From Decades of Chronic Pain to a Life Beyond Medications

After nearly two decades of chronic pain, pain management, and reliance on medication, Lisa found life-changing relief through a minimally invasive peripheral nerve stimulator (PNS) and today, medication is no longer part of her daily life.

For much of her adult life, Lisa lived with chronic knee pain that steadily took a toll on her mobility, independence, and quality of life. In her 20s, she learned she had significant cartilage loss in both knees. Hoping to delay a partial or total knee replacement at such a young age, she underwent a tibial osteotomy on both legs. But lasting relief never came.

Instead, the years that followed were marked by persistent pain, limited mobility, and an increasing dependence on prescription medication. By her 50s, Lisa needed her first total knee replacement. As a realtor and associate broker whose work required constant movement—from walking properties to climbing stairs—she pushed through the pain as best she could. Still, everyday life was becoming harder to manage. 

Lisa longed to once again go on hikes and get back to the gym to lift weights. The pain was not only physically exhausting, but emotionally draining as well. Instead, the pain had become a constant presence; physically exhausting, emotionally draining, and increasingly discouraging.

A few years after her first knee replacement, Lisa needed a second total knee replacement on her other knee. Although the surgery initially helped, the relief did not last. Before long, persistent discomfort and limited mobility once again made even routine activities a challenge.

Repeat X-rays showed she did not need revision surgery, but that only deepened her frustration. She was still hurting, still relying on pain medication, and still searching for answers. 

The medications left her feeling foggy and unsteady, and after so many years of procedures, appointments, and pain management, it began to feel as though this was simply the way life would be. At one point, one of her doctors compared her to “an old man on the porch complaining of war wounds.” 

Everything changed when Lisa was referred to Dr. Yehuda “Yudi” Kerbel, with Orthopedic Surgery and Rehabilitation Associates (OSRA) at Redeemer Health. For the first time in a long time, she felt heard. 

Dr. Kerbel really listened and took the time to understand what Lisa had been living with. He introduced her to a treatment option no one had previously offered: a peripheral nerve stimulator.

For patients who continue to struggle with chronic pain even after knee replacement, especially those who feel they have run out of options, PNS can offer a different path forward. The minimally invasive treatment works by targeting the nerves responsible for transmitting pain signals, helping reduce pain without the need for more major surgery.

After a successful lidocaine injection test, Lisa underwent a trial PNS implant, as an outpatient procedure. It took only 5 to 10 minutes, required no post-op downtime, and provided immediate relief. After years of pain and long-term reliance on medication, the results were almost hard to believe. Lisa knew right away she wanted to move forward with the permanent implant.

Just 10 days later, she received the permanent PNS, also as an outpatient procedure, which took about 10 to 15 minutes. Once it was in place, she again experienced immediate relief, with no post-op recovery limitations.

Today, Lisa no longer needs pain medication. After nearly two decades of pain management, she is off her pain meds completely. She has returned to the gym and is once again lifting 225 to 250 pounds on the leg press machines. She and her husband are back to hiking, with plans to visit every waterfall in a Pennsylvania hiking guidebook she recently purchased.

For Lisa, the treatment did more than ease her pain. It gave her a life that was no longer centered around pain, medication, and limitations. It gave her restored movement, clarity, confidence, and hope.

After experiencing such meaningful relief, Lisa is now continuing her care with PNS therapy to help manage diabetic neuropathy in her feet. After getting PNS on both ankles, her neuropathic pain is now gone as well. 

Lisa says the treatment has completely changed her life. And for others living with chronic pain after knee replacement, especially those who have been told there are no good options left, her story is a powerful reminder that healing may still be possible.

Dr. Yehuda (Yudi) Kerbel is with Orthopedic Surgery and Rehabilitation Associates (OSRA) at Redeemer Health. To learn more, or to schedule an appointment, call 215-745-4050 or visit redeemerhealth.org/advanced-orthopedic-care.