After knee surgery
Elevate the whole leg on one plane; support the heel or calf, not the back of the knee.
One slope from thigh to heel. Ankle higher than the knee. Nothing tucked behind the joint.
- Lie on your back.
- Put the whole leg on a firm slope.
- Heel on the pad.
- Nothing tucked behind the knee.
- Lock a height that is comfortable. Seo et al. (2020) compared 30 cm vs 10 cm after ankle ORIF: no difference in swelling; the higher position was less comfortable.
UCSF: support under the heel, not behind the knee. Brown Health (2023): rolled towel or pillow behind the calf. The LYXOMED wedge is one plane from thigh to heel, with two locked heights: 10.63 in or 7.87 in.
Do not place a pillow behind the knee after ACL reconstruction. UCSF Orthopaedic Institute
UCSF Orthopaedic Institute. Pre and Post-Operative Instructions: ACL Reconstruction.
Verified 27 Aug 2026 from the original PDF.
Do not sleep with a pillow underneath the knee after TKA. University Orthopedics / Brown Health, 2023
University Orthopedics, Inc., Adult Reconstruction Division. Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) POST-OP REHABILITATION PROTOCOL. 2023. Hosted by Brown Health.
Verified 27 Aug 2026 from the original PDF.
Full extension from day 1 is a pillar of accelerated ACL rehab. Shelbourne & Nitz, 1990
Shelbourne KD, Nitz P. Accelerated rehabilitation after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Am J Sports Med. 1990;18(3):292–299.
Verified 27 Aug 2026 from PubMed.
Pillow-under-knee rest is associated with arthrogenic muscle inhibition after knee arthroplasty. Le Guen et al., 2025
Le Guen A, Parratte S, Marot V, Pailhé R, Ben-Roummane H, Bérard É, Cavaignac É. Arthrogenic muscle inhibition: A prevalent issue in knee arthroplasty. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2025.
Verified 27 Aug 2026 from the journal page.
30 cm vs 10 cm after ankle ORIF: no swelling difference; high elevation was less comfortable. Seo et al., 2020
Seo DK, Kang HW, Ahn DS, Song JS. Effect of Leg Elevation Height on Reduced Swelling of Patients of Postoperative Acute Ankle Fractures. J Korean Foot Ankle Soc. 2020;24(1):31–36.
Verified 27 Aug 2026 from the journal page.
FAQ
Whole leg on one plane. Height is comfort, not a dose.
- How do you elevate a leg after knee surgery?
- Elevate the whole leg on one plane; support the heel or calf, not the back of the knee. Lie on the back. Heel on the pad. Nothing tucked behind the knee.
- How high should the leg be?
- Lock a height that is comfortable. Seo et al. (2020) compared 30 cm vs 10 cm after ankle ORIF: no difference in swelling; the higher position was less comfortable.
- Single or Double?
- Single (12.99 in, ASIN B0G1M7BSX5) for one limb. Double (16.9 in, ASIN B0H253B1SN) when both need the same height.