Knee pain from a calcification in the tendon
Hiking in the Berkshires is a regular activity for Gail Bedard, a 66-year-old woman from Cheshire, MA — or at least it was until she developed significant knee pain.
Her knee issues began about seven years ago, when she slipped while hiking and discovered that she had large calcium deposits in the quadriceps (quad) tendon above her knee. She visited a doctor for a surgical consultation. He suggested physical therapy and avoiding surgery for as long as possible.
The pain had a major impact on Gail’s daily activities and her life. She was in pain while hiking or walking downstairs. She needed to prop her foot up while riding in the car because bending her knee was too painful. And she had to ice her knee nearly every night.
In 2018, the pain began to worsen. Since her doctor had moved out of the area, Gail had another x-ray with a different doctor. He noticed that the size of the calcium deposit had increased and suggested surgery to remove it. It would have been a risky open procedure due to the extent of the calcification, requiring a lengthy recovery. Additionally, due to the uncommon nature of this condition, it was a surgery that he had never performed. She then visited another orthopedic surgeon to get a second opinion. He discouraged her from going under the knife. “I can tell you one thing about this surgery—don’t do it, avoid it for as long as you can,” the doctor advised.
Gail tried to stay active despite the pain. She used anti- inflammatory drugs to ease some of the pain, but knew it wasn’t a good long-term solution. “It was getting worse as the days went by,” she explained. And then, she slipped and fell again in July 2020. “This time, the pain was very bad. I couldn’t do anything.”
I couldn’t walk down the stairs. It hurt all the time.
She also lived in fear that the injury would continue to worsen.
Gail’s son had recently undergone shoulder surgery in NYC with good results and Gail decided to get an opinion from her son’s surgeon. The surgeon did a needle scope of Gail’s knee to evaluate the knee joint. He recommended that Gail consider TenJet and connected her with Dr. Nathan Holmes at Reconstructive Orthopedics in Sewell, NJ. “Everything just went smoothly after that,” Gail commented. “It was unbelievable, really.”
Using the TenJet system, Dr. Holmes was able to precisely remove most of the calcification in the tendon. After the procedure, Gail said she was left with a very tiny incision. She took over-the-counter pain relievers and wore a brace for six weeks. Gail also went to physical therapy for a few months to help her rebuild strength in her leg. It was a much easier recovery than she could have expected.
Gail is now happy to report that she rarely experiences pain. Has the procedure improved her life? “Oh, tremendously,” she said. “Physically and mentally. Mentally, it was taking a toll on me—I didn’t know what was going to happen. It wore on me a lot. Physically, I have my life back. I can be active and do the things I like to do.” Her husband Brian has noticed a difference, too. “[Before the surgery], any time we needed to go upstairs or downstairs, Gail would complain about the pain in her knee. She would need to plan her movements to avoid the stairs. Now, she’s back to being her normal active self.”
Gail says she always recommends TenJet to others with tendon pain.
I’m so grateful for TenJet. Without it, I don’t know where I would be.
“I was afraid I was going to be in a wheelchair at some point,” she said. “I don’t think a day goes by where I’m not thinking about how fortunate I am to have found this.”
Gail now hikes her beloved 4.1 mile Cheshire Cobbles loop on the Appalachian trail once a week.