Has she tried the Stem Cell injections for her knee first? The process is 3 injections, at $500 each...insurance does not pay for....the blood is drawn directly from the patient....centerfuged, then replaced into the knee. It works better then the Hyaluronic acid injections...is this something feasible for her? Knee surgery is gruesome and one of the hardest to recover from. HTH.

- A government big enough to give you everything you want, is then strong enough to take everything you have.
- Thomas Jefferson

Hi Arie .... I'm 67 and just had a total knee replacement a year ago. Now I realize there's 20 years difference in our ages, so I can only tell you my experience.

I had my TKR done on a Tuesday and did not leave the hospital til Friday, and then I went straight to a rehab. facility, for further care (changing the dressing and physical therapy). I was supposed to have been there for 2 weeks, but for reasons I won't go into my doctor "sprung" me out of there in 4 days. I came home, alone. I used a walker in the rehab. and when I first got home but in a few days I stopped using that. By then a dear girlfriend from out of state came for a week to cook, clean, change the sheets, do whatever was necessary - things I couldn't do. There was a visiting nurse that came 2x a week and a P.T. that came 3x a week for 4 weeks. After that I could drive and started P.T. 3x a week for 6 weeks.

I don't know how you want to handle this, but your mother is definitely going to need a lot of help, especially at 86. I would imagine, if your stepdad is in good shape, he can do most of this. I can tell you that the worst part of this surgery is the P.T. One thing that would really help her is a lounge chair - like a lazy-boy - where she can put her feet up; and at 86, I think one of those chairs that lift you up to help you get out of the chair would be even better. If your stepdad can do the cooking, help her with a shower, get dressed, and her medications, she should be OK. Otherwise, you might want to consider getting someone in during the day - maybe just for a few hours each day - to help her with these things.

You probably know this, but several things she will need .... a walker, a raised toilet seat, and a seat for the shower. If your mother's doctor is going to do this at her age, she must be in good shape otherwise, or I doubt he would even attempt it.

I hope things go well for her .... take care ....

abby

<*)))><

My MIL had TKR done at age 82. Once the handsome young doctor told her she needed "a new knee", that was all we heard. There was no stopping her. She had every pre-existing condition there is. High blood pressure, diabetes, dangerously high triglycerides and cholesterol,etc. She came through surgery fine (remember, any general anesthesia at that age is a real risk) and had a spinal catheter with morphine the first 24 hours. That was a real experience, let me tell you! Then there was the motion machine, constant battles with nurses, etc. Anyway ... she was transferred to a rehab facility and spend 4 nights there with constant physical therapy until she insisted on coming home. She came home way too quickly - the icing, elevation, walker ... it was just a nightmare at her age. Finally, she got to where she could get around but I will always think it was a huge mistake at her age. Just my experience.

I think she may need a couple weeks in a rehab facility post hospital but will probably do fine.

I once took care of a lady who was 98 years old and had a quadruple heart bypass on Christmas eve. On Christmas morning she was up and walking around in her room. She had been extubated right after she awoke and they took out her chest tubes early that morning. The nurses put her in a chair and she had gotten up and was putzing around her room getting stuff from her suitcase when I got there at 7AM. No one had told her she wouldn't be able to do stuff so she just did. When I brought in a wheelchair to take her to her new room she refused to sit in it and walked across the hall to the new room.

I wish your mom all the best. I had both knees replaced a few years ago & it was tough. I would absolutely speak w/the surgeon prior to the procedure & have him answer any & all questions regarding the procedure & rehab as they apply to your mom & her health concerns. The surgery itself isn't too long, @45-50 min per knee, however, the rehab is not easy. Personally, I would be wary of any surgery for someone of her age.

btw, if she does have the procedure done, she will definately need plenty of support to get her through the rehab. Ice will become her new best friend; you just can't ice too much. Good luck with your decision.

I hope your Mom does well with her surgery. It's not that uncommon for senior citizens to have joint replacement surgery nowadays. My mom had a hip replacement (after a hip fracture) at 86. I agree that you can't take responsibility for your mom's decision. She sounds like a strong-minded woman who has a younger husband to help her get through her recovery. If I were you, I'd leave her to work things through with her doctor. There are many kinds of assistance available during her recovery, and it won't take her long to figure out that she will have no choice but to take advantage of some of them!

Your mother is an adult, ultimately this is her decision, not anyone elses. An increasing number of elders are having these types of surgery. The procedures are safer than ever before and people are living longer than ever before. Seniors are also more active today and they don't want to live with chronic pain anymore than we do. Her orthopd is doing the surgery, he knows her age and I'm 100% certain he has consulted with all of her other doctors. He knows what meds she is taking, he knows about her other health issues and he has taken all of that into consideration and deems her to be a good candidate for joint replacement surgery. If you want, and if your mother is okay with it, you can call her surgeon and hear from his own mouth that he has done the things I mentioned above. I have a co-worker who has an 80 year old mom who had knee replacement surgery in Dec. Her recovery was little longer than expected but she's doing so well now that she started playing a bit of golf again this summer. She's also planning to go on a cruise in the Spring. She's relishing life without pain. My co-worker says a pleasant by prodcut is that her mother is much easier to get along with now. She isn't as negative and critical as she once was. Probably because she isn't in constant pain anymore and because she can once again do the things she wants to do.

I know an elderly man who was in his mid-80s when he had knee replacement surgery. He was in the hospital two weeks following the surgery and in re-hab for weeks. He actually had to move into the rehab hospital building to take therapy. He recovered, but it took weeks. Also, he had so serious health problems before the surgery.

On 8/27/2012 GoodStuff said:

On 8/27/2012 Gooday said:

GoodStuff - may I ask how your mom did after the THR? Thinning bones are common in the elderly and their femurs break easily thus the need for either a hip pinning or a THR.

Mom had a total hip replacement and did OK until a subsequent fall loosened the hip prosthesis a bit. She has been able to bear weight on the hip, but the joint is somewhat painful at times. Her situation was complicated by the fact that she was already diagnosed with Alzheimer's and some Parkinsonian symptoms, so her recovery was tempered by those problems, and her ability to walk has declined over time due to her other health issues. The hip surgery itself went OK.

The reason I asked was because my mom had end stage Alzheimer's but she had been ambulatory. In August of 2005 she was limping so, an x-ray was taken and she was found to have a hip fracture. She underwent the hip pinning but passed away in December. So sad to see that happen with many elderly people.

Ihave never answered anyone questioning TKR surgery but feel I want to on this one. You have been given many excellent responses to your question. All I can add is that I had both knees replaced at the same time in my mid 70's. Did fine (altho I had to have a bloodtransfusion the 2nd or 3rd day which isn't uncommon with double replacement). Stayed in the hospital rehab for 2 weeks and then aPT in the home 3x a week for a month. Then 6 weeks of outpatient PT. My daughter stayed at nite with me for 3 or 4 days after my coming home from hospital rehab and then I managed on my own with walker and friends coming by periodicaly to check on me. Was driving the 2nd week of my outpatieer.nt PT.

It's a decision your Mom and the Dr needs to make. I met my Dr. for 30 min (just for a consult as I informed him!) and he said I needed theTKR as I was "too young and vibrant to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair". I left, mulled it over and called the next day to schedule surgery in 6 weeks. Have never regretted it.

Just a cute story--friends had been advising me tohave the surgery for years and I said, never! One of the women at church had it at 75 and one day called the Dr and asked how long these knees were suppose to last and he told her at least 25 yrs--she told him that was good as she just turned 100.

Total knee revisions are a tough procedure. I would not do it.

I totally can not understand why someone who is in almost constant pain and who has limited ability to walk - when offered a surgical solution to that problem doesn't jump at the opportunity to be whole again.