Before Ronald Buchsen, Sr. had total knee replacement surgery at Piedmont Fayette Hospital, he worried he would have to give up his daily ritual of long-distance walking – a healthy habit that helped him lose more than 100 pounds.
Buchsen started bringing a knee brace along on his four- to five-mile daily walks. Each day, the distance he could walk comfortably grew shorter. The Sharpsburg resident knew he would have to do something about his aching knee to stay in stride.
A patient of Michael Behr, MD for close to 20 years, Buchsen went to his doctor for advice. Since Dr. Behr was the one who got him walking and helped jump start his weight loss, Buchsen took his doctor’s recommendation for total knee replacement seriously. After researching the program, Buchsen decided to have surgery on his knee and was very impressed with the program at Piedmont Fayette.
“There was a pre-op class that my wife and I attended and we really enjoyed it,” Buchsen said. “They answered any questions we had. I went in for surgery on Wednesday, was home on Thursday and feeling pretty good the day after that.”
Buchsen started working with a physical therapist at home two days after surgery and has already begun walking in his driveway. He can’t wait for the day when he gets to rejoin his friends on their usual walks.
For more information about total knee replacement surgery at Piedmont Fayette, visit piedmont.org.
