How long does recovery take after a knee replacement?

What should the first six weeks look like?

Walking on the day of surgery or the day after, straightening the knee fully, bending it far enough to sit and climb stairs, and rebuilding the thigh muscle that stopped working long before the operation. Range comes first, because a knee that is not straightened early becomes progressively harder to straighten later.

Swelling governs the pace. A knee that is hot and swollen the morning after a session was loaded too hard, and the programme drops back rather than pushing through.

Why does the thigh muscle matter more than the joint?

The implant supplies the joint surface. It does not supply the strength that controls it. Quadriceps weakness is present before surgery, deepens sharply in the first weeks afterwards, and is the single factor most closely tied to how well someone walks and climbs a year later.

That is why a programme built on progressive strengthening outperforms one built on movement alone, and why the measurement we care about at discharge is a strength and function figure rather than a range-of-motion number by itself.

When can I drive, fly and go back to work?

Driving depends on being off strong painkillers and able to perform an emergency stop, which for a right knee is usually several weeks. Desk work is often possible within a month, standing work considerably later. Flying is usually cleared after the early clotting risk has passed, and your surgeon sets that date.

Anyone travelling for rehabilitation should have those three answers in writing from the operating surgeon before booking, because they differ between surgeons and between implants.

What if the knee is still stiff at three months?

Persistent stiffness has causes that need separating: a knee that was never fully straightened, scar tissue, unresolved swelling, pain that blocks loading, or in a minority a mechanical problem with the implant. They are treated differently, and guessing wastes the window in which stiffness is still reversible.

Assessment comes first. Where the cause is soft tissue and loading, an intensive block with hydrotherapy, measured range work and progressive strengthening usually moves it. Where it is mechanical, the answer is back with the surgeon and we say so.

Frequently asked questions