Total Knee Replacement Surgery

• 30-45 minutes
• Spinal or general anesthetic
• 2-3 days in hospital
• Walking day after surgery
• Post-op rehabilitation 3-4 months

The total knee surgery typically takes about 30-45 minutes. It can be done under a spinal or general anesthetic. You will have the opportunity to discuss the pros and cons of either method of anaesthesia with the anaesthetist.

Typical patient will stay between 2 to 3 days in the hospital and be discharged home. On a rare occasion a patient may recover slower and may require additional inpatient rehabilitation. This will be decided on an individual basis after the surgery.

You will be allowed to walk the day after surgery and you will use a walker to take some of the load off the operated knee.

The total rehabilitation time is approximately 3 to 4 months. During that time, there will be certain things that you should and shouldn’t do. They will be discussed with you at the appropriate times. On average people can expect to return to driving about 6 weeks post op and to sedentary occupations around the 3rd month.