You will experience pain and discomfort especially for the first few days and it is likely that you will need pain relief over the first few weeks. 

Reduce your pain relief gradually over a few weeks rather than stopping it all together, even if you feel the pain has gone, as the pain may return if you stop your pain relief too soon. You may need to continue pain relief at night time for a little longer to help you sleep more comfortably.

This information is an extract from ‘A patient’s guide to total knee replacement’, a document created to enhance our patients' recovery after a knee replacement. The complete document is available to download here.