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How Do You Choose a Surgeon For Your Knee Replacement?
Thinking about knee replacement surgery? One question above all else often gets overlooked: How do you pick the right surgeon?
Shehla Rooney
October 01, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes
TODAY’S KNEE NEWS
How Do You Choose a Surgeon For Your Knee Replacement?
Thinking about knee replacement surgery? One question above all else often gets overlooked: How do you pick the right surgeon? In this month’s feature, we dive into three little-known but absolutely crucial factors that make a big difference:
Do you know how many surgeries the doctor performs monthly?
What does your insurance cover?
Who is the best person to make a recommendation/referral?
Not all knee surgeons are created equal, and knowing what to look for now can change the outcome later. Want to feel confident in your decision when the time comes? Read on…
3 Exercises to Manage Your Knee Pain at Home:
Tired of knee pain dictating your day? In this video, Trudy Messer, a seasoned PT with over 25 years of experience, and owner of HEAL Wellness and Therapy, shares her top tips to help you find relief.
She breaks it down into 3 powerful, easy-to-apply strategies:
Decompress your knee joint using a mini sink plunger – Wait, what?!
Strengthen the right muscles – We don’t just mean your quadriceps.
Stretch the #1 overlooked muscle – Ever heard of the Rectus Femoris?
I’m always searching for trusted experts like Trudy, so you can learn from the best and take charge of your recovery. Watch now, you might be surprised what relief is within reach!
Rhonda’s Story
“After struggling with my first knee, I knew I had to try a new approach the second time around. Being in charge of my therapy and doing it at home made all the difference.”
At 69 years old, Rhonda has more on her shoulders than most. As the primary caregiver for her husband, who is living with Alzheimer’s disease, her days are filled with both love and challenge. When she had her first total knee replacement in September 2024, she expected recovery to be tough, but she didn’t expect it to be as overwhelming as it was.
Two months after surgery, Rhonda was still struggling with stiffness, tightness, and limited mobility. She went faithfully to PT for 15 sessions over 9 weeks, often seeing a different therapist or assistant each visit. The $40 co-pays ($600) added up quickly, and the hardest part was leaving her husband behind during those appointments. Sometimes the PT’s techniques caused more pain than progress. It took her two months to reach 118° of knee bend, and the stiffness persisted for months after that.
When it came time for her second knee replacement in August 2025, Rhonda decided to take a different approach. She chose to take the lead on her recovery and do everything at home. She used GoKnee ($399), both for prehab (before surgery) and then as her post-operative home exercise program. The difference was remarkable. Within just one week, she had already reached 118° of flexion, the same milestone that had taken her over eight weeks with her first knee. By day 6, she was going up and down stairs using a “normal” pattern, while holding both handrails for balance but moving with confidence.
At her 30-day follow-up appointment, her surgeon said, “You’re doing great, I’ll see you in a year!”. What’s most impressive is that Rhonda did all of this without any out-patient PT!
For Rhonda, her second journey wasn’t just about her knee, it was about reclaiming control, reducing stress, saving money, and staying present for the person who needs her most: her husband.
Here’s a quick snapshot of just how different Rhonda’s two recoveries were:
KNEE FACTS
Q: Did you know?
Not all therapists are created equal?
Physical Therapists (PT) spend 7–8 years in training, while Physical Therapy Assistants (PTA) complete about 2 years, yet many patients pay the same co-pay for each. The person guiding your recovery could make a bigger difference than you realize.
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