u/afraidbutstrong

I’m scheduled for a TTO surgery on September 2 and have a 17-day Thailand trip starting November 16, about 10.5 weeks post-op.

The trip includes Bangkok, Khao Sok, Koh Samui and Krabi. I plan to skip the extreme hikes/steep climbs (Tiger Cave summit and Wua Ta Lap), but I’d still be walking every day.

Most days would be moderate, but on 1–3 non-consecutive days I’d ideally like to do up to 25–30k steps, with easier days in between. We’ll also have boats/ferries, beaches and possibly kayaking.

For those who had a TTO specifically: what were you realistically capable of at 10–13 weeks? Would a trip like this have been manageable? Could you occasionally walk 20–30k steps, or would that have been way too much?

Obviously I’ll only do what my surgeon allows based on my recovery and bone healing. I’m mainly looking for real-life experiences.

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I’m 26 and trying to decide between TTO (ventromedialization) and continuing PT.

I’ve never dislocated my patella and don’t really have instability. My problem is patellofemoral pain, maltracking/abnormal loading and cartilage damage.

My pain varies a lot, but I rarely go more than 1–2 weeks completely symptom-free anymore. I’m still very active, but often with consequences. For example, yesterday I danced and jumped for several hours with pain on and off, and this morning I initially struggled to fully weight-bear on my legs.

Sometimes I can walk long distances on flat ground relatively fine, while stairs (especially downstairs), squatting, cycling, jumping or hiking with elevation can cause pain or a bad flare-up afterwards.

I’ve received conflicting opinions from 2 great doctors: one experienced knee surgeon recommended immadiate arthroscopy + TTO, while another suggested targeted PT first and surgery only if that fails (He said that based on the x-ray, the lesion was not serious) . I’ve also recently started with a new PT focusing more on hip/glute strength and overall biomechanics (all together I'm little more than 4 weeks in to PT).

I’d especially like to hear from people who had TTO for pain/maltracking/cartilage overload WITHOUT recurrent dislocations.

Was it worth it? Did PT work instead? Did TTO eventually give you a more reliable knee with a higher activity tolerance? If you could choose again, would you have the surgery?

I know Reddit can’t make the medical decision for me. I’m mainly looking for experiences from people in a similar situation.

Thank you!