After Your Knee Surgery

After surgery, we'll bring you to the recovery room and give you pain medication. You may have a catheter in your bladder and a drain in your knee.

A continuous passive motion (CPM) machine may be used to gently bend your knee and keep it from getting stiff.

Your Hospital Stay

Once you're awake, you will be moved to your room. By then, your family or a friend can join you. Soon after surgery, specially trained therapists will start working with you.

The length of your hospital stay and recovery will depend on the type of surgery you've had.

Managing Pain

You may receive pain medications by injection or IV for the first few days. Expect to feel some pain, even with medication. This is normal. If the medication doesn't reduce your pain, please tell your nurse.

Therapy

During your hospital stay, you'll learn skills to help you return to normal life. You'll learn how to strengthen your leg, walk and clear your lungs.

To make moving easier, ask for pain medication before your physical therapy sessions.

You may start to stand and walk within hours of your surgery. An IV and catheter likely will still be in place, so using the walker may be tricky.

A physical therapist will help you learn how much weight you can bear on your new joint, if any. With practice, you can soon walk with just the aid of a walker.

After Surgery Tips