Rehabilitation after knee replacement surgery

You will usually be in hospital for five to seven days. You can then either receive rehabilitation as an outpatient or as an inpatient at a rehabilitation centre. An inpatient rehabilitation programme is usually two weeks, while outpatient rehabilitation depends on the progress of each patient and the surgeon’s instructions.

Below is a selection of physiotherapy exercises for post-operative rehabilitation. Please only do the exercises recommended by your physiotherapist and/or surgeon.

Selection of physiotherapy exercises

You can gradually return to sport in the months following your operation, once the swelling in your knee has gone down and you are pain free. However, high impact and contact sports, such as football and karate, should still be avoided. We recommend that you seek advice from your doctor.

You can drive again when you are able to walk without support and put all your weight on your operated knee without any difficulty. Driving is usually possible four to six weeks after surgery. However, your doctor may allow you to drive sooner if you drive an automatic car.

In order to regain your range of motion, it is important to attend your physiotherapy sessions and practise the exercises recommended by your therapist at home.

There are no specific movements to avoid after knee replacement surgery. However, you need to know and respect the limits

In most cases, this clicking noise is totally painless and caused by the various artificial parts (the prosthesis), mainly the patellar component. A small gap is left in the joint when the prosthesis is fitted and the noise is louder in the first few weeks due to the collection of fluid in the knee joint. It is usually nothing to worry about, but it is best to get it checked by your doctor to avoid complications.