Week 4 Doctor Follow-Up

I had a follow-up with the surgeon today.  The good news is I can decide when I can walk with or without a walker, crutches, or cane.  The bad news is that I will still have the brace on at least until my next appointment, which is in six weeks.  He further informed me it will be a long process and I still can not drive.

Now for some details.  The Physical Therapist (PT) moved my brace to 10% and expected to open it up an additional 10% each week.  Wrong!  The doc set it back to 0% and told me it should stay there anytime I walk, at least until I see him in six weeks.  The PT also had me bending my knee as much as I could.  I could get to 85%, but it was painful.  The doc told me not to push it.  At this stage anything in the 75% to 80% will be OK.  He wants to give the sewing and mending more time to heal before we push it.  The PT folks also nuke (electric pulses) my knee to get the muscles to work, but one is still not work very well.

I can put weight on my leg as long as I wear the brace.  However, I'm not ready to walk without an aide.  Currently using the walker I can feel my knee give out.  The brace holds the knee straight so it doesn't collapse and I don't fall on the ground.  I'm hoping maybe a week or three I will have enough strength in my knee to get rid of the walker and use a cane.  I do exercises two or three times a day and I'm pretty much tired of doing nothing.

So it's back to working my leg muscles and knee, walking with the brace, and hoping for the best.