After two successful hip replacements, Hannah was ready for a knee replacement. "My right knee bent inward for many years, but it was more noticeable after my hips were done," she explains. "It was bone on bone and very unstable. A few times, I took a step forward and felt like if I didn't grab onto something quickly, I was going down."
When it was time to decide where to get surgery, Hannah chose Boston Medical Center. She had confidence in Dr. Ayesha Abdeen, chief of hip and knee replacement surgery, who had done "a beautiful job" on both of her hips at another Boston hospital. "I am evidence that Dr. Abdeen is a brilliant surgeon," says Hannah. "Plus, she's calm, cool, and collected. Once you find somebody you trust, you go with her."
For Hannah's total knee arthroplasty (TKA) on July 16, Dr. Abdeen used innovative robotics, which improves accuracy and reduces radiation exposure. "The surgery is still being done by the surgeon, but we program the robot based on what we need to correct in the patient's knee and the way we want to balance the knee," explains Dr. Abdeen. BMC was the first hospital in Mass. to acquire the FDA-approved robotics technology for TKA.
Hannah's experience at BMC was even better than expected. "I could tell as soon as I stood up in the recovery room that my knee was fixed," she says. "I hadn't seen my leg that straight in years and I could bend and walk without anybody hanging on to me."
She walked out of the hospital with crutches the day after surgery, but not before leaving a note for her care team that read, "Thank you to everybody for helping me through this journey. You were all great. I'm out of here!"
Today, Hannah's leg is straight, her knee is mobile, and she has no restrictions except to stay off ladders. She stays active by training and judging small dogs in a non-competitive sport called Earthdog, and enjoys spending time with her partner, Michael, her two daughters, and her four grandchildren.
Her advice to her many friends that are embarking on knee replacement surgery: “Do prehab to get strong for your recovery, believe in the process, and cultivate a great sense of humor, because you’ll need it!”