Post-op Day 51 – Review With Orthopaedic Consultant
Post-op Day 51 and I had my review with the orthopaedic consultant today. That was the second one since he did my patella re-alignment operation (patella stabilisation/vmo advancement surgery).
Last time friends drove me to the hospital and back as I was unable to drive, but I decided to drive myself today. I had been managing the half hour drive to get to physio, so I hoped I’d be okay doing the longer drive to the hospital. It was fine, I’m glad to say, and I managed it without any problems. The traffic was very light and it only took an hour to get there, whereas it could have taken an hour and a half. As I’d ended up getting there early I sat in the cafe and had a coffee and read the paper for a while. It was good to sit with my leg up while I had the chance.
When I reported at the clinic for my appointment the nurse informed me that the clinic was running an hour late. I can’t say I was that surprised because the orthopaedic clinics often run late due to the sheer number of patients the doctors have to see. I’m sure someone once told me that the clinic for knee injuries/problems was the busiest clinic. There’s an awful lot of people having knee surgery. I felt sorry for my consultant – there was a whiteboard up on the wall where it said which consultants were in clinic and how many patients they had that day – my surgeon had 43 in the morning and 99 in the afternoon!! (Yes, 99!) So the poor man had 142 people to see in the one day! Admittedly he would have had registrars working with him, and they would have taken some of the cases, but even so, that’s one hell of a day!
When it was finally my turn, I saw the consultant and we had a good chat and I told him how I’d been getting on and what my concerns were etc. He examined my knee and said he was very happy with progress and my knee was exactly how he would expect at this stage. He was pleased that I was weight-bearing and the scar looked fine to him. Great! He actually said that he was happy, so if he’s happy then I’m happy! My challenge is to work on building up my muscles and to stop wearing the brace. He said it would be a gradual process and I’d see small improvements, but it would be some time before I don’t need the brace. There’s no quick way to build my muscle, it’ll just increase very gradually. So he’ll see me again in four weeks, to monitor how I’m getting on. It was such a positive review I came out feeling really pleased.
The drive home was harder – I managed okay, but my knee was starting to get sore. When I eventually got home I took some painkillers and lay on the bed for a while with a pillow under my leg. I had a rest and reflected on an excellent day – a good review with the surgeon, a long drive, and a full day out – and I’d managed it all. Things are getting better!
I served as an officer in the Royal Air Force for several years before joining the Police Force. After I was assaulted on duty I had to be medically retired due to my knee injury. My ambition is to regain my fitness, or as much of it as possible. I used to have my own horse and loved running and mountaineering. I'm blogging to follow my progress after major knee surgery, asking "Is it better yet?"
Is It Better Yet? 
A positive review and a positive uplifting post 🙂 Brilliant Lyn, proud of you x
Thank you very much James, Lyn x