13 Months

I haven't written since the 8 month mark and really there hasn't been any significant reason to do so.  I gradually improved from my previous progress so that was a plus.  However, at 12 months when I saw the doctor...despite him telling me things still looked good to him, I didn't feel that great about everything.  I still maintain I felt better pre-surgery than I did at a year post-surgery so that was a big concern to me.  Because of that, I decided to get an opinion/assessment from another, non-affiliated orthopedic doctor.  I had another MRI done which didn't really reveal anything.  Despite that, I still opted to have another diagnostic arthroscopy just to be sure on December 21st, 2017.  Nothing overly glaring was revealed but there was some fraying displayed on the implanted areas that he was able to clean up.  The implanted cartilage did fill in the voids but at this current point in time, it does look different than the normal cartilage around it. I also learned that my meniscus isn't fully anchored, but that's a separate issue. I'm a little over a week post-surgery and I am optimistic this latest procedure has helped rectify some of the things I was still feeling.  I'll know more once the post-operative swelling is gone and I'm back to "normal".  I maintain in hindsight my current experience/self would have told my previous self not to go through with this procedure.  We'll see if my opinion changes over time.  Until then...

8 months

It's been quite a while since I've written in the blog.  In part because it's easy to drift away (I now understand why others hardly finish their blogs), and also in part because I can't say a ton has changed since then.  Today I'm 8 months removed from the ACI surgery.  Although things are better than they were earlier on after the surgery (in particular before the clean-up surgery in March), I'm still uncertain on where I'm supposed to be.  I'm presently still worse than I was before the ACI surgery so until I at least equal where I was just prior to the ACI surgery, I'm going to continue to regret having done the surgery.  I hope some day in the next few months my opinion will change.  I have yet to get rid of the swelling in my knee (much of it, but not all of it), which I believe continues to hinder me from obtaining as much range of motion as possible and it's also still affecting my walking gait as I think the swelling also is causing a clicking on the top of my kneecap on most steps that I take.  It doesn't hurt but it's certainly annoying.  Upon standing up, if I apply equal weight to both legs it still feels like a twinge on the lateral/posterior defect area, prompting me to use my legs unequally.  And the medial defect area still causes discomfort - not to the degree it did earlier on in the recovery but it's definitely still noticeable.  So that's my update.  Again - it's not that I'm making no progress...but it feels as though it's been very slow so it's tough to see an end in sight.  Until next time...  

Weeks 17 to 21

It's been a while since I've written in the blog and for good reason - I was essentially saying the same thing every week with the complications and frustrations I was experiencing.  I did meet with a different doctor and he too was uncertain about what was going on inside despite feeling it and hearing it.  So I went forward with my original doctor to have another arthroscopic surgery.  The results since then have been wonderful!  It turns out what was bothering my knee on the outside was the patch that was put in place to hold the cells in place on the lateral side had become loose due to overgrowth in the graft site.  And that inside knee pain I was experiencing from very early on - that was due to scar tissue forming over that graft site.  So the doctor cleaned off the scar tissue and cleaned up the loose patch and my knee has felt significantly better since.  I'm still dealing with the post-op swelling and a little tenderness (which is to be expected) but I was told I didn't have to continue PT anymore and I could just slowly introduce activities as tolerated.  I'm hoping my range of motion will return to normal once the swelling is finally gone (my knee has been at least a little swollen since the original procedure).  My perception of the procedure has taken a turn for the positive...now I just have to wait and see how things work out when I'm 100% fully recovered.  Until next time...

Weeks 15 and 16

Weeks 15 and 16 were basically more of the same.  I ended up connecting with the dr about the persistence of the symptoms and he suggested scoping my knee yet again to actually see what's going on since the MRI results didn't reveal anything.  Something isn't going right in my knee.  I agreed to his suggestion, but I scheduled an appointment with a different doctor (and different center) to get a second opinion before fully going through with it.  My experience rating on this procedure continues to decline.  Until next time...

Week 14

Week 14 really was no different.  I feel as though I'm writing about the same thing every week (and it's mostly because I am).  I continued to get my leg stronger in the gym, but I was still unable go from a straight leg and bend or from a bent leg to straight without all the same old things.  Some of me actually thought it was getting worse but who knows.  I just kept pushing through my exercises in my limited fashion and continue to wait for the day in which I can see the doctor again.  Until next time...

Week 13

Week 13 I was able to get back into going to the gym.  That was big for me and I've missed it sorely.  I rode the bike for around 30 minutes almost daily.  I probably overdid the leg presses and step ups and other PT exercises.  The catch, however, is I had to continue to work in a reduced ranged of motion because of the grinding/popping.  It felt a lot worse when I put my leg through the range of motion while under pressure or weight.  So despite being able to get back to the gym, it still has remained entirely frustrating.  At PT I walked at 65-70% of bodyweight on the Alter G treadmill fairly symptom free.  The inside knee pain was still present, but I didn't feel it during the walk.  The clicking and popping continued to be experienced during the walk.  I learned a few more exercises to do but again I can't fully do them because my range of motion is so confined while trying to avoid my knee grinding and popping. From the previous dr visit he suggested I try an electrical muscle stimulation therapy to help assist in strengthening my muscles.  That arrived and I used it - I don't see how it's going to really be beneficial as my quad strength and control is more than adequate.  The equipment seemed to be better suited for those who are fresh from surgery who don't yet have the ability to tighten or work their quads...I have no issues with that.   I can't wait to see the dr again (in 3-4 weeks) to hear what his thoughts are if things haven't changed by then.  Until next time...

Week 12

Week 12 I finally got to see the doctor to bring up my lingering issues.  I demonstrated the click/pop (which can be heard I should add) and he expressed concern.  He took my knee through the range of motion forcing my knee to track through different planes - with enough pressure placed on the inside of my knee, he was able to get my knee to track without any of the popping.  That made him a little less concerned but to rule out anything he ordered an MRI.  I did not go to PT this week.  The MRI didn't show anything unusual and in fact he was please with how it looked.  The new cartilage is in fact filling in.  He felt that inside knee pain I'm experiencing is still based on a) where they went into my knee and b) overall persistent swelling.  Regarding the popping and clicking, he thought my muscles aren't balanced enough so they aren't pulling evenly across my knee.  So he recommended to continue using an anti-inflammatory, start riding the bike more to help get my range of motion back (I had only been doing it for about 5 minutes at PT), and to focus on gaining strength in my quads.  It was bitter sweet in that it was great news nothing came loose and I don't have to start over, but it was still difficult to fully accept since these other symptoms continue to persist.  I am supposed to trust the process.  Until next time...  

Week 11

Week 11 really didn't mark any significant changes.  The same things I've noted throughout are still present - continued inside knee pain and that forceful pop/click.  It remained tough to stay positive throughout the week having these things continue to linger.  Range of motion was measured at 113.  I walked at 50% of my body weight on the Alter G treadmill.  I couldn't wait to see the doctor the following week to have these issues addressed.  Until next time...

Week 10

Week ten showed a little more progress.  The pain was still present on the inside part but it IS slowly going away.  I'll take any improvement where I can get it.  However, more not so good news to note...I've been experiencing a horrible click/pop that has developed on the top and outside of my knee.  It's making for a difficult time in extending and bending my knee.  It almost felt like my knee isn't tracking right.  Sometimes it hurt, sometimes it was uncomfortable, and other times it was just outright annoying.  I pushed through it but it's a little concerning.  I got up to 108 degrees of flexion at PT this week so I'm still improving on that front.  The struggle to get rid of the remaining swelling has persisted - I believe it's what's slowing down my progression to full flexion.  Until next time...

Week 9

Week nine finally provided a little encouragement.  The doctor followed up with me at the beginning of the week to see how I was doing.  I told him it seemed things were maybe getting a little better, but I wouldn't know until I gave it another shot to bear weight while walking on the Alter G.  I told him about my slip on the ice - he didn't seem to concerned.  We agreed that if he didn't hear back from me following my next PT appointment, the assumption would be no news is good news.  Not only did I show improvement in my range of motion again (it was uncomfortable for sure, but it measured at 103 degrees), I was able to walk on the Alter G at PT.  I did it for a full 10 minutes at that.  However, it was not pain free.  It still hurt in that same spot I've been talking about...but it was at least semi-bearable this time.  I probably spent most of my time keeping my leg fully straight to aggravate it as little as possible.  Again it still hurt, but I was able to gut it out.  So I took it as something positive and moved forward.  Outside of that, lots of ice and home exercises.  Until next time...

Week 8

Week eight was similar to week seven again.  I didn't bother attempting to use the Alter G treadmill at PT.  Again, the only positive thing to note was a little improvement in range of motion (I believe I finally got past 90 degrees...but it was a very uncomfortable 90 degrees).  It's been tough to get the tightness and swelling out of my knee.  The PT provided me with a compression sleeve to wear - I think it helped some with the pain because it provided some stability.  The pain was also managed by me just being more diligent in all my movements in an attempt to not exacerbate anything.  I contacted the doctor/physician assistant again and they continue to think much of my struggles are attributed to swelling in my knee still.  They recommended I hit the Naxproxen hard and ice, ice and more ice.  

Living in MN does not help the situation any, especially considering it's winter time.  Well my worst fear came true when I slipped on some snow/ice.  I ended up catching myself on my bad leg of course.  I did feel a little pop, so of course I became concerned.  Fortunately, I did not experience any pain or swelling associated with it.  Still, I couldn't say I know if I did or didn't do something further to my knee.  Time will tell. 

I will not deny these past few of weeks and the struggles have caused me doubt my choice to proceed with this surgery.  I was able to do pretty much anything prior to it (of course followed by symptoms I would experience afterwards) and it's started to make me think I may not get back to that point again.  Of course it's still very early, but to have the majority of my pain located in a spot in which I had no pain before the surgery is concerning to me.  If it were not for the MRI back in the summer, I wouldn't have even known anything was wrong with the medial side of my knee.  So the challenge continues...

Week 7

Week seven was much of the same as week six.  I still experienced that sharp pain on the medial side of my knee.  I attempted the Alter G treadmill again during PT and that was unsuccessful.  There was a slight improvement in my range of motion so I suppose that was a plus.  Overall it's been a very trying time period.  Until next time...