Too old for microfracture surgery?

Hey Wolf -

had a great run up our local Tiger Mt. today - 2.5 miles up with 2000 ft of climb, 2.5 miles of descent, added another mile. 4 hours of yard work after. There IS life after this surgery.

i started PT 6 weeks after my surgery - but did not push it. Lot of closed-chain exercises for the quad and tons of stretching. I think the issue with this surgery is the fact that you're off the leg entirely for 6 or so weeks ( at least i was ) and muscles and tendon lose their mojo - shorten up, and atrophy. takes a long time to get it back.

wouldn't worry about the range of motion - it will come back. i spendt 6 weeks on that CPM and never got upwards of 110 degrees. when i got off the crutches it was pretty much cold-turkey - which i think cause issues with my patellar tendon. had trouble for the next 5 - 6 weeks with stairs. but - it did come back. There is still weakness, can still really feel the difference between the other leg and the MF leg.

advice - be as lazy as you want the first 6 weeks, take the next 6 easy, walk alot, do your PT exercises and build strength, then start getting back at it. don't be afraid, after 12 weeks, of a little pain here or there. Understand it's part of the game. After 12 weeks the blood clot isn't really a clot any more - it's the tissue it's supposed to be. build strenght and stretch and you'll be back at it.

keep me posted man - my goal is a run across the grand canyon and back in October - 42 miles.

QQ and Wolf -

i think Wolf has hit the nail on the head. i'm now 5.5 months post microfracture and doing, i think, reasonably well. 9.5 mile run last night on moderate hills (trail, always soft surface) and what i've found is that quad strength and hamstring flexibility are two keys to a successful rehab.

My injury was acute - happened all at once, and was a full-thickness defect of cartilage off the femoral condoyle in a weight bearing area. Rest of the knee was perfect - so i stand a reasonable chance of success. Was 44 when i had the surgery - but my surgeon suggested i was kind of at the top end of the age range.

The rehab is tough, not so much due to pain but from the perspective that once the knee begins to feel better it's still a long way from the point where you can resume your normal activities - thus the boredom factor. Again - i think stretching and strengh work is key - the muscles lose so much during that time of non-weight bearing after the surgery and it takes a long time to get it back.

keep us posted then on how it's going and the decisions that are made. In all my searchings for information and others experiences it's hard to find much out there.

Yes I see that now and am glad you are going to try to see how the injection works! Ask about Synvisc.......I am too young for a knee replacement but can have these every 6 months and so far they are WONDERFUL!!!!!

Talk soon and God Bless

Wolf, thanks for the words of encouragement. I did go to see my doctor yesterday. He was the one who suggested the microfracture surgery. I told him that I'd like to pursue other avenues before we made the move to surgery. Like you said, "give it some time to heal" and that's what I suggested. I opted for a quartizone shot which the doctor said may help. He also said that I was beyond syn-vist shots. I feel better already. I got to relax last night and get some rest. Used some ice on the knee today and it feels much better. I do hope this trend continues. Thanks again for the encouragement and advice. Good luck with your recovery. A recovering friend.

QQ33QQ,

As you can see I'm not 60 and microfracture is new to me as I have just posted a question on this topic as well. I am however have been through ACL and meniscus repaired, and can provide some experience of my own.

To my understanding and experience, any type of surgery will requires time and effort on the road to recovery. It took me roughly almost 3 months to be able to regain strength and full range of motion with a lot of physical therapy, icing, and hard work on my own time after the meniscal surgery. The swelling and minor discomfort were always there, I was still icing my knee after every physical activity 4 month out. I was playing sports on a regular basis after 6 month. It took me sometime even though I'm young and in great shape. That's just the nature of recovering...it will takes time.

The point I'm trying to make is that it will take some time to heal, and it's only been 3 weeks for you...too soon for you to be discouraged and already thinking of other methods. I suggest that you address your pain to your doctor and see what he may advise. MF may not be the solution to your pain. My suggestion is to ice on a regular basis, hoping to keep the swelling down and in turn that may help with the pain and range of motion. Physical therapy is great for your knee as well. Good luck buddy.