Dad just moved in. He wants to get his knees done. I know knee pain, I had my child hood into young adult hood w knee pain. He is very over weight and sedentary. Up until mom died he was very active working. Now I worry that if it gets done he wont move at all. He wont go for even a short walk down the driveway. If we say were going for dinner he runs to the car. He has gotten shots for his knees. Now he has swelling. I advised him if he wants them done to stay with my sister as she is a nurse and has the ability to care for him although they have a tenuous relationship and she is 8 hours away from me. I have a 3 story house and I live in snow country. The Dr. he wants is an hour away as is the hospital so I would have to do everything then take care of recovery. I run a business so that again will be impacted as last year running back and forth multi. states. Has anyone gone through this? What is recovery time? How long before he can do stairs? What about exercise (no go with him, hates it). He is 79 and about 100 lbs over weight. Will the Dr. even do this type of surgery? I guess they would as they get paid to cut. He said he would go to a recovery place after the surgery but I don't want him to and who will pay for it? I don't and he does not have the money, he has good insurance.
Usually one or the other gets me through any event.
I do think that women do better on their own than men do, so I totally understand his wanting to live with you. Take some pictures outside your upstairs office window, enlarge them and hang them on the walls of the basement. Poor substitute, I know. Gosh I wish I had a basement.
Maybe just a recumbent exercise bike in his room would be a start. It can't hurt the knees, only help, and the hips too. Put it in front of the TV or the window for something to look at while he cycles. Get two and have races! Nobody likes to exercise alone for very long, they'll give it up. An aerobics video with a pretty girl leading the steps might even do it. Could you get Wii or some other game machine that makes you get up and move???
Well, you know what? Not everyone is cut out to live together. Look for an Independent Living apartment where there is an active social life and maybe he'll surprise you. We have tons of those 55+ communities around us, they are the new big thing right now. Golf, trips to the casinos, lunches and shopping trips, arts and crafts, all kinds of social activities. Makes me want to move to one.
I'm just thinking, maybe he doesn't have much else to do or think about except the pain in his knees. Maybe for the first time, he has the time to have surgery, since he's not working. I'd certainly want the best doctor to do any surgery on me or mine. And here in Texas, an hour is nothing to drive. Gosh, with traffic, that's just the other side of town!
My father needs to have both knees replaced and the doc said at his age, no way, even though he is in good health for his age (80's). I've been told that under Obamacare, Medicare is less likely to want to pay for it, so they make the decision for you. If the doc is willing to do it, and Medicare will pay, you DEFINITELY need to have him go to a good rehab center afterward for physical therapy. Medicare will pay for 100 days as long as he is getting PT and is showing improvement. Anything they don't cover, his supplemental insurance should. Be sure you understand the limitations before he has surgery.
As for the actual TKR, keep in mind this is MAJOR SURGERY! It is somewhat dangerous, and it is VERY painful. This is another reason he should go to a rehab center afterward, and not try to recover at your house. He will be on pain meds and it will be difficult for him to stand up, and also to walk, even with a walker. That said, you may find that in as little as 3-4 weeks he is able to walk without a walker, depending on how good the PT is.
Do not decide to have both knees done at once because you think it will be better, cheaper, etc. Having both knees done is twice as dangerous to someone your father's age, because he'll be in surgery twice as long. It also makes recovery harder because while the new knee is recovering, you don't have the old knee to fall back on. It might sound strange, but I could hardly walk when I went in to have my first knee done. After the surgery the new knee hurt so much I couldn't feel any pain in the other knee. Then as the new knee got better and better, the other knee pain kicked back in.
Don't know if any of my rambling is helpful to you. Getting my knees replaced was the best thing I've done in years! I have my life back!
I advise my friends to prepare for TKR by building strength in their quadricep muscles and their hamstrings. Simple leg lifts that your dad can do laying in the bed will help with this. If you have an exercise bike, or access to one, that is great, non-impact exercise for your knees, and would help him build strength. This is important because it will help him whether he has the surgery or not.
Good luck!
My neighbor did two weeks in rehab after her surgery and my cousin did a week, I think. I went to stay with her for a week after that and she was still not getting around very well. Then she had to go to physical therapy maybe three times a week or so.
Has he had the fluid removed from his knees? He can also do that when he gets the shots. Has he investigated getting the artificial lubricant injected into his knee joints? There's also a cold laser procedure that chiropractors do, but I can't speak to how much (if any) it helps. Accupuncture has also been shown to be of benefit to osteoarthritis in the knee.
He could also go on an anti-inflammation diet, to see if that would help. I guess I'd make him jump through a few hoops (no pun intended!) to see if he's willing to do anything to make himself a better candidate for a good outcome after surgery. If he won't, I wouldn't go out of my way to help him schedule surgery.
But I'm not unsympathetic. It's all very well for some lofty outsider to say he needs to eat less and exercise more, but when you're overweight and out of condition it's very hard to do either. Nevertheless. What about getting a personal trainer onto him? See if you can sell it to one of them as an exciting Before & After type career challenge. Maybe bargain with your father, too: if he can get down to such and such, you will be cheerleading when it comes to his surgery. But get *somebody else* to do all the nagging and cattle-prodding and motivating while you stay out of it ready to hand the poor fella a sympathetic cup of green tea (no milk no sugar) when he gets back from his workout.
My ex's father has just had his knees done. He is 90. He has recovered well and the pain is much improved. But this man is fit and active for his age, and the process was still an ordeal. I think you're going to have to get very firm with the message that if your father won't start the hard work now by getting into shape at least a little, then you won't play ball in getting him surgery - because it would be risky and pointless.
You say you don't want him to go to a rehab facility after the surgery? Why not? There he will be available for his physical therapy without driving him, they will prepare healthy, low calorie meals, the doctor can attend to him without having to come to his office, he will be with others who are going through the same thing and can cheer each other on. There are so many advantages, especially with winter coming up.