Post-op Day 1, for the fifth time...

It’s not often that you go into surgery hoping the doctor is going to find something wrong. But that is honestly what I wanted, going into the OR yesterday to have a 5th surgery on my L knee. 

To refresh anyone who cares to know:

I started having trouble, again, around 6 weeks ago. My knee was getting “stuck” either bent or straight. 

There was pain. 

There was swelling. 

The MRI showed maybe something on the lateral side (where the pain was) but nothing definitively wrong. After 4 weeks of rest and ice, it was no better. So surgery was decided on because there was no clear cause and there were worries that my poor walking mechanics would damage all of the work done on the medial side during the big surgery in November 2017. 

So I went into surgery yesterday (13 months post-op from surgery #4) nervous and worried. 

Nervous that they would find nothing, and that there would be no known reason for the pain and swelling. 

Worried that this would be my new baseline after getting a taste of a few months of pain free limitless (except for running) activity. 

I couldn’t wait to be put to sleep so I could wake up and find out what they found, or didn’t find. I met a guy in the pre-op area who was having his first surgery ever. A L knee scope by Dr. Z for a torn meniscus incurred while playing tennis. He told me I looked far too calm to be going into surgery. I quietly laughed to myself about how overtly anxious he was. His girlfriend (named Sara, or Sarah) was with him and he made her read Dr. Z’s bio online to make sure she thought he was making the right decision. I was thinking, “Dude, it’s 6am...you’re here not going anywhere.”

So Dr. Z came in to pre-op to sign my knee...make sure they do surgery on the correct one...

He looked anxious and I asked him why that was. He was similarly nervous that he wouldn’t find anything, but he promised to check every inch of my joint to try and find the problem. 

I can’t tell you how comforting it is to know that you are in good hands with a surgeon. He told me he hasn’t stopped thinking about my knee since he first met me in May of 2017. And he hasn’t stopped worrying about my knee since I called him frantic last month after my knee suddenly felt broken. And I love how excited he is to show me the pictures and videos he’s taken during surgery. He is invested in my outcome, and knowing that puts me at ease. It also reminds me to be smart with rehabbing, because he has a stake in the outcome as well. 

I was at a Penn facility for the surgery and got to see some familiar faces which was wonderful. My CRNA was a guy who knew some co-workers of mine. He explained things about the medications to me as he was trying to get me to fall asleep. He finally told me to stop talking and fighting it. I remember seeing Lisa’s face (Dr. Z’s physicians assistant) right before falling asleep. She’s so nice. 

I woke up and wanted to know immediately what they found...

And to my delight (sounds so weird) they found stuff!

Problem #1

During my last surgery, Dr. Z shaved a tunnel into my bone to create a track for my new ACL graft. 

This picture above is from 11/2017 and is him shaving away bone to make room for the ACL graft. 

To his dismay, he found that the bone he shaved away had all grown back and was sawing away at the graft as can be seen in the pictures below:

It would have continued to grow and either cause a total locking of my knee or the graft would’ve been severed. Either way, it’s good they caught this now. He re-shaved the bone, and hopes that it stays away forever now. He told my mom, after she asked what would keep it from growing back yet again, that he’s never had to shave it down more than this, but “this is Sara we’re talking about, so we will have to keep an eye on it.”

Problem #2

My biggest complaint was the feeling like something was stuck in my knee, catching at times, moving around and generally feeling really weird and painful. 

The MRI didn’t show much so he went in blindly not knowing what he would find, if anything. He looked around a few times, checking out the medial side of my knee to see how the reconstructed sites looked, but not really seeing much of anything. He was about to close up, as he tells it, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. And he found this:

A large bony/cartilage piece that had been polished smoothe like sea glass from tumbling around in my knee. He needed help to get it out because it was slippery and jammed deep in the knee joint. 

I wish I could’ve kept it!!!!

So that’s the mystery thing I’ve been feeling in my knee. I’m so damn grateful that something was there and I wasn’t imagining things! He was grateful to find the culprit, and that in looking for it, he found what would have been an ACL nightmare sooner than later. 

The reconstructed sites looked great:

This picture above is where the MACI procedure was done. Where they sewed the patches grown from my cartilage onto the defects in the bones. 

These pictures (above and below) show how the patches have completely integrated into the bone and are smoothe and defect free!



This picture above shows the transplanted meniscus tacked in place last November. 


This picture shows what it looks like now...smoothe, healthy, intact, well integrated into the knee joint!

Kind of incredible to see this stuff if you ask me!

So recovery is easier this time, but still a pain in the ass for someone who feels best when running around like a nut. 

I’m doing a lot of ice and elevation...

My one dog is taking full advantage of my motion-less lap...

So far I’ve only needed 600mg Motrin for pain. I’m also on aspirin to help prevent blood clots.

 I can bear weight on the L knee, but not too much. 

Holy smokes, I forgot how much I hate crutches!

I start physical therapy on Friday. 

I can remove the bandages and shower on Monday. 

I go next Wednesday to get the stitches out. 

That’s all for now. Thank you for the well wishes and prayers! I feel every single one of them and am so grateful!