I have had my left knee, and left shoulder replaced in 2019, If things goes right, my right shoulder to be replace after the first of the year. Both of the replacements so far have been a plus and the pain has gone on the left side.I hate to accept this but... After my left knee taking up the slack for my right knee (old LODI) it has reached the point where I can't stand let alone hunt. Have to go for scans, see Cardio, and the other ology's and hope knee replacement will occur before end of year. Anyway, long story short, I will miss everything this year and hope to be OK by my birthday (April) so maybe I can find a bear hunt.
I would appreciate it if some of you would post your hunt stories and pictures for this year on this thread. Kind of like sharing hunting campfire stories (success and humor) . I hope to share your success, that's the company part.
Be safe, be well. Good hunting !
tommytrees
Misery loves company
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Prayers. As Len said. Knee surgeons a magicians and medicine is truly magic today. You'll be back in no time & better than you will ever remember. Knees go bad so incrementally slowly most folk have no good painless memories to relate to their present. you've gonna be amazed what a pain-free step feels like and wonder why you waited so long. Best wishes!I hate to accept this but... After my left knee taking up the slack for my right knee (old LODI) it has reached the point where I can't stand let alone hunt. Have to go for scans, see Cardio, and the other ology's and hope knee replacement will occur before end of year. Anyway, long story short, I will miss everything this year and hope to be OK by my birthday (April) so maybe I can find a bear hunt.
I would appreciate it if some of you would post your hunt stories and pictures for this year on this thread. Kind of like sharing hunting campfire stories (success and humor) . I hope to share your success, that's the company part.
Be safe, be well. Good hunting !
tommytrees
Muddyboots
Well-Known Member
Tommy, wish you speedy and safe recovery. Just look at it you are now the real "Bionic" man going forward! Like Len said, I also had a torn meniscus and crazy as it sounds walked out of recovery. Never needed crutches and never had pain again! Pure luck on how the surgery went. Using climber at 70! PT will be your test to get back fast so like everyone says hit it as hard as you are "allowed". I put off the surgery to hunt but looking back wished I didn't. You will be chasing critters again sooner than you think! Keep us posted on your progress!!
g0cherr
Well-Known Member
Tommy I have a funny story for you this morning. Woke up in elk camp this morning here in Oregon. I was brewing my daughter a cup of coffee on the Keurig. I forgot to put the cup under the machine and brewed the entire cup all over the counter. Turns out it ran down and filled her boot full of Starbucks Carmel coffee. My dad and I we're laughing, her not so much. Lol. She is hunting this morning with a very smelly foot. We are hunting on a spike only tag. Seeing elk every day but only big bulls.
Best wishes on the knee replacements. I will echo the sentiments shared already about rehabbing it correctly. My dad and wife had TKR in 2010 within a week of each other. My wife had a Dr that insisted on very aggressive physical therapy and she has over 120 degrees of movement and is very happy. My dad didn't have either and his therapist didn't push him at all and after 6 weeks only had 70 degrees of motion. He had to go back under anesthesia to have the scar tissue broke loose. He went thru PT a second time and still only has 85 degrees of movement. He has a hard time getting out of chairs and in the woods is constantly catching that toe on everything and causes him to fall several times a hunting season. He is 81 now and that is a bad situation for him.
God bless.
Best wishes on the knee replacements. I will echo the sentiments shared already about rehabbing it correctly. My dad and wife had TKR in 2010 within a week of each other. My wife had a Dr that insisted on very aggressive physical therapy and she has over 120 degrees of movement and is very happy. My dad didn't have either and his therapist didn't push him at all and after 6 weeks only had 70 degrees of motion. He had to go back under anesthesia to have the scar tissue broke loose. He went thru PT a second time and still only has 85 degrees of movement. He has a hard time getting out of chairs and in the woods is constantly catching that toe on everything and causes him to fall several times a hunting season. He is 81 now and that is a bad situation for him.
God bless.
D
Deleted member 103481
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good luck, and hoping you feel better and can get back in the woods soon.
Here's a N.C. public land toad I snagged this morning.
Here's a N.C. public land toad I snagged this morning.
nicholasjohn
Well-Known Member
I'll second that, Sir. I have two re-built shoulders, done about 35 years ago. The surgeon told me that my level of motivation during the rehab process was what would determine whether or not I would get my money's worth out of the surgeries. I told him that I would do it like I was training for an Olympic event, and he was pleased to hear that. He was even more pleased after I followed through and did just that, and I was just as pleased as he was with the results. They both still work great. I've had a few issues, but I'm still happy with my results. With the advancements that have been made in orthopedic medicine, though, a guy with a new-technology knee replacement can have one that works like a well-oiled machine.
Here's a tip for TommyTrees : After you have fully recovered and re-habbed your new knee, if you just stay on the same workout program the PT's taught you, you will really like your new prosthetic knee, and your whole body will thank you every day of your life. Best of luck, Sir.
nicholasjohn
Well-Known Member
What was the reason for putting the ball on the shoulder bone and the socket on the humerus ? Did you break one of those bones or something ? This is very interesting stuff ......
The medical technology people came up with the reversal to try to counteract so many torn up rotator cuffs. It was good out of the box thinking. A lot of shoulder replacements happen because there is so much damage to the soft tissue around the shoulder joint, which is a pretty loosey-goosey joint to start with. The ball is distinct enough, but the socket part is more like a saucer than a cup. It lets the shoulder rotate in all directions, but the ball can slip around more, dislocate more easily, and the strain on ligaments and tendons holding the joint together is significant. The slop n the rotator cuff allows arthritis to move in, too. Tears happen frequently, lots of active people suffer shoulder injuries.
So according to my Doc, with the reverse joint, the way they reconstruct it is intended to use what is left of the shoulder structure differently, and when they do it, they rearrange some of the muscles to pull differently. Advantages: a bit quicker recovery period to getting out of the sling and other restraints. Also a working shoulder where you might not have had enough salvageable parts to do a good job otherwise. Disadvantage, according to my Doc is that you cannot reach as high up as you once did. Mine was due to severe arthritis, my rotator cuff was surprisingly not torn up, and he judged that I was a good candidate for seriously doing PT, so he chose an "anatomical" one for me. He said I should be able to get about full range of motion back – and I think I will as long as I stay with the PT exercises. It will take more time and work to know, but so far it is pretty fantastic.
Either way, you really can't start *real* PT for about (a very loooong) 6 weeks, so there you are way behind how long knee rehab takes, which can start within hours of surgery. Six weeks out on my new knee I was doing broken ground hiking and limited scrambling, though pretty carefully. Two months out saw a 5.5 mile round trip hike with survival pack, bear medicine, and a heavy camera into high mountain lakes in grizzly and elk country.
The other thing he said is that reverse shoulders are quicker and easier to install, which makes surgeons favor them – less work, and maybe an extra replacement a day ($$). When they started with them, they did a smaller percentage with reversals, but now the ratio is more like only 20-30% are anatomical shoulder parts, replacing what Mother Nature invented, verses reverse shoulder parts.
The up and down climbing is a crucial point to consider As Orifdoc states. Knee replacement is a general term. There are indeed different options a surgeon can choose from to help accommodate your lifestyle. To keep this brief, Let's just say there are different components that can be added to primary knee components that would help take the stress of climbing. Talk to your doc or to Orifdoc, or myself if you need to know what to ask or talk to your surgeon about.
nicholasjohn
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the analysis. This is pretty cool stuff, and I had never heard of the reverse prosthesis. True, the shoulder is a pretty tricky joint, at least compared to a knee. A fully articulating joint is going to be a more complicated affair than a hinge-type joint. They're easier to injure, harder to fix surgically, and harder to rehab with PT. It's kinda like a fancy sports car, compared to a pick-up truck - more maintenance intensive.
greenejc
Well-Known Member
I had both knees replaced by Dr. Jepson, here in Colorado Springs over the last two years. I was able to hunt all of the second season in high country without any pain or discomfort from them. One knee (left) was replaced in May, 2018, and the other was replaced in April of 2019. You've got to be able to do the Physical Therapy and do it religiosly, or you'll have trouble with flexibility, but if you do, you'll get full mobility back.I hate to accept this but... After my left knee taking up the slack for my right knee (old LODI) it has reached the point where I can't stand let alone hunt. Have to go for scans, see Cardio, and the other ology's and hope knee replacement will occur before end of year. Anyway, long story short, I will miss everything this year and hope to be OK by my birthday (April) so maybe I can find a bear hunt.
I would appreciate it if some of you would post your hunt stories and pictures for this year on this thread. Kind of like sharing hunting campfire stories (success and humor) . I hope to share your success, that's the company part.
Be safe, be well. Good hunting !
tommytrees
I had a left elbow joint replacement in "78" and left shoulder replacement in 2011 that ended my bow hunting. I also had arthroscopic surgery done on both of my knees in "97" and 2000. Coupled with a screwed up back surgery in "88" that caused 5 additional surgeries, fusing my entire lumbar vertebrae section from L-1 through L-5 and my sacrum. Throughout all of this, I never missed a hunting season. Even went elk hunting in "96" wearing a halo pinned to my skull with rods hooked up to a chest harness from fusing C-6 and C-7 vertebrae in my neck and took a 5x5 bull elk. Wife thinks I am an idiot but she doesn't understand my drive for hunting. Then, for the first and only time since 1958, I haven't bought a hunting license. All because of my knees. I need replacement severely but, due to Covid19 and my current location where I came to have surgical replacement, the hospital stopped taking non life threatening surgeries. I have been scheduled 5 times only to be canceled and have been relegated to limited movement with the aid of crutches and my wife, who has been a godsend for me. So, I have definitely been active on this site gleaning and sharing knowledge, because I still have enough drive left, if I have to crawl on my elbows, I won't miss hunting again next year. You have my sincere empathy.I hate to accept this but... After my left knee taking up the slack for my right knee (old LODI) it has reached the point where I can't stand let alone hunt. Have to go for scans, see Cardio, and the other ology's and hope knee replacement will occur before end of year. Anyway, long story short, I will miss everything this year and hope to be OK by my birthday (April) so maybe I can find a bear hunt.
I would appreciate it if some of you would post your hunt stories and pictures for this year on this thread. Kind of like sharing hunting campfire stories (success and humor) . I hope to share your success, that's the company part.
Be safe, be well. Good hunting !
tommytrees
Another Bruce...had my right knee replaced 5 times. Combination of doctor error and product failure. After all that I still get around decently enough to hike the hills. The trick is to never give up and go for it. Medical types tend to be pessimistic About recovery. Give it Hell!!!
Hoppsing55
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2015
- Messages
- 137
Tommytrees, I had a my left hip resurfaced in Sept 2014 at 58 years of age. I diligently worked the rehab process and to this day at 65 years young continue to hike, (3-4days a week) walk, exercise, hunt and stay active. Don't give the hip much thought, and do pretty much as I want. My only regret, I waited 2+ years from the diagnosis to having the surgery.
In October of 2015 I was fortunate to harvest a nice Newfoundland moose. The guide and I walked 15+ miles that day. In the fall of 2016, I did a Wyoming hunt for Mule Deer and Antelope. With success on both. In 2017 we harvested a couple of very nice white tail, here in Maryland. 2018 sent me back out to Wyoming for a horse back hunt, returning with coolers full of cow elk. In 2019, another successful Wyoming Mule deer hunt. And just this October I harvested my first bull Elk in Colorado. It was a 7 day pack trip, of a lifetime!
Orthopedic Medical technology is beyond amazing! Replacement parts for us "middle aged" hunters is a common and well developed process. Find a good cutter that has done multiple similar surgeries, follow their direction, and the odds are extremely high that, you'll be back on the hunt next fall. Blessings and good luck.
In October of 2015 I was fortunate to harvest a nice Newfoundland moose. The guide and I walked 15+ miles that day. In the fall of 2016, I did a Wyoming hunt for Mule Deer and Antelope. With success on both. In 2017 we harvested a couple of very nice white tail, here in Maryland. 2018 sent me back out to Wyoming for a horse back hunt, returning with coolers full of cow elk. In 2019, another successful Wyoming Mule deer hunt. And just this October I harvested my first bull Elk in Colorado. It was a 7 day pack trip, of a lifetime!
Orthopedic Medical technology is beyond amazing! Replacement parts for us "middle aged" hunters is a common and well developed process. Find a good cutter that has done multiple similar surgeries, follow their direction, and the odds are extremely high that, you'll be back on the hunt next fall. Blessings and good luck.
