Recovery Essentials

I'm a hip and knee replacement surgeon, and I've had my own knee replaced. These are the things I've seen make the first weeks of recovery easier, for my patients and for me.

The exhaustion, and feeding your recovery

Your appetite drops right when your protein demand goes up, and you lose muscle you can't afford to lose. Eat protein when you don't feel like it.

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MEND Medical Food for Joint Replacement

An essential amino-acid medical food. Randomized trials of essential amino-acid supplementation around knee replacement have reported less muscle loss afterward; whether a particular product and regimen is right for you depends on your nutrition and medical needs, so discuss it with your care team. It doesn't replace real food. Take 10% off with code GETREADY10. Paid link: I earn a commission on MEND purchases made through this link or code. OrthoLoneStar has an ownership stake in MEND Nutrition; I am an owner and partner in Texas Orthopedics, which is a division of OrthoLoneStar.

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Cold therapy

Swelling is what keeps your quad switched off, and it's a big part of why people don't sleep. Cold and elevation are the two things that actually move it.

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Polar Active Ice 3.0 Knee Cold Therapy System

This is the unit I used on my knee. A circulating cold-therapy system makes steady, even cold convenient for hours at a time; whether it's worth the cost over ice packs depends on your needs. Compare options, and use it only as directed by your care team and the manufacturer. Take 10% off with code TSU10. Paid link: I earn a commission when you buy through this link or use code TSU10.

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Prefer not to use a paid link? The same unit is on Amazon: Polar Active Ice 3.0 on Amazon (not an affiliate link).

Getting around: weeks one through eight

Most people go from a walker to a cane to nothing over the first couple of months. Set the walker up before surgery so you're not shopping from the couch.

I used this myself

Medline Two-Button Folding Walker

A front-wheeled folding walker for the first two or three weeks. Your surgeon or therapist will tell you when to move on from it.

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I used this myself

Precut Tennis Ball Walker Glides

Pre-cut, so the back legs slide instead of catching on carpet and thresholds. The single cheapest upgrade you can make to a walker. I had them on mine.

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I used this myself

Walker Hand Grip Covers

Padded covers for the handles. Your hands take more of a beating on a walker than you expect, especially the first week.

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I used this myself

Walker Basket

Both hands are on the walker, so you can't carry anything. A basket for the phone, water, and the remote saves a dozen trips a day, or a dozen requests to whoever's helping you.

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I used this myself

Medline Offset Cane

For the transition off the walker. Offset handle, adjustable height. Hold it in the hand opposite the operated knee.

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The bathroom, and the middle of the night

The bathroom is where people fall, and the first nights are when you least want to make the trip. Set this up before you go in. The items marked “What I tell my patients” are the categories I recommend in clinic every week; I didn't use these particular ones myself, and any decent equivalent works.

I used this myself

Waterproof Leg Cast Cover

Keeps the incision and dressing dry in the shower until your surgeon says it can get wet. Slides on over the leg and seals above the knee.

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I used this myself

Glow-in-the-Dark Men's Urinal

A reusable 32-ounce bedside bottle with a spill-proof, glow-in-the-dark lid. Easy to find at night, and it can save a risky 3 a.m. walk to the bathroom during the first days of recovery.

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What I tell my patients

Hip & Knee Recovery Kit

Seven things in one box: two reachers (32 and 19 inch), a leg lifter strap, a sock aid, a dressing stick, a long shoe horn, and a long-handled sponge. This covers most of what you'll fumble with in the first two weeks.

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What I tell my patients

Raised Toilet Seat with Handles

The toilet is the lowest chair in your house. Raising it a few inches and giving yourself something to push on takes the strain off a quad that isn't firing yet.

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What I tell my patients

Drive Medical Shower Chair with Back and Arms

The shower is where people fall. A chair means you can wash without standing on one weak leg on a wet floor, and you can rest when the fatigue hits, which it will.

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What I tell my patients

Drive Medical 3-in-1 Bedside Commode

Works as a bedside commode at night, a raised toilet seat with arms by day, or a safety frame over your own toilet. If you're only going to buy one bathroom item, this is the one that does three jobs.

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What I tell my patients

RMS Sock Aid

Slide the sock over the sleeve, drop it to the floor, put your foot in and pull it up by the handles, with no deep bend at the hip or knee. The kit above includes one; this is the standalone version if that's all you need.

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The small stuff

Little things that make a surprisingly big difference in the first few weeks.

I used this myself

AM & PM Pill Organizer

You'll be on more medications than usual, on a schedule, while foggy. Sort them once a week so you never have to wonder whether you took the noon dose.

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I used this myself

Adjustable Heel Lift

For the surprise nobody expects: the operated leg feels longer. A small lift in the other shoe can settle your gait while your back and hips adjust. Ask your surgeon or therapist before you use one.

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Ice packs and incision care

A few reusable gel packs in rotation cover the hours the cold machine is off, and you'll change dressings more times than you expect. Use whatever dressing your surgeon's office tells you to; these are the basics I used.

I used this myself

FlexiKold Reusable Gel Ice Packs

Big enough to wrap the knee. Keep two in the freezer so one is always cold. Twenty minutes on, a layer of cloth between it and the skin, never directly on the incision.

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I used this myself

Elastic Bandage Wrap

For light compression over a dressing or to hold an ice pack in place. Snug, not tight; if your toes tingle or the foot swells below it, it's too tight.

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I used this myself

Sterile ABD Combine Pads

Thick, absorbent pads for the first days, when there's more drainage than a small dressing can handle. Use whatever your surgeon's office tells you to.

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What I tell my patients

Sterile Island Dressings, 4x4

Adhesive-bordered gauze pads for covering the incision once your surgeon clears you to change dressings yourself. Follow your team's instructions on when and how.

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The two problems you don't buy your way out of

Constipation and sleep. There's no product for either that beats having a plan before surgery. I made a full episode on each.