Darlene Day at Table Mountain in South Africa
The COVID-19 pandemic caused that trip to be canceled, and while she waited for the pandemic to subside, her knee pain worsened.
Day connected with Andrew Ehmke, DO, a board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in minimally invasive robotic-assisted knee and hip replacement surgery at the Center for Advanced Joint Replacement (CAJR) at UChicago Medicine AdventHealth La Grange.
After meeting with Day and confirming she needed a knee replacement, Ehmke replaced her knee in August 2022 with a Mako® robotic arm assisted surgery system. The next day, she went home and did physical therapy at the hospital for a month. About six weeks after her surgery, she was walking normally without any pain.
When an opportunity to travel to South Africa arose again in 2023, Day signed up without hesitation.
Day, 71, also climbed to the top of Table Mountain, at an elevation of more than 3,500 feet. “They take you in a gondola to a flat part of the mountain, but then you have to hike to get to the top,” she said. “I don’t believe God let me have this knee not to go. So, I went and made it to the top. I was very proud of myself.”
Standing at the top of the mountain was an emotional experience. “I had never seen anything like it. I just thanked God.”
Day’s case was typical of those that Ehmke routinely handles, although he said hers was particularly inspirational because her surgery enabled her to resume traveling. Her experience exemplifies why he chose to specialize in robotic-assisted knee and hip replacements.
Since 2015, Ehmke has performed more than 1,000 robotic-assisted knee and hip replacement surgeries. These surgeries offer many benefits, including a smaller incision, less time in surgery, greater surgical precision, reduced pain, faster recoveries and joint replacements that fit better and feel more natural, Ehmke said.
“Once the patient has recovered and returned to their full activities, their new knee mimics their natural knee so much better,” Ehmke said. “It allows them to do more rigorous activities on the knee. Because it fits comfortably and smoothly, it’s going to last longer.”
“The precision of the robot allows me to be a much better surgeon because I can fine-tune the knee in ways I never could before.”
Day’s newfound mobility allows her to enjoy other activities, including spending time with her children and grandchildren, socializing with fellow seniors at a local community center and caring for relatives and friends.
“It has changed my life,” she said. “I can help take care of people because I don’t have that pain in my knee anymore. I just thank God every day that I can get up and help others.”
Chris Zurales is manager of marketing and communications at UChicago Medicine AdventHealth.
