A 16-session, 12-week post-operative programme with protocol-driven milestones at weeks 4, 8, and 12 — coordinated with your surgeon.
Any orthopedic surgeon will tell you: the operation is the easy part. Whether a total knee replacement gives you ten functional years or twenty depends on the twelve weeks that follow. Whether an ACL reconstruction gets you back to Sunday basketball or leaves you with a chronically unstable knee depends on whether you hit the criteria-based milestones, not on how the graft looked at the end of surgery.
Post-surgery rehab at Myntrava is built around published protocols — AAOS guidelines for TKR, MOON Consortium protocols for ACL reconstruction, ASES rotator cuff rehabilitation frameworks, and the Ranawat protocol for total hip arthroplasty. Our four PTRPs, all PRC-licensed, are trained in these protocols and coordinate directly with your operating surgeon — whether they are at Makati Med, St. Luke's, The Medical City, or one of our in-house orthopedic surgeons. Surgeon notes, op-tech specifics (graft type, prosthesis brand, repair strength), and any intra-operative findings inform every session.
We track progress against functional criteria, not calendar pages. A TKR patient progresses from phase 1 to phase 2 not because four weeks have passed, but because they hit 90° knee flexion, 0° extension, and a straight-leg raise with no quad lag. An ACL reconstruction does not start jogging at week 12 because the calendar says so — they start when single-leg squat symmetry, hop test, and isokinetic quad strength hit the published thresholds.
Surgery gives you the structure. Rehab gives you back the function. Skip the second and you wasted the first. — Angela Salceda, PTRP
Most post-op patients start the programme within 7–10 days of discharge, after the first surgical follow-up. If you are still in the pre-operative phase, this guide on prehabilitation covers what to do in the 4–6 weeks before surgery to improve outcomes. If the surgery was a total knee and you are dealing with ongoing OA in the opposite knee, the Osteoarthritis Program is often scheduled to start at week 6 post-op on the unoperated side.
Before session 1: op notes, graft/prosthesis details, weight-bearing status, precautions. Protocol agreed with your surgeon in writing.
Six sessions: swelling control, ROM recovery (ice, elevation, assisted flexion), gait with aids, quad or cuff activation. Milestone check at week 4.
Five sessions: progressive strengthening, weaning off aids (for TKR/THA), proprioception, return to light commute. Milestone check at week 8.
Five sessions: power, endurance, dynamic control, return-to-activity drills specific to your life (stairs, driving, desk work, light sport).
At weeks 4, 8, and 12 — ROM, strength (dynamometry), functional tests (sit-to-stand, single-leg hop battery for ACL). Shared with your surgeon.
Week 12 exit review with your surgeon. Return-to-work letter if needed, return-to-sport criteria list, maintenance programme for month 4–6.
Absolutely, and we will coordinate directly with them. Many patients prefer us because we are closer to their office, have later hours, or have continuity with one named PTRP. We send session notes to your surgeon weekly.
TKR and THA: typically day 3–7 post-op, after the first surgical check. ACL: usually day 7–10. Rotator cuff: day 3–14 depending on repair type. If your surgeon has a specific delay or precaution, we respect it.
Yes, on Maxicare, Medicard, Intellicare, ValuCare, Kaiser, and EastWest Healthcare. Post-surgical rehab is usually covered with an LOA from the operating surgeon. We handle the paperwork coordination.
Yes, especially for the first 2–3 sessions. Home programmes for TKR and THA involve transfer coaching and ice/elevation routines that are easier if the household understands them. We encourage it.
We do not accelerate the programme to catch up — that is how grafts fail and prostheses loosen. We extend phase 1, notify your surgeon, and look for what is blocking progress (swelling, pain-limited quad activation, fear avoidance). The plan moves when the joint is ready.
For a post-op knee, rarely in the first 6 weeks — the surgical milieu is still healing. For persistent effusion at week 8+, ultrasound-guided aspiration or a single corticosteroid may be appropriate, decided between us and your surgeon. See this recovery note on managing post-op effusion.
Bring your op notes. We will build the 12 weeks around them and coordinate with your surgeon from session one.
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