Real stories from real recoveries

I recently had total knee replacement surgery and I used the Slider therapy before and after my surgery. Pre surgery helped to strengthen my leg and gave me an idea of what my normal should be. After surgery I used the Slider and my flexibility returned fairly quickly. This observation was confirmed by my surgeon at the six week review and later at the physio clinic where they did one assessment session and said I did not need to come back. I showed them the Slider program and they agreed all I needed to do was continue to strenghten the leg muscles. I am fully mobile at three months with no pain issues. I believe the Slider program got me up faster than I expected.

I used the slider system 3 weeks prior to my full knee replacement surgery to build up my muscles in preparation for the surgery and subsequently carried on the exercises with the slider following surgery - it made carrying out the physio exercises somehow easier and more bearable and I am confident it has helped my recovery immensely. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend using this system to anyone following knee replacement surgery as I found it to be a great asset on my recovery journey.

I have been using the Slider now for 16 weeks, 6 weeks pre-op and 10 weeks post-op. I have another 2 weeks to go before my 12 weeks post operation exercises are done. What can I say about the Slider: Well I would say that it is definitely the best thing for knee operations in my experience. When I went into hospital for the operation the nurses said they could see that I had been doing my pre-op exercises. When I said I hadn’t done any NHS ones they were amazed when I told them it was the slider. One or two of them had heard of it and thought every hospital should have them. When I first started doing the exercises, they seemed pretty daunting but I soon got into the way of things. To start they were pretty easy because your knee is still whole. After the op it was a different story, I found every one painful but the more you do them the easier and less painful they become I am now on week 10 and have no pain whilst doing the exercises. This is good. The slider is really easy to use. You have a slider mat that you lay on the bed, I find it easier here. Then you have a small tablet that once switched on connects to the slider. The slider is a round bit of equipment that tracks your exercises and transfers the data to the tablet. You must keep the heel of your operated leg in the small well of the slider. At the end of the session you can check your progress. At my last hospital appointment, Helen, the lead physiotherapist was very pleased with my progress and with the movement I have in my knee. She was so impressed that she discharged me! I would say to anyone getting the chance to use a slider to take it. It is so much better than the NHS piece of paper with the exercises printed on it. My friend from Canada visited us a week after my operation, she’d had the same surgery carried out a couple of years ago. She told me that she had to pay for physio herself as she found the exercises which were advised by the hospital no good so sought private care. She said she wishes she had something like the slider at the time of her operation. When she left 3 weeks later she was amazed that I was walking without aids and I put it all down to the slider

My husband has been on the Slider programme for 3 weeks now before knee surgery, he does the exercises 3 times daily, he found them a little uncomfortable to begin with, but exercises have loosened up his knee, and it is less stiff and painful, hopefully this will put him in a better position for recovery post op.

I have been using the Slider for about 4 weeks, and have realised a significant improvement in my knee muscles. My surgery for a total replacement is next week and I feel confident that i will have a much speedier recovery.

I would like to tell you about my experience using Slider before and after my full knee replacement surgery. I have always had exercise in my life : tennis, golf, keep fit classes, badminton, walking, gym and swim. ( maybe the reason I needed knee surgery) Obviously for the last two years I’ve been left with gym and swim. Walking and standing were extremely painful. From receiving Slider and using it before and after my operation I honestly believe it has helped my recovery immensely. Yes there was pain the first day after my operation but no pain thereafter. On returning home after my operation I started using Slider immediately and have continued to do so along with exercises from my Physio. In three weeks I went from using two sticks to one stick to no sticks walking with confidence. To me the success of Slider is how it controls the holding of the exercise between the counts which means the user is gaining more from the exercise. Yes Slider is repetitive but what exercise program isn’t if it is going to be successful. On visiting from Edinburgh my son was astounded to see how well I was walking as are all my friends who have watched me hobble and limp for a long long time. Every day there is an improvement in the ‘ tightness ‘ when bending the leg as I continue to use Slider. Not only praise for Slider : To my surgeon and his team for their professionalism therefore contribution to the success of my operation and recovery. Not being very technically savvy, to have the knowledge that the customer support for Slider was available on their phone if help was required was very important to me.