bad result from torn meniscus surgery

[ez]

I'm not looking for medical advice I was just curious as to what other peoples experiences are. A family member in their mid 70s underwent this surgery 5 weeks ago. Endoscopic. She is very overweight and has a lot of swelling in her legs and high blood pressure. After having a lot of knee pain they diagnosed a torn meniscus and at first gave some shots. When that didn't help they did surgery. So before the surgery this person was getting around pretty well with a cane. Now 5 weeks after surgery this person can still barely move even using a full walker. Tiny steps that take forever. Needs full time care. It's really heartbreaking to see how much worse she is, and I know someone else that had the surgery and they are walking around fine in the same amount of time, with no cane or anything. I know the age and weight and swelling arent helping. Im just worried that this is how it will be for good now. Anyone else know someone who has been thru this surgery?

 

[bdcp]

I'm not looking for medical advice I was just curious as to what other peoples experiences are. A family member in their mid 70s underwent this surgery 5 weeks ago. Endoscopic. She is very overweight and has a lot of swelling in her legs and high blood pressure. After having a lot of knee pain they diagnosed a torn meniscus and at first gave some shots. When that didn't help they did surgery. So before the surgery this person was getting around pretty well with a cane. Now 5 weeks after surgery this person can still barely move even using a full walker. Tiny steps that take forever. Needs full time care. It's really heartbreaking to see how much worse she is, and I know someone else that had the surgery and they are walking around fine in the same amount of time, with no cane or anything. I know the age and weight and swelling arent helping. Im just worried that this is how it will be for good now. Anyone else know someone who has been thru this surgery?

Is she going to Physical Therapy? My DH has his meniscus trimmed several years ago and it took him several weeks to get to full motion, with PT. I know a lot of healthy, in shape people who have had this surgery and they all had PT. Just walking on it will not improve her mobility.

 

[Ceila]

I'm not looking for medical advice I was just curious as to what other peoples experiences are. A family member in their mid 70s underwent this surgery 5 weeks ago. Endoscopic. She is very overweight and has a lot of swelling in her legs and high blood pressure. After having a lot of knee pain they diagnosed a torn meniscus and at first gave some shots. When that didn't help they did surgery. So before the surgery this person was getting around pretty well with a cane. Now 5 weeks after surgery this person can still barely move even using a full walker. Tiny steps that take forever. Needs full time care. It's really heartbreaking to see how much worse she is, and I know someone else that had the surgery and they are walking around fine in the same amount of time, with no cane or anything. I know the age and weight and swelling arent helping. Im just worried that this is how it will be for good now. Anyone else know someone who has been thru this surgery?

I had it done last summer and didn't even require crutches by later that night. That being said, everyone is different, and it sounds like your relative has a much poorer health history than me and, of course, her tear was likely not exactly the same as mine.

Has she been for a follow-up with her surgeon? What did they say? Did she begin her PT yet? My recovery improved significantly once I was able to get that started.

 

[Christine]

My mother had this surgery last year at age 68. She is generally in shape, not overweight. However, the year before the surgery she had put on 30 lbs and was could not exercise because her knee had gotten so bad. I remember being at my cousin's wedding and my mom being on the dance floor and her knee kept buckling.

So, after all the treatments you described, she finally had the surgery. I was really shocked at how long it took her to recover because I've known people who have had it and they were getting around just fine within about 2 months.

She went back and forth to her surgeon and everything was fine. Some people just take longer to heal. It also depends on exactly where the tear is, how severe the tear was, and what repair methods were used.

I would say that at the "one year" point, my mother seems completely healed; however, sometimes her knee will get to her if she is doing a really intense form of exercise or fast walking up hills.

She did physical therapy religiously and joined a gym also and with all that, it was a VERY slow recovery. She lives in a 4 story townhouse and it took her a LONG time to be able to use the stairs normally.

I will tell you, my mother is pretty much in good shape for a 68 year old.

I can definitely see that if the person is elderly and not in good physical shape to begin with, that the recovery would be a long, difficult one.

I doubt that the surgery is botched or failed, but that can certainly be verified with an MRI.

This persson needs to definitely be in an intensive PT routine and have someone around who is good about forcing their mobility.

 

[ez]

K so I just spoke with my relative on the phone. She isnt even getting any physical therapy no dr has suggested it. That seems so strange to me how can that be, especially since she is struggling so much. I told her to call her dr monday to inquire.

 

[mamacatnv]

K so I just spoke with my relative on the phone. She isnt even getting any physical therapy no dr has suggested it. That seems so strange to me how can that be, especially since she is struggling so much. I told her to call her dr monday to inquire.

She needs PT. I was overweight, had the meniscus repaired as well as my ACL removed. I was on crutches with no weight bearing for 1 week, then off to PT 3x's a week. I went to PT for almost 6 months. IMO I can walk because of the expertise of my PT's. I also managed to lose quite a bit of weight along the way which helped in the overall recovery. She needs PT or she will become immobile. Poor thing, how awful that it was not prescribed for her. Its been 3 years and I still have to work certain muscle groups or I start to limp. This is more due to the ACL than the meniscus but my PT's gave me the tools to do a lot of my own muscle work.

 

[minnie56]

I began Physical Therapy 2 weeks after my surgery about 2 years ago as did my friend after full knee replacement last Fall. It's vital to begin using it again ASAP!!!

There's a small window of opportunity to get range of motion back.

 

[Disney Doll]

I'd be surprised if her MD hasn't discussed PT. I'm guessing there's more to that story.

In any event, her co-morbidities aren't going to make it easy to recover from that surgery,

 

[LivingtheWDWdream]

I had knee surgery a few years ago and I started PT almost right away. Something doesn't sound right to me that a DR would not have suggested or required PT in order to get range of motion back. Also she should have had a follow up appointment with the Dr by now and if he saw how she is not able to move around should have mentioned it surely by then. Was there no follow up appointment?

I know PT can be covered completely with just a co-pay and sometimes you have to pay out of pocket and get reimbursed by the Insurance Company after you submit the paperwork if the company is out of network or is how your insurance works. And some have a % paid, or a high deductible. Is it possible that the person's insurance doesn't cover it completely and they are avoiding it because they either can't afford it, or don't want to have to pay for it? Could the time required to go to PT driving roundtrip, transportation issues be a cause?

If it is a MD not telling the person they should be going to PT that is a huge red flag for the quality of care being given, but deep down I think the person is avoiding the PT for some reason and if they want any sort of mobility back to improve quality of life they need to start right away.

Good Luck

 

[scottmel]

Well three years ago next week I had same surgery. Sadly to this day I still can't crouch, bend down or use steps normally. I am able to walk just fine, etc. but my surgery was to fix a suspected torn meniscus . However when they got in there , no tear was present. YEP. Nothing. However the surgery left me with arthritis that I did not have before the surgery. It took me SO LONG to bounce back. I was in PT well over a year. I am mid 40s, good shape, etc. Last year (which would mark my second anniversary from the surgery) I began Pilates and this was a GOD SEND. I marvel at what my recovery would have been like had I done it earlier etc. It really really helped. I took pilates for a full year and could see results within a few weeks honestly.