I Will be Forever Grateful
I met the folks at OrthoConnecticut about 15 years ago when I had the misfortune of breaking my ankle in a sledding accident (no kidding).
It was Thanksgiving Day and luckily Dr. Paul Protomastro was on duty and fixed up a pretty complicated multiple fractured ankle—after a couple of months I was good as new.
I am now 59 and started to feel pain in my right knee while skiing. I went to OrthoConnecticut and met Dr. Michael Lynch who quickly diagnosed the issue as a loss of cartilage.
We started off with minimalist solutions like cortisone and synovatic fluid injections, icing and a highly specialized “unloader”knee brace. This went on for about four years. Later in the year, Dr. Lynch and I decided to give it one last ski season but if things did not improve, we would consider knee replacement.
In May, I had the right knee (replaced) and in September, the left knee.
During that process I had multiple check ins with Dr. Lynch to ask questions about my recovery. Three months after my second surgery I took a trip to Italy and Spain over Christmas and did a lot of walking with no significant issues. By the next January I was ready for the acid test: skiing. I skied for two days about 5 hours a day. No swelling-no pain. Since then, I have skied another six days and I am happy to say that I am back to a skiing form I had when I was in my twenties. While I am still in my first year, these surgeries have made my life a lot happier. For me giving up skiing was unthinkable and I am thrilled I did not have to. Whatever your situation, I can say that once you come out on the other side of TKR, it will be worth it-but you need to put in the time on therapy.
And most important—I have Dr. Michael Lynch to thank for this-I will be forever grateful for his skill and bedside manner. He was a real listener during the several years he was treating me and always was encouraging while being straight to the point. The staff at Norwalk Hospital was top notch as well.”
Allan Grauberd
