Arthritis Support Group
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction.
Hi, I'm new and found this group after recently joining the one for Widows/Widowers
I'm female, 71, overweight with controlled high PB, cholesterol and Type 2 diabetes. Actually in pretty health even with the above. OA in knees for many years. Bone on bone now and always some level of pain. Have tried chiropractic, acupuncture, PT, Synvisc and PRP (stem cell) shots. All to no avail. Call me silly.....my family doctor does....but I'm really afraid to have the surgery. Everything about it scares me from the anesthesia to the loooooooong recovery. I am recently widowed and share a 2-family home with my 91-year-old mother (better knees than mine!). I'm on the second floor and have several pets to care for. Can't even imagine how I could be away from home for the time it takes for TKR now that my husband is not here to hold down the fort. But the fear factor is the biggie. I've been told that stem cells harvested from placentas might work better to regenerate cartilage because the cells are younger, fresher and stronger than those harvested from my own blood and fat. I'm hesitant to spend another several thousand $ for something that might give me a 70% chance to feel 50% better (per the stem cell specialist). Then there's cold laser therapy and something new called Calmare. Can anyone give me a reason to hope I can lick this thing without surgery.......pleeeeeze?
I'm female, 71, overweight with controlled high PB, cholesterol and Type 2 diabetes. Actually in pretty health even with the above. OA in knees for many years. Bone on bone now and always some level of pain. Have tried chiropractic, acupuncture, PT, Synvisc and PRP (stem cell) shots. All to no avail. Call me silly.....my family doctor does....but I'm really afraid to have the surgery. Everything about it scares me from the anesthesia to the loooooooong recovery. I am recently widowed and share a 2-family home with my 91-year-old mother (better knees than mine!). I'm on the second floor and have several pets to care for. Can't even imagine how I could be away from home for the time it takes for TKR now that my husband is not here to hold down the fort. But the fear factor is the biggie. I've been told that stem cells harvested from placentas might work better to regenerate cartilage because the cells are younger, fresher and stronger than those harvested from my own blood and fat. I'm hesitant to spend another several thousand $ for something that might give me a 70% chance to feel 50% better (per the stem cell specialist). Then there's cold laser therapy and something new called Calmare. Can anyone give me a reason to hope I can lick this thing without surgery.......pleeeeeze?
Sorry to hear about your bad knees and your fear of surgery. Arthritis is a word that is thrown around a lot, so much so that it kind of loses its punch when you talk about it. But, it is crippling, disabling, painful, and incurable. There is no fixing it. We all start to fall apart as soon as we stop growing, and OA is what happens to the joints - some of us fall apart faster than others, and they really don't know why that is, but there you have it. It sounds to me like you have gone above and beyond to try all you could to help your knees. Unfortunately, from what I know about stem cell treatments, they really only work on young folk - and I mean like 20 something young. You get up to 40 and beyond and you might as well throw your money away - it most likely isn't going to work. So, that being said, the choices are to first and foremost control your weight. That alone may resolve the problem. Beyond that: 1. live with the pain and just deal with it. 2. pain medications that will require escalating doses to achieve the same relief 3. injections with steroids and/or syndics which give only temporary relief, but they work for a while 4. give up your mobility when the pain becomes severe enough and learn to use a scooter 5. replace the joint and if all goes well get back your mobility and suffer much less pain.
Now I know you don't want to have surgery and I don't blame you. It was the last thing on my list to ever do as well. But, the fact of the matter is that for severely arthritic knees it is THE BEST treatment available. I had my right knee done at 47 - and it worked. I got my mobility back for a while - until the left knee and ankle gave out. I would go have the left knee done tomorrow if I could take the time off work to do it. Its hard. It hurts. THe rehab is a few months long, but, then you can walk without pain and go on with your life. But, no one says that you have to have surgery. If you don't want to, that is your choice and people survived arthritis for hundreds or thousands of years without joint surgery. Pain management is then the focus. Someday maybe they will figure out how to stop the degenerative process of arthritis, but not yet. Have you seen a pain management doctor or NP? Might be something to consider.
So, sorry to be a downer about it, but it is what it is. My joints suck. I really need another new knee, an ankle - which they are not so good at replacing yet, a new spine, which is just a disaster, and who knows what else. I swore I would never have surgery, and I have now had 3 joint surgeries, back surgery, abdominal surgery, and would go get more in a heartbeat if I could so that I could walk again without pain. I am 52 years old and I can't walk without a cane. If I get to the point that I can't walk with the cane, I can't work, and then life comes completely apart on me. I was planning to get this other knee done this year, when my back had other ideas and I ended up having back surgery unexpectedly last month. It is scary, but sometimes it is the best thing you can do. They are very very good at knee replacements. They last a long time - 20 years or more. And they work - after you recover, the pain is so much better and you can walk, climb stairs, etc without a cane, without pain. There is no other magic bullet out there.
I doubt any of that is very helpful. I'm sorry. If you do find a magic bullet, please let me know...... Good luck to you!
Vanyel
Thank you so much for your long, thoughtful response. It was quite the opposite of a "downer". You have echoed what I've heard from a number of people who had one or both knees done and found a new lease on life. I am not anxious to be in a scooter BTW!
The pain management thing concerns me because all I see is the word DRUGS. I quit heavy daily drinking in 1989 and am not anxious to trigger another form of addiction. Maybe I'm wrong and there's more to it. I'll do some research. What is an NP?
I'm curious what kind of work you do that will not allow your to have necessary surgery. Also, you look pretty darn healthy in your photo. I'd never take you as someone who needs new ankles, knees and a spine!!!
Thanks again for the info and encouragement. I'll keep searching for a while. I'm not ready to be cut just yet.
The surgery wasn't that bad. They give you plenty of pain meds to help. They do the surgery using twilight anesthesia. It's like when you get a colonoscopy. You are not fully under but you don't hear or feel anything.
The PT takes work but they allow you to go at your own pace. I frequently would sit and rest between excercises. I have other medical issues that slowed me down too. The exercises were not super painful just work.
I would do it again in a flash. I got my life back with my TKR. My other knee is almost to replacement time. I have no worries about having the surgery on my other knee.
Here is a website that will give you a lot of information and support.
http://forums.delphiforums.com/n/main.asp?webtag=onourfeet&nav=messages&prettyurl=%2Fonourfeet%2Fmessages
Here is a personal story of someone who had a TKR.
http://www.hieran.com/knee/pics.html
I hope this helps, Jeanne
Your post absolutely helps, and I thank you for taking the time to respond. All information I gather, both pro and con, is valuable for where I am in this process. Thanks especially for mentioning the method of anesthesia typically used. I had cataract surgery two years ago using a similar method. I was terrified until that feeling of "You can do whatever you want. I feel great!" hit, so it's reassuring to know that knees are done this way.
All the best to you when the time comes to have your second knee done. My late husband's daughter is an executive with Kessler, a leading rehab org. She has been urging me to have TKR for years. When I told her I was looking into even more alternatives, she said.....Well, I hope you get it done, and with your attitude, you better get them both done at the same time. You'd probably never go back for the second one!
I can't imagine anything more frightening than this. I am eagerly awaiting knee replacement so that I can regain my independence. The life I have now, and the continuing decline that I will have without surgery, is far more frightening than a long recovery, and surgery.
I have it on my calendar that you're scheduled for knee replacement on Monday and wanted to send good thoughts and positive energy your way. May you go into this with enthusiasm, an upbeat outlook and faith for a healthy outcome. I'll be thinking of you on Monday and look forward to reading your posts during recovery.
Juanita