AFTER SURGERY

After ARTHROPLASTY, it is essential for the patient to lie on their back with legs apart for a minimum of six hours. On the first day after the surgery, the patient starts rehabilitation.

Following the regression of anesthesia, the patient tenses shin muscles using feet:

  • Dorsal flexion toward the head
  • Plantar flexion toward the end of a bed

After that, the patient tenses the thigh muscles trying to touch a mattress with the back surface of the knee. After twelve hours, the patient starts sitting on a bed with the help of a ladder placed between the patient's legs.

If the patient is able to sit for a few minutes, they can begin to sit on the edge of a bed according to physiotherapist's instructions.

On the second day after achieving an erect position, the patient can start learning how to walk on crutches or use a walking frame.

Before leaving hospital, the patient practises going up and down the stairs.

  • Going up the stairs: first a healthy leg, crutches stay on the lower stair.
  • Going down the stairs: first crutches and an operated leg stays on the higher stair.

The last activity that the patient should learn before going home is  getting into a car. In this case, the patient must stand with their back to a passenger’s front seat. When sitting, the patient must put one hand on a control panel and the other hand on a seat-rest. The patient should sit down slowly and when they sit, they should move an operated leg into a car very carefully.

The patient is forbidden to:

  • Cross their legs
  • Sleep on one side without putting a pillow between legs
  • Flex hip above 90 degrees
  • Bend forward
  • Bend forward in a sitting position
  • Turn legs inside in a sitting position
  • Dress underwear, trousers, socks, stockings, and shoes without helping equipment or the assistance of another person.

Obeying the above rules in the first three months of rehabilitation guarantees quick recovery without any complications.