Two Week Update

It has been 2 weeks since my ACI surgery.  I really can't say that the time has flown by.  There have been plenty of painful and grueling moments that seem to prolong the days.  There have been moments when I begin to question the reason for undergoing such a crazy and invasive surgery...only to remind myself of how bad I was before (that is one reason I started to blog pre-surgery to keep track of where I was just incase those moments came).

I still have a long ways to go...but at least I can look back over the last two weeks and know that I have made some progress.  Spending all of my time in bed and in the home (I haven't been in the kitchen in two weeks) has really jacked up my sense of time.  Thank goodness for Netflix...I have spent way too much time watching "American Pickers."

From a pure physical standpoint...I am right on schedule.  Today I measured a ROM of 73 degrees on the CPM.  I have to be at 90 degrees by week 3 and not a day early.  A few things that I am looking forward to:

- After week 4, I can sleep with no Bledsoe Brace (I do have to keep it on during the day)
- After week 3, I only have to spend 6 -8 hours on the CPM instead of the current 8-12 hours/day
- Week 5, I will graduate to using crutches
- Week 6 or 7 I begin PT

There are a lot of things that I am still looking forward to.

A few interesting things to update you on.  Today, I weighed myself for the first time post surgery and I have lost a total of 16 pounds in two weeks.  Watch out Biggest Loser!!!  Secondly...I am beginning to look like a true mountain man.  It is a little difficult to stand long enough to shave, so I have decided to not shave right now.  What do you think???

Last Minute Package

We are now very close to surgery day and every moment that I can spend playing with the kids is a blessing.  Yesterday was absolutely gorgeous...one of the many benefits of living in Arizona in January.  Because it was so nice we decided to spend the evening outside on our cul-de-sac letting the kids play.  And let's be honest, most of the reason to be outside was to get them to burn some energy off.  Here are a few pics from our time outside.

At the time it seemed like a great idea to help my little 14 month old girl ride the scooter.  Actually, it was a great idea...i just payed a higher price then expected.  The little 12 foot circle I walked her in was much more painful than I could imagine.  The angle and the movement required to hold her on the scooter was a quick reminder of why I need to have this surgery done.  Furthermore, tonight I am going to pick up my wheelchair to help me get around next week.

That is not all that happened yesterday.  I got a package from FedEx.  To some of you I recognize that isn't too big of a deal.  But for me to receive an unannounced package in the mail when Christmas is behind us is almost worth celebrating.  It just never happens.  As I opened up my package with great excitement this is what I found...

I have had several surgeries at this point in my life and I have never received a package in the mail providing detailed information about the surgery and rehab required to be successful.  I didn't know whether I should laugh or cry.  The last picture is a picture of a rehab journal so that I can keep close track of my daily progress.  Is that really necessary?  I guess when you are looking at 18 months of rehab you want to remember where you began.

At this point we have only a few more days.  I promise I will post pictures of the scar as soon as I possible. Hasta Luego!!!

Carticel Implantation

What is carticel?  


This term is used often for a patient getting readying to undergo ACI.  CARTICEL is a biologic product used to repair articular cartilage injuries in adults who have not responded to a prior arthroscopic or other surgical repair procedure. It uses your body's own cultured cells to form new hyaline-like cartilage in your knee following a surgical procedure called autologous chrondrocyte implantation (ACI). CARTICEL is the name of the cells that are grown from the samples (or biopsy) taken from your knee. When implanted into a cartilage injury, these cells can form new hyaline-like cartilage.

CARTICEL is the first biologic product to repair articular cartilage injuries in the knee. In 1997, it became the only FDA-approved autologous cultured chondrocyte product on the market in the United States. CARTICEL is a product of Genzyme, a company with more than a decade of experience in developing and manufacturing autologous cell therapy products. (Taken from the Carticel website)

How is CARTICEL manufactured?  Here is a quick step by step look at what it takes to clone my knee.  Pretty SCI-FI stuff.

1. A patient's cartilage is harvested by the surgeon and sent to the Genzyme manufacturing facility.
2. The biopsies are processed to isolate chondrocytes from surrounding matrix.
3. Each patient lot is maintained under strict quality control procedures.
4. After primary culturing, patient cells are cryopreserved until an order is placed. This offers flexibility for patients and surgeons to schedule implantation.
5. Once an order is received, the patient's cryopreserved cells are expanded.
6. Two to three days before surgery, CARTICEL vials are released and shipped to the surgeon.

In all it is a pretty interesting process.  If you are interested in knowing more about CARTICEL...take a quick spin around their website: CARTICEL

There are some pretty interesting video spots on the procedure as well.