[pendi99]

Dr vanderleur. orthopedic institute

[Rwirish]

Best place to get medical opinions and recommendations - social media.

[Laforce]

The possibility of the need for a revision procedure at some point in the post-surgical recovery process should be in the back of your mind. Doctors are human and therefore cannot always be as perfect as we would hope them to be. Knee replacements are prolific; however, they still require a lot of good judgement along with a lot of skill on the part of the doc. I would recommend having the procedure done by a doc/facility who uses a robot. The literature shows improved outcomes and a better patient experience.

[Federspiel]

I am in 5th week of recovery from TKR. Van de leur performed front procedure.

Since then I have also heard good things about Nguyen and his side procedure which I believe has a quicker less painful recovery.

I have also learned that not everyone is a candidate for the side procedure. Because of my age (80) and extent of damage I was not.

I think your approach is a good one. I will go slower when I start having problems with my good knee.

Currently, I can bend TKR 118° and am 5° short of a flat straight knee. I have 2 weeks left of physical therapy and it is a bitch. I believe your recovery and pain tolerance is a trade-off between how much pain meds you are comfortable with (side effects) and how diligent you are with therapy.

My opinion is that Van de Leur is a very competent surgeon. Based on what I have since learned, Nguyen might be slightly better.

However, my currently good knee will have to be a lot worse than my bad knee was before I would ever undergo a TKR on it.

Getting old is a bitch. Strengthening your knee is always a good idea, before surgery.

"Trust God with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will direct your path."

[rsmurano]

If you need new knees, get it done. I lived with bone on bone for years before I had both done 5 years ago. I had friends try the stem cell route and didn’t work, they had to have them replaced.
The most crucial part of the knee surgery is the PT work done after surgery. If you have a dr or medical institution tell you to wait 1 week before starting PT, go with someone else. I know friends that waited and they too needed a manipulation.
My dr told me to go to a PT company but I chose to have in-home therapy. Didn’t work and I had to get a manipulation done 10 weeks post surgery to get it to bend. Second time, I started PT the next day and I was playing sports 8 weeks later.

[Dkintzer]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I have been diagnosed with a loss of cartlidge in my knee. I talking to several people that have been in similar situation it seems they all said to forget about the braces and injections, etc., and just go for the replacement, anything else is just delaying the inevitable. Also, many have said that the side procedure is much better than the front procedure.

So, I am looking for advice from people that have had this done and a recommendation for very good surgeon, as well any other firsthand advice, like who to stay away from.
Please feel free to use Private Message if you would prefer not to put your comments on the open site or to talk to me directly.

My goal is to get back to bowling and some golfing without the current pain.

I am a nurse & The best in the area for knees & hips…Dr. Van de Leur @ The Orthopedic Institute. Timothy J. van de Leur, M.D. - The Orthopaedic Institute
He has operated on folks I know, most recently a total hip replacement right side, & this person was driving in 2 weeks! He only does hips & knees & the West Marion HCA hospital where they operate is one of the best I’ve been to. He has an office @ Brownwood & Summerfield on 441.

[pikeselectric]

Hi there! I would like to share with you my firsthand experience with QC Kinetix. My dad had similar issues with one of his knees and he felt he may need a replacement ror procedures. He was in extreme pain and struggled to walk/work (he's a plumbing contractor and has strenuous work on the day to day). He looked into the regenerative treatment for knees through QC Kinetix Ocala location. He ended up going through the procedures for both knees and it went really well! His pain is completely gone and he is working in full swing. The staff at the office were great throughout. I highly suggest looking into this option for anyone who may benefit

Link to their website: Non-Surgical Knee Pain Treatment | QC Kinetix

[LonnyP]

I have had a knee replacement but up in Iowa. I was young at 53, it is still one of the best things I have ever done. I have a few friends down here that have had this new method of going in from the side. Seems like they have pretty amazing results. Sorry, I do not have any Dr recomendations. Advice though, stay on meds to help get through physical therapy, it is very difficult. Good luck.

[bobw123]

I am a retired 73 y/o retired Doctor of Chiropractic.
My wife and I have had continuing degenerative knees and backs, & both of one of our knees were bone on bone with little cartiledge left. We had been on glucosamine/chondroiten for years. Adjustments of the spine and knees, then 3 years ago started Cortisone injections, hyloranic gel shots, and then resorted to PRP plasma rich protien which uses your own blood plasma to try to stimulate your own stem cells. But that and stem cell therapy is not covered by insurance, and both are very expensive. I also then tried Soft shock therapy which is also not covered by insurance, and gave me temporary relief. However the knees for us continued to be a constant worsoning source of agony, so my knee surgeon thought a reconstruction, repair of my dminiscus, and patella would help. It did but I still have chronic pain upon movement and activity, but much less than before. So after an extremly successful hip replacement from the side, where they did not have to cut into muscle ligament tendon or bone, and I was back golfing in 4 weeks and playing sports again, my wife could not bear the pain in her knee any longer. So I researched again, and found Dr. Nguen and his team of Doctors in the optimotion group who invented the technique of doing a short Lateral from the side knee replacement that had a much shorter recovery and much less pain! No one in Atlanta or anywhere else that I searched was trained in that approach, so we came back to the Villages and my wife had it done. She walked immediately after the surgery and on the 2nd day did not need a cane or a walker! Normal range of motion goals is to have PT and get to 125 degrees of flexion. Most patients are lucky to get to 90 within 4 weeks. Carol was there within a week, and is now at full range of motion! Can squat, get on her knees and golfed with me at the 4th week! Friends of ours had the optimotion group and golfed after 1-2 weeks! Carol was overly cautious. At her pre-op consult I also had a consult and was advised to leave my operated knee alone and that there was not enough deteriozation in my right knee to advise a replacement as it just occassionaly gives out. So when I can afford it, I will spend $20,000 plus for stem cell injections of 100 BILLION stem cell into both knees and a transfusion of 200 billion that will affect all throughout the body including my spine and organs. Good luck in your decisions, I'm just giving you our history! And as an aside, when I had 4 herniated discs and djd degenerative disc disease, and stenosis, and could not walk after a 70 mile/hour rear end collision, I did everything again and a failed back surgery that made it worse, and then discovered IDD internal disc decompression, a machine that increases, rehydrates and takes the pressure off the nerves from the discs. It got me walking, pain free again and put a golf club back into my hands. And I specialized in that until I retired! Now I keep my original machine in my home in Kennesaw Ga, and if I bend wrong, put the tee in the ground, cough or sneeze and get symptomatic again, my wife puts me on my table and 4 days later am back doing the things I could not do for 40 years! I always told my patients IF you could do natural 1st, drugs 2nd and surgery LAST. Do that before you decide on invasive procedures. Good luck

[banjobob]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I have been diagnosed with a loss of cartlidge in my knee. I talking to several people that have been in similar situation it seems they all said to forget about the braces and injections, etc., and just go for the replacement, anything else is just delaying the inevitable. Also, many have said that the side procedure is much better than the front procedure.

So, I am looking for advice from people that have had this done and a recommendation for very good surgeon, as well any other firsthand advice, like who to stay away from.
Please feel free to use Private Message if you would prefer not to put your comments on the open site or to talk to me directly.

My goal is to get back to bowling and some golfing without the current pain.

I have first hand experience with Synvisc-One knee injections. My knee was diagnosed as arthritis as I assume yours is and painful beyond tolerable .Surgery was the option until mt as doctor recommended Synvisc. Long story short I have had 5 injection over the past 12 years , length of pain free varies but mostly 1 year sometimes longer. I am currently scheduled for another injection next week. I .am not familiar with any other brands or medicine but SynVisc-one . Google Synvisc - One for information

[rhood]

Originally Posted by daveersk

Hi - I'm four months since total knee replacement. It's not as bad as other orthopedic operations. Do rehab as suggested.

At seven weeks I was playing golf gently.

Dr. Timothy Van De Leur M.D.
Orthopaedic Institute Brownwood.

Getting other knee done in a few months. NOOO rush.

take care, dave

Van DeLeur did both of mine within the past 8 months. Sep and Dec. I’m very happy with the outcome. There is a Facebook group here in The Villages called Bees Knees. They meet weekly at Tierra Del Sol, Tuesdays, I think.

[Janie123]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I have been diagnosed with a loss of cartlidge in my knee. I talking to several people that have been in similar situation it seems they all said to forget about the braces and injections, etc., and just go for the replacement, anything else is just delaying the inevitable. Also, many have said that the side procedure is much better than the front procedure.

So, I am looking for advice from people that have had this done and a recommendation for very good surgeon, as well any other firsthand advice, like who to stay away from.
Please feel free to use Private Message if you would prefer not to put your comments on the open site or to talk to me directly.

My goal is to get back to bowling and some golfing without the current pain.

I’ve had both knees replaced using Makoplasty, a robotic procedure using Stryker and small implants avoiding the entire knee replacement… thus keeping all the ligaments and the good parts. Twin Palms in Ocala, Derek Farr is the surgeon and has done 100s of partial knees. That is where I go now for maintenance checks. Mine was done in Colorado but there are a handful of docs in the area doing mako partial knees.. recovery is much shorter than a full knee. Now if all three knee compartments is bad, you will need a full knee.

[Dusty_Star]

I don't have a doctor recommendation or advice, but I would like to wish you well. It seems you have received a lot of helpful tips, please keep us informed of your choices & recovery.

Best wishes!!!

[dlebuis]

Doing your exercises advice is spot on. I did exercises both before and after surgery and had no problems with recovery. Dr Kerina at UNOVA Orthopedic on Rolling Acres Rd did mine 5 years ago and I’ve had no knee issues since.

[DonnaNi4os]

I had my left knee replaced in my late 40’s and my right knee done almost 14 years ago at 58. It already had five previous surgeries on the right, starting as a teen. I have no regrets. The side procedure was done on the right and center on the left. The surgery is no picnic but if you are diligent with your physical therapy you will reap the benefits. I walk everyday and am able to function so much better than prior to the surgeries. I have conditions that led to the early need for the surgeries which means I still do have some joint pain but nothing like I had previously. Find a good surgeon who has a history of successful outcomes. Good luck to you. My advice, get it done!