Continued Care After Joint Replacement Surgery

Continued Care After Joint Replacement Surgery

Having a surgery to correct an ailment such as a hip replacement or knee replacement seems like a simple process.  While the surgery is most of the time an easy and uncomplicated procedure for a surgeon, the recovery is where the hard work begins.  You cannot have a successful joint replacement surgery without doing the work afterwards.  The surgeons job ends for the most part after the surgery.  Your job begins immediately after that if you want the work done to be worth it.

After a joint replacement surgery, physiotherapy begins within 1-2 hours after you come out of recovery.  It is not an easy process by any means, but it is necessary.  Everyone recovers differently, however, most people will be 80% better within 6-8 weeks.  It can take up to 6 months for you to feel 100% back to normal though.  This is not always the case for everyone.  It depends on your level of activity and what types of things you resume after the surgery.

As an example, we recently had a previous client that had a hip replacement contact the surgeons office 10 months after her surgery.  She was a very active lady who made outdoor fitness a big part of her life.  Her goal was to be able to hike at the level she was prior to the surgery.  In her case, it took more work on her part doing a different kind of physiotherapy to get things aligned properly again.   Even though she was diligent in her exercises, 10 months out she still needed some tweaking. The surgeons physiotherapist was able to make this happen for her.

Ultimately, you are in control of your own health.  Surgeons can only do so much up to a certain point.  You bear the weight of responsibility in how successful your recovery goes.  Following your surgeons orders and doing the work is a must.  The benefits are a quicker recovery, decrease in swelling, blood flow and muscles moving to prevent scar tissue formation, and prevention of blood clots.  All of this translates into a successful surgery to get you pain free and back to a normal life.

Health Vantis

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