arthritis in my knees

i am dealing with arthritis in my knees. will the surgery help? i was told it would by my doctor but want o know from you all.

I think I may have the same thing going on.  I will be watching this post!

It might and it might not. It depends on how bad the arthritis is already. I didn't think giving up NSAIDs after RNY would be a big deal since I had read about how SO many people's knees no longer hurt at all after losing weight. WRONG. I got very little relief of my knee pain even after losing over 185 pounds.

I wish I had asked for X-rays of my knees before I decided to go with RNY instead of DS (sleeve was not available 5 years aho) because then I would have known how bad the arthritis was and that my pain would likely not improve much. If your doctor is basing his statement on xrays of your knees that is one thing, but if he is just basing it on the fact that losing weight *often* provides some relief, I would ask for xrays so you know for sure what you are facing. Once the arthritis is bone on bone (or nearly so), just decreasing the pressure in the joint won't help very much.

If you have not had recent xrays, a very ROUGH way to tell how bad the arthritis might be is to sit in a silent setting and bend your knee back and forth with your palm over the kneecap. If you can FEEL or HEAR a sort of "crunching", that isn't a good sign.

Lora

I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my right knee and the orthopaedic surgeon recommended a knee replacement. I was walking with a walker and/or a cane to get around. Since my surgery it has gotten progressively better. It is not 100%, but I would guesstimate that it is at least 90% better than it was pre-surgery.  I no longer have to use a walker or a cane and while I will probably never run again I can walk without pain.

Lora's suggestion to have X-rays done pre-surgery is an excellent idea so you will know what you are dealing with.

Also, remember that everyone is different and according to the ASBMS degenerative joint disease is resolved in 41 to 76% of WLS patients.

I got some injections of "synvisk" in my knees and it has helped a whole bunch. Try google to find a doctor near you who does this on a regular basis.

 

 

I had a meniscus tear in January and a repair of it in February at which time the ortho doc decided to clean up the bone surfaces a bit.. The pain I experienced from that recovery was what led me to start the procedure for the RNY.  I was 278 pounds at the time. It took 8 months of jumping through hoops, but I got my surgery on Sept 18 and so far have lost 53 pounds. I had an MRI of the other knee as both knees were killing me before surgery. I need a meniscus repair in that one, but so far with the weight loss it is no worse than the other side.. I got the surgery to get the weight off my joints and give me a healthier life. I am not sure what the prognosis is for my knees at this point, but I am going to hold out as long as I can for another surgery. In the meantime, just getting around without the extra poundage is getting easier. Years of obesity took its toll on my joints, but I am glad I had this surgery... Think about what your goals are.. Good luck!

I was scheduled to have bilateral knee replacements before RNY.  I would cry almost every nite on the way home from work because of the pain However, the ortho surgeon was less than optimistic at how successful my recovery would be or how long they would last if i didn't lose weight. I decided to do the RNY first and then have the knees done.

To the point, I have gotten such relief since losing my weight. The left knee is still really painful and is too far gone, bone on bone, so I will have that knee replacement done in January.  The right knee still aches but has improved so much that i will skip that one for now.  I can get around so much better, no running or Zumba, but the difference is amazing. I can take long walks and go for hikes in the woods, shop for longer than 10 minutes and on.....no crying.

Everyone is different so i can only speak for myself. Any relief from the pain, no matter how minor, is a blessing.

I decided last night (after taking Vicodin three days in a row following my Synvisc injections... the knees hurt much more and were much more swollen than usual after the injections) that as soon as my Chow puppy is old enough to be completely housebroken and not to need supervision when going outside in the back yard,  I am going to go ahead and get the left knee replaced.  I have had it with the pain and physical limitations, and want to get it while I still have a job and good insurance.

Let me know how your surgery goes.  I hope recovery goes smoothly for you.  I am more afraid of the knee replacement than I was of the open RNY!

Lora

thank you all for your replies. i really love this site!!

I was worried about quitting ibuprofen after surgery. Now I have to watch the inflammation more carefully and treat it with non-NSAID measures. I've gone back to using a knee brace on the worse knee sometimes; I use Deep Heat and Tiger Balm and sometimes capsaicin (tip: Don't get this on your inner thighs!), I ice my knees and try to keep up the stretching and to build up my leg muscles.

I do have more pain w/out ibuprofen, but it was totally worth it to lose the little bit of weight I lost. All in all, I guess no NSAIDs balances the relief from weight loss...but on second thought, my liver is better off w/out all the ibuprofen, and the RNY diet is pretty  much an anti-inflammatory diet, so the net result is:   WIN!