8 Weeks Post Op Dr Appointment

I went back to see my surgeon at 8 weeks because I was worried about the pain in the graft area.  As I started to put weight on my leg I was having the same pain as before the surgery.  My surgeon said this was probably normal and pain moves around after surgery.  Ultimately, it's way too soon to think about graft failure.  He said I'm really not going to know if this surgery was successful until 10 more months down the road when I start running again.  At some point the pain should get better and I need to be more patient.  He didn't think what I was experiencing should prevent me from continuing the rehab protocol and working toward 100% weight bearing over the next few weeks.

I found some interesting information about the recovery process published by the company who cultures the cartilage cells.  Genzyme is the company that created Carticel, which is the name given to the cartilage cells after they are grown and cultured in Genzyme's lab in Boston.  It is impossible to create the exact same type of cartilage that lines the major bones of the body.  However, Genzyme has been able to create a substance that closely resembles actual cartilage by using a person's own cartilage cells.  This substance is called Carticel and is the only FDA approved product to repair articular cartilage.  However once the cells are ready for implantation they are in liquid form and must harden in the body to work.  There are some studies which say the graft continues to harden for a period of 5 years but after 18 months the graft should be strong enough to support high impact sports.

Genzyme published a Carticel rehabilitation guide which has some great info.  I skimmed it the first time but then I went back and read it more closely.  I found something that eased my worry over the pain I was feeling.  The guide says it is during the remodeling phase which occurs between 12 weeks and 32 weeks that patients typically feel improvement of symptoms.

I highly recommend reading this guide prior to surgery.  It's located here: REHABILITATION GUIDELINES - Carticel

So if you're like me and you worry A LOT about how the graft is doing...stop!  You will drive yourself crazy.  As I've been reminded by my surgeon and therapist many times, this is a long process and improvement occurs incrimentaly over many months and pain is normal.  To put things in perspective, according to my rehab protocol my goal at 9 months is to walk 2 miles at 15 min/mile pace.  But if you have extreme pain or locking or catching of the knee during motion at this point in the recovery that might indicate an issue.  So bottom line, you'll probably know if something is really wrong.