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Doctor insights on: How Long Does It Take To Recover After An Arthroscopic Knee Surgery

Depends: Recovery fro simple knee arthroscopy (meniscal debridement, loose body removal, plica excision) takes ~6 wks; if you rehab diligently you can get back faster (sports in 3-4 weeks). Arthroscopic ligament reconstruction (e.g. Acl), meniscus repairs, or articular cartilage procedures (microfracture, aci, etc) require longer rehabilitation, often 6-12 months. Talk to your surgeon about your case. ...Read more

It Depends: On how active you are and how much was done during surgery. For a routine knee scope I typically allow my patients back to work in 3-4 days if they have a sedentary job. Otherwise, most people can start getting back to work at 2-3 weeks depending on their job. Strengthening of the quadriceps muscle is key as this shuts down with knee surgery of any kind. Most people are near full by 4 weeks. ...Read more

Variable: 3-6 weeks usually depending on what was done. Go to pt. ...Read more

Depends: Typically people recover from knee arthroscopy in 4-6 weeks, but some of this depends on what was done. Progressive and gentle range of motion is typically the best way to start with a progressive return to heavire sports and activities. ...Read more

Right away: You can walk the day of surgery.
Most people will feel good the first day from the local anesthetic and medicine injected at the time of surgery. The medicines wear off by day two and three. You can still walk but it becomes more sore. By day 3-4 the worst swelling occurs and this is the worst days for some. Usually swelling decreases after this and walking gets better each day after. Keep icing! ...Read more

A long time: Some people lay down more scar tissue than others. This can lead to stiffness and slower recovery. "breaking up" scar tissue is trying to stretch it out so it doesn't impede progress. This can take months and may not be complete. ...Read more

Varies: It varies, arthroscopic knee surgery describes the approach used, but not the exact surgery done once inside the knee. Did you have a complete ACL tear? If a meniscal tear is trimmed, recovery usually about 2-4 weeks, if ACL reconstructed then 8-12 weeks, if ACL torn but not reconstructed, you may have persistent instability. Let your surgeon know about the incident you are describing. ...Read more

It Varies: If you have a meniscus tear only, once you trim the tear, you many not ever have any future problems. Due to the loss of a portion of your shock absorber, however, you may develop secondary arthritis in the future which means the cartilage on the ends of the bones can start to wear down. This may take years or decades to happen if it happens at all. ...Read more

Days to weeks: Depending on the findings, it could take days to weeks to improve. Most arthroscopic cases allow you to walk immediately. I recommend no running or jumping for 4 weeks. ...Read more

Yes: This depends on what the surgery was done for. The most common knee scope surgery is done for a meniscal tear where a partial menisectomy is done and these generally recover in 4-6 weeks. ...Read more

1-2 weeks: Depending on the type of work done, sedentary jobs can return to work within a few days, active jobs may require a bit more time and babying. Sutures (if used) usually come out in 7- 14 days so I recommend waiting till they come out. It there is no associated knee problem (arthritis) the biggest hinderamnce to returning to work is the muscle weakness associated with the tear. ...Read more

Depends.: Depend on what you had done. But the one thing you could do that is universal, is to ice the knee. Apply ice packs for 20 minutes at a time, 4-5 times per day. ...Read more

Physical therapy: Follow the instruction of your surgeon and those given to your therapist. The surgeon has actually seen the insides of your knee and what is wrong and what was fixed or not fixxed as well as your prognosis. In addition what you can and cannot do and when to progress. ...Read more

2-3 days: From personal experience probably 2-3 days for an uncomplicated meniscal tear. For a more complicated repair, it depends on the extent on the problem. ...Read more

Depends.: Depending on what you do and what was done, your return to work can range from a week to 6 weeks. If the meniscus is resected and not repaired, there are typically no significant activity restrictions post-op. However, if the meniscus was repaired, typically this requires some bracing, protected weightbearing, and that may restrict on what you need to do to work. ...Read more

Meniscus: Best to consult your orthopedic surgeon.

I would transition: To Tylenol or NSAIDs. You want to get off narcotics ASAP. It will take 6-8 weeks to feel better after a lateral release. ...Read more

Post- op knee pain: Knee replacement depends on age and extent of damage. Still having pain could mean damage was too great to improve much, or you wern't given a chance3 to rehab it. Age is an important factor here. ...Read more

Can last 1-2 weeks: Body reacts to surgery in leg in many different ways sometimes as you have described. The surgical dressing if a bit tight can cause these symptoms as well. Speak to your surgeon if of concern or worsening. ...Read more

Camera assisted work: Arthroscopic knee surgery involves operating on the knee to remove, repair, or replace different injured structures without making big incisions. A small 1/4 inch incision is made first and a small camera the diameter of a pencil is inserted into the knee to look around. The inside of the knee is observed on a tv screen while the procedure is carried out through additional small incisions. ...Read more

Not particularly.: Most arthroscopic knee surgery is not too painful and can be controlled with mild narcotics, anti-inflammatories, ice and rest. Arthroscopic acl and PCL reconstructions are more painful but still routinely done as outpatient surgery. ...Read more

Knee arthroscopy: This is a procedure that is minimally invasive with a lot done through 2 small incisions: work on meniscus, loose bodies, and various cartilage procedures. Some arthroscopies are also done to reconstruct a torn acl or correct patellar tracking. Usually full weight bearing immediately, crutches for a few days, improved pain, and return to function in a few weeks, depending upon procedure done. ...Read more

Yes: Knee arthroscopy is only a tool for us to take care of a specific problem in the knee. If we suspect a tear in the meniscus, a knee arthroscopy can be used to fix the problem. Unfortunately, sometimes the pain is coming from other sources such as hamstring tendinitis caused by weak quad muscles. In that case, the knee arthroscopy would not help. Or you may have arthritis that would also not help. ...Read more

Knee arthroscopy: The various anatomical sites within the knee are inspected including but not excluded to the articular cartilage lining of the patella, trochlea, medial and lateral femoral condyles, medial and lateral tibial plateau, medial and lateral menisci, the anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments, the synovial lining. ...Read more

Scope: Arthroscopic knee surgery is a minimally invasive procedure where a small camera and small instruments are used to evaluate and repair the knee. This is generally done using 3 small stab incisions around the knee cap. It is beneficial for cartilage, meniscal and some ligament injuries in the knee joint. It is a safe procedure with a low overall complication rate. ...Read more

Quick Recovery: A sore and swollen knee for a couple days. Use crutches as needed for the first couple of days. Use ice readily over the first few days, and start early full range of motion early to reduce swelling and prevent stiffness. Minimize standing and walking until swelling and pain resolve. If swelling gone and range of motion normal, normal activities are allowed usually at 4 weeks post-op. ...Read more

About 6 weeks: The first week you can expect some discomfort. A small percentage of patients have a lot of pain. Its difficult to determine who they are preoperatively. Most surgeons want you doing a home exercise program during the 1st week. You will be able to walk usually with the use of a cane for a few days. At the end of the 1st week, your surgeon will remove sutures and start pt. Each week you will progressively improve, and usually by 6 weeks you should be 90% healed. The last 10% can take several months. ...Read more

Possible, but.....: Is it possible that one is an investment banker and drive from li to nyc directly from the surgical suite after taking oxycodone, weave in and out of cars (no traffic at 2pm), avoid getting pulled over by cops, almost causing an accident/ /multiple injuries/fatalities on the way, in order to get to that meeting because one feels that it's crucial to be at the meeting to close a $1b deal? Sure. ...Read more

Inflammation: Hot implies inflammation. Increased warmth is common a couple weeks after surgery, but if accompanied by significant pain or redness, then an urgent evaluation is necessary to rule out an infection. ...Read more

Knee pop postop: When was your knee surgery performed/? What was accomplished? IT is not unusual to experienced some pain, popping and swelling of arming amounts for first several weeks postop. Try ice, NSAIDs and avoid kneeling, stairs. Check with your surgeon if things persist ...Read more