What happens in the first week at home?
Your main jobs are to rest enough, move regularly, protect the wound and follow the surgeon’s plan. It is a week of small routines more than big efforts.
You may feel tired, sore and fed up that progress is slower than you hoped. That is normal. Your surgeon’s and ward’s instructions come first, and this page fits around them.
How do I get from the car to the bed?
Coming home from Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun, Fatimah Hospital or Pantai Hospital Ipoh, the car and the front door are the first test. Take your walking aid, a helper’s arm and your time.
In a terrace house, check the gate, the porch step and the path to the bed before you arrive. Move the furniture that blocks the way. If the bedroom is upstairs, consider setting up a bed downstairs for the first days.
How do I manage swelling and pain?
Raise the leg as your surgeon advises, move the ankle frequently, and take pain medicine as prescribed, before the pain gets bad. Ipoh’s heat and humidity can make a swollen leg feel heavier, so stay cool and drink water.
Short, regular walks around the house help more than long periods in a chair or bed. Ask your surgeon about ice and compression, as advice varies.
Which exercises will I be given?
Ward teams teach a few simple ones: pumping the ankle, tightening the thigh muscle, bending and straightening the knee within the range allowed. Do what you were taught, as frequently as you were told.
A physiotherapist builds on that as the knee settles. Our page on knee replacement rehabilitation describes what the weeks ahead look like, and post-surgical rehabilitation describes our approach.
What about the bathroom, toilet and prayer positions?
A slippery tiled bathroom is a fall risk with a new knee. Use a non-slip mat, a shower stool and a handheld shower if you can, with someone nearby for the first few showers.
A squat toilet, a very low seat, kneeling to pray and sitting on the floor to eat need planning. Use a raised toilet seat or a chair, and ask your surgeon when and how to return to floor positions.
When do I call the ward, the surgeon or the emergency department?
Call the ward or your surgeon if the wound is leaking, becomes red or hot, or if you have a fever. Call them if pain is no longer controlled by your medicine.
Go to the emergency department for chest pain, breathlessness, or a calf that is swollen, hot and painful, as these may be signs of a clot. Do not wait for the next appointment.
When should the physio visit start?
Families ask this in the first days. Ask the surgeon, then send us the discharge papers and a description of the house. For driving, see driving after knee surgery in Ipoh.
Our after hospital discharge checklist lists what to gather, and home physiotherapy in Ipoh explains each step. Our Canning Garden centre is opening soon.