[JRD77VET]

Originally Posted by Jeff '79

Well here is the dealio....

My osteo-arthritis has progressed to the point to where there is bone on bone lovin' goin' on in my knee.
That being said, my meniscus is most likely shredded, probably a #2, so the doc said that he can go in and fix that and clean the joint up, but I will still have the osteo-arthritis pain.
Recommendation, and I knew this was coming, a total knee replacement.
While in there doing that, anything that is jagged gets filed down and any tears will be repaired or replaced.
I'm gonna do it.
At 54 years old, I have great health insurance, am still relatively young, and will heal and recover really well.
My only reservations are, how long it will last, and my inability to kneel ever again.
I think the benefits outweigh the negatives, so I'm in.
Dude didn't even offer me any pain meds
Ibuprophin and alcohol it is then....
Gettin' old apparently sucks.

Originally Posted by Jeff '79

I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis 5 years ago in my right knee.
My left knee is pristine.
There is no cure other that steroid shots into the knee joint which only last 3 to 4 weeks, or a knee replacement. I've done that and it is literally a waste of time and it hurts like a mofo.
FF to 6 weeks ago when I fell into the stairs.
Ok, well my knee really really hurts from that incident.
I saw my primary two weeks ago; That is 4 weeks after the incident, and he referred me to this guy.
I felt that i could heal on my own with time. Nope... It did not.
FF to today.
Between the meniscus , the osteoarthritis, and all of the jagged edges in there, there is no way that the pain will go away.
Hey... I manned up for a long time.
I just have to bite the bullet and get it done.
Yes... It is radical at my age, but if you really think about it, I'll heal quickly and there will be no more pain..... if everything goes as planned.
My knee is fried. Simple as that.

The bolded part in the first quote confuses me. With a knee replacement, they remove the top of the tibia and the bottom of the femur. The new joint is attached with screws. Meniscus get thrown in the pot for soup along with the bone ends.

Nothing jagged left

Ask the surgeon if you could kneel using padded knee pads. I had my left knee reconstructed and was told I could never kneel again due to a thinner patella tendon ( the "missing" center is my new ACL --works great ) I purchased gel insert knee pads at Sears. Hard plastic outside and gel insert inside. I can kneel comfortably with no discomfort.

Second quote, would arthroscopic surgery to clean up the knee buy you anymore time before knee replacement? They only last so long and you could literally be looking at another knee replacement later in life.

Whatever you decide, best of luck