[id10t]

I've been thru knee replacement (and hip) hundreds of times - as a therapist aide in the hospital. Its been 20 years but a lot of what I saw/did still applies.

Part of your in hospital rehab will be doing "a few" stairs/steps - 3 or 4 of them. But, stairs are a PITA (well, K) and depending on what size they are (width and height) and your assistive devce (walker, crutches, cane) can complicate navigating them. From what most of the folks I worked with said that had stairs to deal with is they simply camped out on the ground floor, sleeping in a spare room or on a couch.

Some advice - if you know you are going to do it, ask teh doc for a PT consult so you can start the exercises they'll have you doing post-op NOW. Helps a lot - the folks that got out quick were healthy and in shape and had muscle done in the critical areas. The little old ladies who were 5 feet tall and 4 feet around had many more issues and typically went to assisted living for a while after leaving the hospital.

In the OR or recovery room they will put a machine on your leg that simply bends your knee and straightens it. Wear it. Use it. Don't slack off on it.

If you don't hate your physical therapist, either you are slacking off or they are slacking off. Get up and walk. Then walk some more.

Do your PT. Do not slack off. Do not slack off on bending the knee (per PT directions). You'll get out of it what you put in. One of the guys that I worked on said that what we put him through in those first few days post op was worse that what the Germans did when he was shot down in WW2. But he came back to have his other knee done with a smile on his face and ready to do it.

A coworker had her knee done last week of February. She was out of work for a month, then back full time. Already going to her regular gym, etc. From what she said current protocol is procedure early in the morning and you are up and out of bed and taking your first few steps at dinner time. Out of the hospital in 3-4 days depending on lack of fever, etc. Finding a good outpatient rehab place for a month or two of after care, etc. can be harder - my coworker went through two therapists and then changed facilities before finding one who would actually make her work.