knee replacement

I had my knee replacement 11 years ago. Wonderful result, still going strong.
I wore nighties for my 4 days in hospital do nurses could get at my wound for dressings & my regular normal clothes thereafter. Nothing special ever needed. 28 staples out after ten days (ouch). Massage scar with Aqueous cream or Bio oil but no special or different clothing at all.

DD is also waiting for a partial knee replacement ( as she is young, partial is best as she will probably need another one in 10 yrs or so) she is buying baggy cropped trousers or long shorts, probably with elasticated waist.
I doubt that she will be going far at first, so it’s just so that she can easily get dressed and undressed.
By the time she can get out and about she should be ok for normal trousers.

Forgot to say ... Back to work after 7 weeks. Tights and pencil skirts, low heels as usual. You must do the post op exercises. Not doing so, even though very painful, will defo stop good post op result. Please do them regularly to make the most of your future pain free life. You'll be fine, you'll see.

My knee replacements revolutionised my life. Wonderful.
Re clothes. Both my ops were in the summer. I had long scars down my knees which were very sensitive to fabric rubbing them. I just cut the bottoms off my cotton joggers to form long shorts which stopped just above the knee. Comfortable and let the air get at the scar to help healing up. Obviously I didn't look a picture but for a while I was very glad of them!

My sister (58) had her’s done in July 2019 and wore cotton shorts PJs in hospital for access to the dressings and to be decent for the doing the exercises .

Cotton dresses and baggy shorts when she got home .

nonogran- I have to say the opposite. I did the physio diligently first time and ended up with inflammation and adhesions. I had to have a manipulation under anaesthetic. Second time I refused all physio. I iced and elevated my knees, made sure I walked about and generally kept mobile increasing walking every day, built in using stairs etc. Result - congratulations from surgeon on 3 week follow up visit as I'd achieved full movement. Knees swell up after surgery. Like a full hosepipe they can't be forced to bend. I was glad I had the confidence to argue with the physios. I'd already checked the NICE guidance and there was no evidence that it made any difference.
Good luck. It's well worth doing.

I haven’t got a date for my knee replacement yet but I’m really looking forward to getting it done and being able to do the long walks that I was used to.
Is there any advice that you ladies feel is important? I have been told that the exercise afterwards is crucial but apart from that not much else. I live alone so useful tips will be welcome.

depends on the season surely. I was able to choose the timing with both knees, and with advice had both done in March- tot have the whole Spring, Summer and Autumn to get over it- before ice and snow comes to our moutains. Wore nighties in hospital, and had loose track pants and long shorts for home.

As for the physio and exercise- I am 100% with Nonogran here, as is anyone I know in the orthopeadic and physion circles I know. It also depends on the long term results you want- for me it was important to get back to sport activities.

My plan was to insert a long zip in the side seam of soft fabric pants, then once your recovery period is over, it's easy enough to remove the zip and stitch the seam closed. Knee length pants would be OK with a shorter zip, as it's really only needed (imho) to access the knee for dressing changes etc.

Generally when I want/need a long zip I use the by-the-metre zips, just check how many slides are included.

Don't forget to allow additional width (for swelling) in the knee area of any pants, this can also be reduced later, if required. In fact when I make jeans, I know my left knee is always more swollen than the right, so I make the left leg a little wider around the knee area. It's not noticeable, but makes my jeans more comfortable and the leg doesn't hang up on the L knee.

Good luck with your surgery. ;-)

I wore normal length trousers - usually track suit ones- after my op. The dressing was not changed, on surgeon's instructions, until I saw him 2 weeks after the surgery and it was only a gauze dressing over the would itself. I had disolveable stitches so did not need those to be taken out.
I did have a physiotherapist come to me for 10 sessions and I did the exercises but not religiously. If you can get to a hydrotherapy pool I think you will find it very beneficial.

Everyone told me that recovery from knees were worse than that from hips. In my experience that was not so. Although I did initially have more pain from my knee I found it much easier to manage day to day activities than it was after my THR. Getting up from a chair and walking did not present any issues for me. I had normal movement by 6 weeks post surgery.

It is important to keep the scar area soft and massaging it a few times per day worked for me. I just used Nivea cream and I massaged the lumps from the stitches. I do of course have a scar but it is flat and soft and not particularly noticeable after 6 months.

Thank you for your advice ladies it is a good thing to know about what to wear after surgery and to work on the physiotherapy enabling sports activity. I would be so happy to be able to walk the hills that I have for most of my life. I won’t be going back to horse riding though l think those days are over for me. ?

I've told you my experience of knee replacement with and without physio and also the clinical evidence. I'd also endorse aquafit. Just keep moving when not icing and elevating.
Check the Bonesmart posting forum for first hand experience and sound advice on knee replacements.

Thank you all very much indeed! Excellent advice.
I do normally have access to a lovely exercise pool, and am crossing my fingers for it to be open again.
And thank you EilaRose for the advice abut trousers - which had not occurred to me.

Gives me something positive to do while I wait!

I had some soft loose jersey type animal print trousers ( Primark!), they were great , accommodated the swelling , easily washed and dried . Do lots of strengthening exercise now . I've had both my knees done and managed my recovery home alone . Find a high chair to sit in , low chairs are a nightmare to get out of ! I cooked lots of meals and froze them , that was the best thing . I didn't have to rely on people for shopping etc .

I've got two lovely metal and plastic knees. Good luck and I hope yours is as succesful as mine.
My knees seemed enormous after the ops, so I bought some wide legged trousers which were marvellous. And I am glad I kept them because they are quite fashionable now.