Get Clued Up Before You’re Kneed up! – Preparing for Knee Joint Replacement

Are you totally clear on what is about to happen to you? An operation, no matter how safe, is a major experience in anyone’s life. Before you’ve even been assigned a date for surgery, you need to prepare for how a treatment like this will affect your life. You will be off your feet for a little while, so what responsibilities at home must be taken care of by somebody else?

Ask plenty of questions too! You need to know every detail so that you know how to properly recover. Your doctor and surgeon are there to answer any questions you may have. If you’re unsure of anything just clear it up with them.

Start Making a Change Today

Now is the time to tweak your lifestyle a little bit, to adequately prepare for knee-joint replacement. Recovery time after any surgery can be made quicker and easier if you are in good health and fit. If you smoke, now is the time to cut it out! Smoking slows down recovery and wound healing in many cases. If you are slightly heavier than you should be, try to lose some weight before surgery. This will improve your recovery experience.

Get your house ready too. Do it sooner rather than later so that you can acclimatise yourself to the adjustments. You need a living space that is easy to move around when you’re less mobile.

preparing for knee joint replacement

Get Plenty of Exercise

One way of losing weight is to get plenty of exercise. It’s good to do this even if you’re not overweight, just to be in better shape for the surgery. This may sound like stupid advice if you’ve got a dodgy knee! But there are many exercises that do not include the use of your legs/knees or some that alleviate the stress you would usually feel; such as swimming. Ask your physiotherapist which exercises they would recommend before your operation.

Get to Know Your Post-Op Therapy

After surgery, you will need to perform some sort of physical exercise as part of your therapy process. Why not start practising this now? This way you can hit the ground running and be in the swing of things straight away when it comes to the real recovery time. Get used to it now and it’ll be easier later!

You may need some help during this time too; line up the troops now and have them well trained for when the time comes!

If you’re looking for professional help and advice in the run up to, or following, a knee replacement operation then why not read up on our post injury rehabilitation services page. Alternatively, check us out on Facebook or LinkedIn, or you can contact us through the website.