Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Knees are nearly bone on bone, now what?

Alla this talk of pain makes me think I was lucky. I was off the opies except for PT. Shauna busted my ass (which I appreciate) and needed a little help there for those days.

Now, I'm working on reversing years of muscle atrophy from reduced activity.

I joined the military in 1979, tore up my knees in 1984, since that time I have had 11 surgeries between the two. In 2006 I retired from the Canadian Armed Forces medically due to my knees.
I was taking Vioxx until they found that the drug was hard on the heart. It worked wonderfully but a heart attack wasn't a good option. Since 2004, I have taking a cocktail of Tylenol 3, Codeine Contin and Tiaprofenic daily. Periodically, I was also getting the Neovisc injections.

Fast forward to today, the last Neovisc injections in Jan 18 didn't take. More xrays have shown I am now bone on bone in the right knee, almost the same in the left. Currently I am waiting to hear from Veterans Affairs Canada regarding whether they will cover another series of injections in my right knee. The left has been approved so I am wondering why they are dragging out the right knee approval. I have an appointment with my ortho in July where we will be discussing TKR. It has been discussed as an upcoming requirement but this will be THE discussion.
Thing is, from the day I say go for it to the day of surgery is 10-12 months. As well, I am quite certain it will cost me my job, a job I don't care for but pays well and I have a mortgage still, 7 years to go. (The employer isn't obligated to hold my position longer than 90 days)

I live in fear of climbing up/down stairs, have to sit down when shopping after walking the store. Good thing I like McD's coffee.
I have even fallen a few times when my knees have given out. The only hunting I have tried seriously has been upland game the last 3-4 years.
The constant grinding is getting old real fast!

It is going to be an interesting year waiting for the day to arrive, bill pay downs will be significant but I'll be liquidating a lot of my stuff I guess.
At 58 years, it will be a challenge to find a new job, maybe I'll just retire after they let me go. Heck, if I can hold onto a couple rifles/shotguns and fly rods, life will be good if I am pain free.

troutfly-
depending on what you do for work, it's entirely feasible for you to be back to work in 90 days.

I guess the delay for the sx is the "free" medical care in Canada?

A good chunk of the delay is actually dealing with VAC. Our Liberal government is more concerned with helping the rest of the world than taking care of Veterans, we are an inconvenience to them.


Not sure what free medical care in Canada is though. LOL.
We pay, just in a different way than you guys do.
Wrt my job being held, there are grey areas that could mean I am actually unemployed after 30 days as the injury didn't occur on this job. Lets just say I don't trust them.
Such is life.....

Sorry to hear about vets on the hind tit. You'll figure what is best for you. I wish you luck.

[quote=simonkenton7]I had TKR in the right knee 11 years ago. What a world of pain.
I am not a wimp. I would never do both knees at the same time, do one and wait a year.[/quote

Err, scuse me, Dude but didn’t you just pimp the wonders of gelatin and Swanson vitamins one page back?

You are astute, oldtoot.

I did have TKR but not because of arthritis. In 2007 I was in a logging accident and broke the right femur in the knee. Take it from me, that is a bad place to fracture the femur.
Doc put the knee back together with 4 screws, I mean, these orthopedic docs are just carpenters with surgical masks on.
Doc promised me a "100 percent recovery."
Instead, I had 100 percent failure.

I was on crutches for 16 months, and in November of 2008 I had TKR.

I am 67 and have had a very active life, played soccer for 17 years, did lots of karate, played high school football, worked construction for years.
I do take glucosamine, chondroitin, and msm daily, along with gelatine, and I have no arthritis. The left knee is fine.
Damn, I wish that goddam pine tree hadn't got on top of my right knee in 2007.

Now, there is no doubt that the first doc screwed up, but, thank God for Dr. Sanger who did the TKR, he did a good job on me and I get around pretty well on my titanium knee.

Guys, I know injury, I broke my ankle playing college soccer, knocked out 2 teeth and broke right thumb playing football, knocked the recaps of those two teeth out in a hang glider crash landing, got 140 stitches in the forehead in a car wreck, took out the windshield, 35 stitches left thigh, chain saw accident. I could go on for several paragraphs.
I know all about injury and I know all about pain. Or at least I thought I knew, until I had TKR. Good Lord the pain and suffering exceed anything else I have ever known by a large margin. I would never do two TKR on the same day.

In the course of my two surgeries in 07 and 08 I had big bottles of 10 mg Vicodin.
I must say, a 10 mg Vicodin chased with a double gin and tonic* will make your knee stop hurting.


* do not try this at home not recommended by physician

Thanks, pretty sure what I'll do, just gotta make sure the plan is in place.

There are new treatments coming for the bone on bone injecting stem cells and for the cartilege tears injecting cell combinations that heal. Knee replacements will have problems eventually if you dont get the weight to a reasonable level. No one right answer also try everything from easiest to surgery to find solution

Also running per se has no relationship to knee damage and helps keep weight off and strengthen knee and cartiledge. Running in the military with boots and packs ruins knees. Seen 90 year old runners with healthy knees.

You've had your old asss dragged through the knothole, backwards.

Actually sounds like Gout. I had the pleasure of having Gout in my knee a month ago. Came on fast. Swelling and pain at a 9.5. Couldn't walk by morning. Doc took 50cc of fluid off the knee. It tested positive for uric acid which LOVES arthritis. Prednisone for the gout and Vics for the pain. Vics allowed me some sleep at night which is when the pain always seemed to be worse. I drank over a gallon of tart cherry juice, iced, and elevated. Better now, but still not 100%.

53 years old, one year ago today I was involved an a serious motor vehicle accident, resulting me having a TKR done on April 30. First week sucked, but on May 14th I was turkey hunting and killed a gobbler. Some ppl handle pain and some ppl can not. Anyone who has had both knees done at the same time, in my book is a hero. I have talked to a lot of ppl that had the TKR done and most said they would do it all over again. I plan on hunting archery elk in Idaho the month of September. Cant stop living..

Finally met with my Dr. Will be getting a new right knee in October after my hunting trip, well past time he says, left is not ready to replace, but has a torn meniscus which is what is causing the pain, he will fix that while I am under via a scope. Both knee caps have bone spurs as well.

Says the implant will outlive me, forgot to ask about the cement lifespan as that seems to be the issue with my Dad's knees.

they do use the spinal/nerve block combo and he says it allows a faster recovery, so thanks to whomever on this thread suggested asking about that!