Knees, Close-up and Dirty

 The protruding wire does make for some odd bumps and can be sore against pants, and kneeling on the cap is out of the question.

 
31 years ago during an informal club bicycle race I dodged a pedestrian, got into the gravel, and shattered my right knee cap into 16 pieces. It healed up well, all things considered, though it is lumpy and 20% larger than its mate. I still have some wire, the back side was rough enough that sustained cycling was out for almost 25 years, and I had some permanent weakness in my right quad; I tended to favor it.

A little rough on the backside, but the Doc says it will go the distance. Not bad for that long after that much repair.

The wire broke during the healing process, but its purpose was served. No need to remove it. Notice the spacing is less on the right side, though I may not have been standing straight.

And as a result of favoring it, I tend to come down more straight-legged on occasion, which ironically, is the opposite of a favor. Additionally, having very flat feet (feet pronate inwards), a disproportionate amount of weight is carried on the medial side, in spite of wearing orthodics for the past 30 years. A year ago I felt and heard a pop in my knee when stepping high on a boulder, heel to butt with all of my weight on that leg; I started a tear. It bothered me some, never felt right, but never caught. Then a few weeks ago, while helping my daughter move back into college, the tear spread. I felt like I was taking light loads, not moving too fast, and I never felt anything... until it tightened up an hour later. ~ 8 trips up 6 flights was too much.

A nice little tear. Though it would bear weight, bending the knee more that 10 degrees cause locking and lots of pain.

 Cleaning Up...

And a few signs of wear, but not too bad for an old guy. Should go the distance, with some increasing pain.

While it is too soon to say much, just one day after surgery it hurts less than it did. They say I can go back to skiing and all that, but I think I'm done with that; I know I can't back down from the double blacks, so I'm better off going sailing and wearing a brace, just to be sure.

But for the next few weeks... time to write, I guess.

Update, 9-13-2014. As surgery meds wore off, the pain showed up. I strong recommend getting a Breg Polar Care 500 ($168), whether insurance will cover it or not. My wife had one left over from knee replacement surgery, and this is the only way to keep ice on the knee at night. This really helps with both swelling and pain. The temperature is adjustable, but if you wear an Ace bandage on the knee, the amount of insulation is perfect for comfort. Lasts about 10-12 hours on a fill of ice. The knee version (not pictured but very similar) comes with Velcro.

During the day, packs of frozen veggies (one over, one under) are best, conforming nicely. We get ones we don't like (lima beans) so that we don't accidentally try to eat something that has been refrozen 20 times.

Update, 9-18-2014. I'm mostly off the cane, but I walk slowly and stairs are still far out of the question.Still icing (Breg) at night.

Update, 10-5-2014.  Started on exercise bike. Mowed part of the grass yesterday, but did no try to finish. A little muscle soreness today, but the joint seems fine.