posted on August 22, 2006 12:27:01 PM new
Regarding your bionic knee... my mom has rheumatoid arthitis and might need a knee replacement (she finds out today). She's so scared, but I told her you had one and you're happy with it. Anything she should know when making her decision? Thanks so much!
posted on August 22, 2006 06:09:36 PM new
How old is your mother? I am in my 60s. My knee replacement was a dream. Tell your mother to ask around--medical people -- a lot -- if she has a choice, and find someone like my dr. who has done about 5,000 knee and hip replacements AND who is a perfectionist, according to all the other nurses and drs. around. I had it done at Loma Linda U. Hospital, a very good one. He is like a god to me now; wonderful smart man with (get this!) all the time in the world to answer all one's questions.
And then be sure she follows through on physical therapy afterwards. The goal is to get the leg to bend at the knee allllll the way back, and to be able to bend downward when she's lying on the table, so that the back of the knee touches the table. My therapist took 2 months of 3X a week with me until he, also a perfectionist, was satisfied that I was "there."
If your mom wants to e-mail me, I'll be glad to tell her what I know.
posted on August 23, 2006 03:45:03 PM new
You're a sweetheart, Roadsmith. The doctor told her she doesn't need one just yet, so she's thrilled - me too. I've told her a few times that you were happy with the results and that always made her feel better. You've been a big help (without knowing it)... thanks so much.
posted on August 23, 2006 03:58:25 PM new
Always glad to give free advice! How old is your mother? She'll probably want to have the knee done as soon as the dr. tells her she should have it done; the younger you are, the faster you heal.
Tell her she will definitely *know* when it needs to be done; the pain will interfere with her life. You just get to a point where it's that or sit around doing nothing.
posted on August 24, 2006 07:09:12 PM new
Kraft.. I've had both knee channels rebuilt.
Not replaced like they do today, but in my 20's they rebuilt both my knees, using cadaver bones to build new channels to hold the knee caps in place. Both knees had dislocated and tore every muscle and ligament and the knee caps ended up behind my knees...Before this procedure they used to fuse the knee joints and you couldn't bend your legs, so I was lucky to have this procedure available to me. I'm still walking, with somebody else's bones.. LOL.. but it is very painful the older I get.
Every once in a while a bone chip will lodge in the knee and it hurts.. but my doctor says it hasn't become so bad to warrant total replacement just yet.
posted on August 24, 2006 08:51:08 PM new
On your knees alot, eh Mags? I'm always amazed at what everyone has been through around here. It's the pain people live with that bothers me the most. There's no reason in the world why anyone has to suffer, yet they do - especially older people. (Not our age - more along the lines of Linda's age.)
I know Roadsmith loves her new knee Maggie, so if you ever do need one, she's a good inspiration.
posted on August 25, 2006 09:17:06 AM new
I suppose you all know that I had my hip replaced 7 years ago? That too has worked the way it should.
Now I have an ankle that is completely shot--bone on bone, which I can hear as I go down the stairs. There's no approved ankle replacement on the market in the U.S. - yet, so I've been trying to hold out as long as I could.
But a friend, in his 50s, has TWO bad ankles and is flying to Switzerland next week to get BOTH ankle replacements done at once (college professor who needs to get on with his life). The surgery will be done by a Swiss dr. who's written a book on the procedure and who invented the replacement device. This friend will definitely be my guinea pig! Hobbling around, using a parking placard, having people ask what's wrong with my ankle and when will it heal (never, I tell them) is getting very tiresome. If anyone here is interested, I'll be glad to post a progress report on the pal's ankles later on.
posted on August 25, 2006 12:00:08 PM new
LMHO Mags!!
Roadsmith, I want to hear about it! I'm so interested in this stuff. Especially your friend's ankles - that will be an amazing thing to hear about and if it works for him. Is it osteo or rheumatoid for you, Roadsmith? BTW, mom is 68 and weighs about the same. She's so tiny, so I'm afraid of her breaking bones and stuff.
posted on August 25, 2006 12:41:36 PM new
I'm getting lens implants next month, can't hardly wait. There going to start with my shooting eye first, then do the other one a few weeks after. I've had these cataracts since I was 40 but they only recently got bad enough to warrant being removed. Can't take a decent photo anymore and driving at night is risky business.
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Grow your own Dope. Plant a Republican.
posted on August 25, 2006 01:01:51 PM new
"OMG Classic! Did it just fall off or something?"
well ahhh no-it was a penis reduction-ya know like some women get a breast reduction when their boobs are too big.I had mine down sized from 12 inches to 8.To be honest,it was getting to be an embarrassment.I go to the gym,and afterward when I was taking a shower,the guys would see me and go home crying to their wives because they felt so inadequate.
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If you dont want to hear the truth....dont ask the question.
posted on August 25, 2006 01:02:26 PM new
Kiara, okay. I'll post info on the ankle replacements later on when he's back in the country. I'm hoping it works for him.
My arthritis is neither osteo or rheumatoid; it's a form that we people with iron overload get (not all of us have the overload manifested in that way, however). It's a sort of pseudo-gout, a different kind of deposit, some sort of "citric acid"?? thing (I forget exactly) that deposits here and there for some of us with the genetic makeup for that problem with iron overload. There's no cure, but we slow its progress with lots of phlebotomies to get the sludgy iron-rich blood out of our bodies. Then we're on maintenance, getting checked frequently and having an occasional pint of blood taken. Our bodies can't sluff off iron as most people's can, and the iron buildup if not caught in time can cause deposits of iron in all our internal organs including heart, and cause heart failure, liver or pancreatic cancer, severe "bronze" diabetes, etc.
I'm very thankful I found a dr. 8 years ago who happened to be *looking* for this; most older ones don't know about this condition yet and will simply have to treat the bad problems that are a result of it rather than getting at the cause.
I'm always amazed at what everyone has been through around here. It's the pain people live with that bothers me the most. There's no reason in the world why anyone has to suffer, yet they do - especially older people. (Not our age - more along the lines of Linda's age.) 