i never get up early enough to post on here, but i wanted to say for about the last week that there are not many people who don't have to go up and downstairs after a knee replacement - most people have bedrooms/bathrooms upstairs and so will need to go up and down a few times a day. The physios really do make sure you can do the appropriate amount of stairs before you leave hospital, which is why the person you are talking to seems so blasé about it - nearly every knee replacement op they do means the person needs to be taught how to do stairs. I myself found that even though the knee hurt from the op after, it was easier for me to get upstairs after than it was before