle of april and the other in the middle of july. I took a year off school to hae the surgery done because it was decided that sitting fr long periods of time and walking to different classrooms would be too difficult for me. The surgerys have been really good but they were quite hard work. I have had lots of time off to be able to do my rehab quite thoroughly. However, some people aren't as fortunate as me to be able to do that. I spend at least two hours a day getting my knees right. I am a really sporty person so getting back to playing sport is a huge motivation to my rehab.
The pain straight after surgery is quite bad but if you keep ahead of your pain with meds then it is manageable. I was in hospital for 2 nights and I was on a PCA pump because of my age. I was lucky to have my mum to look after me when I got home to get me ice, meds, comfort me and help me to achieve my goals. I think you would need some help to look after your children because i certainly couldn't have looked after anyone other than myself after surgery. I was in bed for about 3 weks only going out for a small outing (normally the physio or the pool) each day.
I am back running and doing cricket training. I have had a very quick recovery although it is nowhere near complete and i think that is because the past 6 months have really been dedicated to getting better.
If you have any more questions please ask me.
Sarah

Hi Sarah,

thankyou so much for getting back to me. It was really useful to hear your experience. I am keen to know if you had the surgery here in the Uk, whether you were in plaster or had a knee brace, on crutches and for how long. All of these time scales are really important to me, and will help me decide if I should have it done in the school holidays! I hope you are still on the road to recovery.. your experience is very positive for me!

[annab13]

Hi Annab13!

I had a tibial tubercle osteotomy about 2 years ago, and i'm going in for one on the other leg in a couple weeks.

I can't really attest to the pain right after surgery, because i requested an epidural for post operative pain before i even went under. By the way, I strongly recommend doing that if you can. Judging from the pain I experienced a day and a half after the operation when they took out the epidural (two days by the time everything wore off)... it is a very painful procedure.

as far as the post op goes... i was told very clearly not to so much as flex my quadricep for around 6 weeks after the operation. therapy was painful, but not too bad. and as i'm typing this, i couldn't be happier I was back up and running about 4 months after the procedure, and the knee feels more stable as it was before my first injury.  after all is said and done, i'd recommend it. it is a very effective procedure, and i had amazing results.

If you want to hear more about what i had done, let me know and i'll be happy to tell you more specific details! 

Good luck with whatever you decide!


Hi there,
thanks very much for your reply. It is encouraging to hear that this procedure backs up my surgeons opinion that it's generally successful (on the whole). I am keen to know about logistics more now.. Were you in a plaster cast, how much physio did you have, how long were you on crutches, did you have a knee brace at any time. How long before you were really mobile (even on crutches).. so many questions! It's all about when I have this surgery done to minimise the help I need from other people. Lastly how long did you take off work? My surgeon said 6 weeks, which may not really be a feasible option for me. I have  "desk" job, so could consider going back earlier? thanks again for response!

[Sarz18]

Hi again.

I had the surgery in Western Australia. I didn't have a cast or a brace which is different to the norm. Some surgeons still use them here but I think it is becoming more and more common not to hav anything. I was on crutches for about 5 weeks on each leg - I wasn't very good at using them though!

I had a very good specialist sports physio who I only had to see once a week and am still seeing him once a week 13 week post second op. He is extremely positive and very keen to get me playing sport again. I am still swimming mot days a week trying to get better.

Any questions id love to help

[annab13]

Hi rkd1987
thanks very much for your reply. I have already had some info from Sarz18 and it is encouraging to hear that this procedure backs up my surgeons opinion that it's generally successful (on the whole). I am keen to know about your logistics more now.. Were you in a plaster cast, how much physio did you have, how long were you on crutches, did you have a knee brace at any time. How long before you were really mobile (even on crutches).. so many questions! It's all about when I have this surgery done to minimise the help I need from other people. Lastly how long did you take off work? My surgeon said 6 weeks, which may not really be a feasible option for me. I have  "desk" job, so could consider going back earlier? thanks again for response!