One of the biggest challenges I'm facing this procedure is assessing whether "it's time" or not. There isn't a definitive indication and the whole field of joint replacement seems vague and relative. The cliche reply I typically hear is, "you'll know when you're ready". So what will let me know, pain? lack of mobility? decrease in normal activities? It's hard to assess change when you don't really have a grasp of what normal is. See, I've been dealing with a bum-knee since I was 12 years old and to be honest, I can't really recall a time when my right knee was "normal".
As for what the literature says, I might as well have a magic 8-ball forcasting my future. Yes, there are several classifications of arthritic change and lots of fancy words to characterize the degernation of a joint. I actually found a really good paper that correlates MRI findings with the clinical criteria for knee replacements (see literature and scientific data). This all ties into relative terms though, like pain, comfort, and activity level. Me, I consider myself very tolerant to pain. When I was a kid, I sat through an entire filling before the dentist realized he forgot to inject the novocaine. My fair share of bruises, burns, cuts and scars has hardened my sensitivity to pain. By no means am I Superman, but I can safely say my pain levels are significant compared to the general populous.
This is a serious contemplation that all joint replacement canidates go though. The most important thing to look at is your quality of life. If a bad knee is impacting your daily activities or the things you enjoy, then that should weigh heavily in your joint replacement decision.
In other news, Claire and I have a lot of exciting things on the horizon. Most importantly, the wedding is set for May 24th! I've never been so excited. We're planning to spend our honeymoon exploring the beautiful state of Montana. Neither of us have been to Yellowstone or Glacier National Park before. And if time permits, we want to see the Canadian Rockies in Alberta as well.
Also, we're planning a 5 day hiking excursion in Sequoia National Park over the July 4th weekend. We plan on backpacking in from the east (from hwy 395) and hitting the John Muir Trail for a few days. There's an area called Kearsage Pass and Rae Lakes that has been on my bucket list for a long time now. My preparations have been focused on making my pack as light as possible and conditioning my knee for the journey.
Lastly, I've been working on getting a 2nd opinion on my potential partial knee replacement. It's mostly been a lot of contacting doctors offices and talking with the insurance company. Talking with several MD's and medical assistants, I was suprised to hear how common lateral PKR's are since we hear statistally how lateral PKR's are only a small fracton of all arthroplasty procedures performed. Although they're dwarfed by the number of TKR's and even medial PKR procedures, it was re-assuring to know they aren't as rare as I thought.
As for what the literature says, I might as well have a magic 8-ball forcasting my future. Yes, there are several classifications of arthritic change and lots of fancy words to characterize the degernation of a joint. I actually found a really good paper that correlates MRI findings with the clinical criteria for knee replacements (see literature and scientific data). This all ties into relative terms though, like pain, comfort, and activity level. Me, I consider myself very tolerant to pain. When I was a kid, I sat through an entire filling before the dentist realized he forgot to inject the novocaine. My fair share of bruises, burns, cuts and scars has hardened my sensitivity to pain. By no means am I Superman, but I can safely say my pain levels are significant compared to the general populous.
This is a serious contemplation that all joint replacement canidates go though. The most important thing to look at is your quality of life. If a bad knee is impacting your daily activities or the things you enjoy, then that should weigh heavily in your joint replacement decision.
In other news, Claire and I have a lot of exciting things on the horizon. Most importantly, the wedding is set for May 24th! I've never been so excited. We're planning to spend our honeymoon exploring the beautiful state of Montana. Neither of us have been to Yellowstone or Glacier National Park before. And if time permits, we want to see the Canadian Rockies in Alberta as well.
Also, we're planning a 5 day hiking excursion in Sequoia National Park over the July 4th weekend. We plan on backpacking in from the east (from hwy 395) and hitting the John Muir Trail for a few days. There's an area called Kearsage Pass and Rae Lakes that has been on my bucket list for a long time now. My preparations have been focused on making my pack as light as possible and conditioning my knee for the journey.
Lastly, I've been working on getting a 2nd opinion on my potential partial knee replacement. It's mostly been a lot of contacting doctors offices and talking with the insurance company. Talking with several MD's and medical assistants, I was suprised to hear how common lateral PKR's are since we hear statistally how lateral PKR's are only a small fracton of all arthroplasty procedures performed. Although they're dwarfed by the number of TKR's and even medial PKR procedures, it was re-assuring to know they aren't as rare as I thought.