Doctor Visit #1

So Bill and I drove down to Leesburg to an appointment with Dr. Kerina. He was recommended by an Orthopaedic doctor who lives in our community, Dr. Claudia Thomas, who is also a partner in the practice. Between the time I made the appointment and the appointment itself, we ran into another resident in our community who had had two surgeries by him and was very pleased. In addition, through my tennis friends, I talked to another person who lives in The Villages who had both knees replaced by him, and who is now back on the tennis court playing at his prior level or better. So far, so good.

So, the consultation went well. Both Bill and I liked him, and felt a high degree of comfort level with him, which is important when someone is going to cut you open. He looked at the xray, and at the knee, and knew immediately what he thought had to be done, which turned out to be more than I thought. The degree of the angle in the knee (severly knock-knee) means that the ACL is probably gone, but the implant itself satisfies that lack. The PCL may need to be replaced, and one ligament has to be released or replaced, and the other ligament is a question mark. On a scale of 1 - 10, it's a 7. Of course the livelihood of any surgeon is surging, but I really knew going in that a TKR was inevitable; I'd been told that for any number of years, but I was still a little shell shocked. We scheduled the surgery for 43 days out.

Now, that is a little fast for me, and for Bill. We are both people who do not make spontaneous decisions. So, once over my shell shock (two days later), I postponed the surgery in order to see one or two more doctors. Of course I also got some input from some knowledgeable people who helped me recognize the value of taking my time in making this major decision.