Even though I could no longer walk without pain at each step and knew I needed to have a unicompartmental knee replacement, I was very scared to have the surgery.  I guess you could say I was afraid of all the usual and some of the unusual things that happen with surgery.  This is my account of my surgery and recovery.

The day of surgery, August 18^th, went well.  Once I got up, showered and dressed, the rest of the day just went by as I had imagined it would and I was on auto-pilot.  The check-in at the hospital was uneventful, the preop holding area was efficient and pleasant.  I was wheeled into the operating room in a wheel chair and then walked over to the operating table.  I was glad to see the friendly faces of Dr. Stone and Ann Walganbach RN, NP.  The operation took approximately 1 and a half hours.  I had a spinal which was my choice of anesthesia.  I arrived back in the post op recovery room without any discomfort as the spinal and the knee anesthesia were still in full effect.  After about an hour in the recovery room, I was transferred to my room on the general surgery floor.  At dinner time I was offered a regular dinner tray.  I had had limited food that day and was hungry.  From my previous surgical experiences, I knew this might be the last meal where I was hungry so I forced myself to eat almost everything.  About 3 hours after the surgery ended and six hours after being given the spinal, I had enough sensation in my legs to get up out of bed on my crutches. My operative leg was a little sore.  I got dressed in my own clothes at this point.  I had this grand plan of being able to leave the hospital that evening.  Ann Walganbach, RN, NP came to see me around 9:00 PM and confirmed that I was stable and my condition was good.  I could leave the hospital and go home!  I waited for the post-op paper work to be completed and then left the hospital.  I stayed with a friend and gladly climbed into bed as soon as we reached her house.

The next few days passed by rather uneventfully.  I saw Dr. Stone and had physical therapy at The Stone Clinic the next morning.  I took pain medication regularly.  I lost my appetite completely on day 2 post op but continued to force myself to eat a little and drink a lot.  I had had the experience of no appetite after surgery before and knew better than to give into the feeling.  On post op day 5, I was feeling like I could handle things by myself and returned to my own home. I still stayed in bed with my leg propped up against the wall with the icing unit on my  operative knee, but I was out-of-bed a bit.  I started regular physical therapy that day, which continued for 6 weeks.  Below are actual clips from the progress report letters that I sent to friends.

August 23^rd -
"I'm 5 days post op and can walk without crutches butuse one as a back up when I'm tired. My physical therapist also wants me to walk correctly and if my knee is hurting, I need a crutch for the "correct" part of walking. Things seem ok. The arthritis pain was gone at 48hours. The surgery ache is going to take a bit longer. The skin around my knee is differing shades of red and purple. I also have the great looking 10" incisiondown the front of my knee. All this is minor stuff in exchange for being able to walk again without pain. The replacement surgery wasn't bad.  I have good pain relief and pretty good mobility already."

August 26^th -
"At 8 days post op, I'm still in the "pretty sore" phase of recovery. I have my big excursions to physical therapy three times a week. I think I get to start pool therapy on Friday with the incision covered with a plastic dressing called OpSite or Tegaderm."

August 26^th - 8 days post op -
"I saw my surgeon today and he was very pleased. I have minimal swelling with normal sized ankles. I'm at -2 to zero degrees on extension and at about 70 degrees flexion. I still have the surgical soreness or pain but can walk normally and notice that my knee arthritis pain, that caused me to limp badly before my surgery, is gone.

I've done steps, one at a time with a crutch, since one day post op. Now I can do the stairs normally although I'm still slow.

I'm going out for physical therapy three times a week. My regular physical therapist and I are being pretty cautious in my exercises. However, today my surgeon's physical therapist was very optimistic and I think I'm probably ready for more. I get to start pool therapy tomorrow (on day 10) with the incision covered with a waterproof dressing. I'm really looking forward to being in the pool!"

August 27^th -
"I can see progress -- and a lot of the surgical pain is gone so I see the light at the end of the tunnel! I can walk slowly but normally and without the arthritis pain.  I no longer need my crutches!"

August 28^th -
I can see really a lot of  progress today.  Most of my nausea has subsided.  My appetite is almost normal.  My leg doesn't ache much anymore.  I can move it around fairly easily.  I find I'm still guarding it as I bend down but can easily get up and down and in and out.  My operative knee is still moderately swollen and warm but the surrounding tissue isn't sore anymore.  I'm using the "icing unit" about 5 or 6 times a day for 10 minute periods.  All my friends are remarking on the swelling being down so I guess it's noticeably less swollen.  I'm still having trouble being comfortable and staying asleep at night.  I'm at day 11 post op.

September 2^nd -
The first night that I slept fairly well.  The last few days I've felt so well that I was on my feet too long and my knee got really swollen again.  My physical therapist really stressed taking it easy and taking care of myself.  Guess it's time to read some more novels.

September 3^rd -
I saw a group of friends today on a brief visit.  *Everyone* remarked at one time or another how well I was walking.  A few friends commented on how my previously distinctive gait had disappeared and how I was now walking *normally*.

September 6^th -
Things are going extremely well.  My walking is normal and pain free.  My new "Uni" aches a bit still.  I'm still trying to "take it easy" and give my knee a chance to heal.

After this, my life returned to normal and I stopped writing about my surgery.  A few months later, I returned to full time work as a nurse doing direct patient care.  I have no pain with walking.  At first this was a shock to me that I could get through a work day without thinking about walking, my knee or pain.  Now it seems normal!  Thanks Stone Clinic!

"I'm exactly one year post op with my "Uni" replacement.  The time has gone quickly. I'm really doing very well and aside from stiffness after sitting for a long while - I have no problems.

I was able to leave the hospital about 9 PM the same day as my surgery. I had a spinal for anesthesia and that worked fine.  I went to the recovery room for a couple of hours and then to a regular hospital room.  I was able to eat a bit of dinner and was soon up to the bathroom on my crutches.  I went home without any pain because of the block my surgeon used in my knee, for the surgery.

The week following my surgery, I had the same type of post operative pain that I've had with previous knee surgeries. I stayed with a friend until the 4th post op day.  I started PT on day 4 post op and returned to my own home. Also about then, I no longer needed my crutches but did walk pretty slowly!  I started pool therapy at PT on day 10 with my knee incision covered with an occlusive dressing.  After that, things just started getting better and better.  It does take a while to be able to sleep through the night.  I had a lot of trouble sleeping and turning over in bed.  Perhaps at about 5 months post op, I slept straight through the night.  At this time, I have about 130 degrees flexion and full extension.  I have no pain with walking at all. I feel this is quite good for someone who dreaded every step before this "Uni" surgery."