A new knee
for the rest
of her life
Nancy Merckle, 84, enjoys bus trips and her grandson’s
baseball games. So when pain in her right knee made
it hard to walk, she needed a way to keep going.
“It was always my bad knee,” said Nancy. “But after cooking
Thanksgiving dinner, I could barely walk. When I limped
around Canonsburg Hospital on my volunteer rounds,
my friends urged me to go see Dr. Donald Ravasio.”
Nancy’s MRI showed the advanced arthritis, bone-on
bone contact that was causing the pain. Arthroplasty
knee replacement surgery was the best solution.
After her surgery, she was at a rehab facility, followed
by physical therapy at home, and visits to the outpatient
rehabilitation center at Canonsburg Hospital. “I did
a lot of exercise on my own. I pushed myself, even
when it hurt,” Nancy said.
She was volunteering again a month later, walking
independently. “They were all amazed at how well
I did,” she said.
1
“Everyone at
Dr. Ravasio’s
offi ce was
so nice. They
explained it
all so clearly.”
CAUSE OF
DISABILITY
AMONG U.S.
ADULTS IS
ARTHRITIS 1
2
NANCY MERCKLE, KNEE REPLACEMENT PATIENT
1
www.cdc.gov/arthritis/index.htm
www.arthritis.org/about-arthritis/understanding-arthritis/
arthritis-statistics-facts.php
2