I had the whole medial meniscus removed in my left knee 11 years ago. It was a laparoscopic surgery. I was supposed to just have repair, but the damage was so bad they had to remove it. I wasn't on anticoagulants at that time, but I can tell you that I was confined to bed, feet elevated over head, except for bathroom privileges for 3 days. Then I resumed my normal activities. Only 3 weeks later I was back to work on full-time duties moving patients and being on my feet 10 hours a day. And I lost only a few drops of blood during the procedure and none afterward. I think I healed up pretty well for a 40-something, but I did work hard at my PT and push through the pain to get well as fast as possible. My knee actually hurt less after the surgery, even during PT than it did before, which surprised and delighted me. Hope yours goes just as well as mine did.

I had a meniscal surgery in 2010. I was kept in overnight because of my clotting history. I was up and walking the evening of my surgery without crutches under the instruction of my surgeon. They had to clean up the knee a bit but all went well and I felt a lot better after the surgery. I had the surgery under a spinal anesthetic and was able to watch the procedure on a screen.( strangely calming for me)
Funnily my husband is having the same surgery this Tuesday . Same knee, same type of tear, same surgeon. Hope all goes well.

My clot was after knee surgery; however, my surgery was a little more invasive. I was laid up for about a week and still fairly immobile for a couple of weeks. My clot symptoms showed up after about 2 weeks.

That same year, I also had a family member have surgery like you are describing. I know she was quite mobile almost immediately, but it still took quite a while for the swelling to go down.

It's hard to find good information about the connection between knee surgery and clots, but it seems like the immobility, healing process and the swelling might all impact the possibility of developing a clot.

Personally, I think I would want something more than just aspirin following any kind of knee surgery for at least 3 - 4 weeks, but that may be me just being paranoid now.

Most importantly, watch for symptoms. For me, it started as a strange feeling in my foot that moved to my ankle and then my calf. My big mistake was asking my surgeon about it rather than just going to a regular doctor or straight to the ER for an ultrasound. My surgeon misdiagnosed the clot and then I ended up with a PE less than a week later.

Good luck!

Sorry i have no more experience for this types of surgery but Treatment options include medicines that thin your blood and devices that increase blood flow in your legs

renvillegirl,

I would just discuss with your surgeon your clotting history, your concerns, and what is the plan to prevent post surgical clotting.

This is not the same thing as a knee surgery in terms of clotting risks, but when I had gallbladder surgery, my surgeon suggested during our pre surgical discussion staying over night as a precaution due to my clotting history. My surgery was in the a.m. and I was on lovenox that evening and also started warfarin.

Being on anticoagulants can slow down healing sometimes,so the post op anticoagulation may be different with knee surgery, but these are the types of things I'd ask. the surgeon, ie when to start lovenox, warfarin, etc.

I have torn the lateral meniscus in both knees, and had the surgery on both knees (not at the same time). I was walking right after surgery. My PE was after my 2nd knee surgery. I suggest you make sure your surgeon knows about your prior clotting issue, so he/she can decide if he wants you to do some preventative measures. Usually they only routinely do preventative for major knee surgery, like a replacement, and not arthroscopic, but you may want to discuss it with the surgeon. Better safe than sorry. Hope all goes smoothly