Two weeks to go--and DH blows out his knee--advice?

[staceychev]

So, we're two weeks out from our trip. DH was diagnosed with a torn meniscus a year ago, but never got the recommended surgery because (a) he was busy... sigh and (b) he learned how not to move in order to stay pain-free. Anyway, last night he did something to his knee at a concert, and today can't stand on it, straighten it, or walk without crutches or a walker. We spent the morning at orthopedic urgent care, have an MRI appointment for tomorrow, and a orthopedic appt for Wednesday.

Anyway, best case scenario is that he can put off the surgery until we come back, and rest and anti-inflammatories bring him back to where he was before last night. I'm already looking into plane fares, since I don't want to drive the whole 2,000 miles by myself. Worst case scenario, once we're there, I figure we need to rent a wheelchair for him while in the parks. What do I need to account for? What advice do you have?

Thanks!

 

[North of Mouse]

So, we're two weeks out from our trip. DH was diagnosed with a torn meniscus a year ago, but never got the recommended surgery because (a) he was busy... sigh and (b) he learned how not to move in order to stay pain-free. Anyway, last night he did something to his knee at a concert, and today can't stand on it, straighten it, or walk without crutches or a walker. We spent the morning at orthopedic urgent care, have an MRI appointment for tomorrow, and a orthopedic appt for Wednesday.

Anyway, best case scenario is that he can put off the surgery until we come back, and rest and anti-inflammatories bring him back to where he was before last night. I'm already looking into plane fares, since I don't want to drive the whole 2,000 miles by myself. Worst case scenario, once we're there, I figure we need to rent a wheelchair for him while in the parks. What do I need to account for? What advice do you have?

Thanks!

Yes, tell him to quit being clumsy! Sorry, just kidding, my dh is the same way. Fell off a 'standing still' bicycle, broke his collarbone and tore his meniscus and had to have surgery on the knee - doing great now.

Actually, the surgery was great - walked out without ever using his crutches - after a couple days taking it easy and elevated - basically was done - had physical therapy a few times (and he's 69!)

As for pushing a wheel chair, if you are the only 'pusher' that can get 'really' hard and stressful - he would be better renting an ECV. The best of luck to y'all on his test results and hope your trip is great!

 

[minnie mum]

I agree with North of Mouse. Forget the wheelchair, rent an ecv. There is a sticky here that should answer most of your questions. http://www.disboards.com/threads/di...disabled-1st-trip-next-trip-wish-trip.595713/

If the doctor recommends physio before surgery ( and he probably will), your DH will have a couple of weeks to start with, but it will be important for him to continue the exercises while he is on vacation. His PT will be able to give him a routine that he can do in your resort room.

 

[ttintagel]

Yeah, I tried a manual wheelchair for one day (broken foot) and ended up switching to an ECV because pushing or self-propelling up all the hills and steep ramps in the park was too exhausting. I would go straight for the ECV if I was your husband.

Also, I found that sticking to a strict schedule for pain medication/ice worked better than waiting until I noticed the pain to treat it. There's so much going on during a park day that it's easy to ignore or not notice the pain until it's too late to ward it off.

 

[brinkley07]

Since he was already told he needed surgery the outcome may not change. My DH tore his medial meniscus right before our trip there several years ago and he had surgery 2 days before we left. I did drive us there, and he sat in the passenger seat because he was on pain meds. Once we were there I rented him a w/c and pushed him around. It wasn't too bad, and he did pretty well. He was able to walk, although he was on crutches per MD order, but he couldn't walk the parks due to the distance. Def get him an ECV (or w/c if he won't use ECV), keep him on pain meds to stay ahead of the pain, ice frequently, and keep the leg elevated as much as possible. Good luck!

 

[jdb in AZ]

DH blew out his knee in the lobby of a WDW hotel just before our cruise. He was walking and it just gave out oh him. He survived on crutches during the cruise then rented an ECV for WDW afterward. An ECV is fun to drive, gives the mobility-challenged some independence, and it saves family members from having to push him around in a wheel chair.

About 20 years ago DH pushed his mom around Disneyland in a wheel chair and it wore him out. So when he blew out his knee he went straight to an ECV rather than have me push him in a wheel chair. The hardest part of driving an ECV is going slow enough so the family can keep up. It's do-able, but so very tempting to put the pedal to the metal and see how fast the ECV can move.

Now that I've also "graduated" to ECV status the cast members in the parks keep reminding us not to race. Would we do that? nah.