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TKR 10 week check up

Your knee sounds like my 1st knee which I hate to tell you, was swollen for some months. There are just some of us who have a very strong inflammatory response to this surgery according to my OS. Now the swelling diminished with each month so I could see progress but I was still icing the knee at 6 months if I had been real active that day. I also obsessed over every little twinge & creak the knee made & even my PT told me I was way too focused on it. You've been given a ton of advice that is all true, but I did do one thing no one has mentioned that I think made a big difference in how the knee felt. My PT used Kinesio tape on the knee & that helped with both the swelling & the tight feeling. At about week 10, with a totally healed incision, she would place the tape from the bottom of the incision to the top with about 75% tension. It seemed to lift the skin slightly & give me a bit more freedom of movement. Now my OS was less than thrilled with the tape on the incision line so we then placed a strip of tape on either side of the incision, but really close to it. I used this for about 8 weeks (you change the tape every 2-3 days) and even if it was only psychological it helped me. A different PT also used the kinesio tape after my BTHR. I swell a lot! This may or may not be something you want to try so I thought I'd tell you of my experience in case it might help you.
 
At 12 weeks plastic wrapping the knee at night is really helping stiffness but I don't have horrible swelling. The gentle warmth is very relaxing and I get up in the morning feeling great. I tried it earlier but it didn't help. If your incision is completely healed, you could try it to see if it helps or not. You don't wrap to keep it from swelling just to trap body heat.
 
Aww, Jana, I sense your frustration with the swelling and stiffness you are experiencing, especially when you have very good ROM. But truthfully sweetie, you can't hurry recovery, it honestly takes time. I understand you just want to be your active self again, but your body is not playing the same game as your "wants".

The stiffness and swelling is part of recovery and for some folk it does take longer.Maybe focus on the August holiday and the new grand baby you are getting. You have much to look forward to Jana - patience grasshopper x
 
Schoonie said:
Dear naynay30, First, Congrats on your new knee!! I am 4 months out on a LTKR and certainly am no expert, but I have done a lot of reflecting on my experience so far and especially about comments from physical therapists, nurses, etc. and I am finding that all the scare tactics and pushing should be ignored for the most part. All the things they scare you about like ROM, timetables etc will be ignored by me next time around (I still need RTKR). All the things I worried about and fretted over came in due time! I was so worried about tightness-gone, swelling-gone, walking without walker then cane-gone, using stairs-gone. With most of my major worries gone I find myself obsessed about whether my scar is the right color for 4 months and will it fade completely!!Your knee will heal and you will be able to do all the things you are so worried about! Everything you read here about your knee being on its own timetable is exactly right! I am so proud of what my knee has gone through and what it can now do!
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Schoonie-bravo for such an uplifting post! I totally agree that too much emphasis is placed on what degree of Rom people have and when. Patience and it will come. Thanks Schoonie! 6weeks out and plugging away
 
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Thanx guys!
I got in the car and drove around the neighborhood. Even tho stiff I can drive fine but can tell knee will be sore so will start of with short distances and to places where's there's not much walking involved. At least I'll have my freedom back !!!!
 
9 weeks out and I ventured out for the 1st time. 5 min drive to Walmart but walked around the store for and hour not realizing it! It felt good to get out and had fun in the baby dept. So much pink!( granddaughter due end of Aug.!) but I'm worn out so done for the day! Icing elevating and napping .!
 
Yep, gotta start with baby steps, short drives, lunch out, visiting friends. All these little activities are positive!
 
Just a little trip out and back is so good for the spirits! Wal-Mart's a big store to walk around!
 
Don't be surprised if you are swollen tomorrow. I did that at target one day and the next day my knee killed me. Take some pain meds tonight and ice a lot!!! It does boost the spirit getting out and about, though. Yeah naynay30!!
 
Yay Nay! So good for the spirits!! I'm sure you could lose track of time shopping for a grand baby!


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Good to hear you can drive again, Jana, and that you had a trip to Walmart. Getting out is good for the spirit too, as helps to relieve the "cabin fever".

After a trip like that, you are bound to feel worn out, because your body is still directing most of its energy towards healing your knee.
Energy drain for TKRs

I found that, for months, doing just one thing each day was enough.
 
Well I'm almost 9 wks out.
Knee is still swollen but I guess it's better than it was 4 wks ago..
Stiffness is still a big annoyance but I'm walking more . My ROM is 120, flex almost 0. I still have PT once a week but he's great and doesn't push me.
I gently stretch thruout the day and walk around the house every hour.
I ride the bike twice a day with no tension maybe twice a day . I ice and elevate all day long and all nite long with ice machine. That's why the swelling is so frustrating!
I drove for the 1st time yesterday to Walmart 5 min away but was in there over an hr and paid for it last nite. Knee hurt!
But it Felt so good to b out! Next time I'll use one of those ride on carts!
I am bored to death and alittle depressed! Hubbies a FF with a 2nd job do I'm home a lot and most friends work.
I'm in sunny SanDiego and the weather is gorgeous! I want to be outside at the beach or swimming at a friends or walking in the morning with my dog at the park.
I'm starting massage next week . Hoping to loosen the knee up.
I believe it will get better after reading everything on here but seems like my life is passing me by. Today is one of those "down" days and I know this will pass.
At 9 wks is swelling and stiffness still normal ???
 
Glad to hear you got out Jana. It does wonders for the spirits!!!

I will be 9 weeks post-op tomorrow and I still feel tight all the time. (That tight band feeling.) However, it is not as bad as it was and every week that goes by, I can tell I am a tiny bit better. My walking is improving little by little, however I still have a slight limp if I don't use the cane. I know that will improve with time. I still use the cane when I walk outside because I feel more stable.

When I drive anywhere, I take the ice pack with me and wrap it around my knee and that helps a lot. I went to the movies 2 times last week, because it is less than 1/4 mile from my house and the seats recline so I can put my foot up the whole time. I even bought an ice pack with me inside to use. Getting out makes such a difference!
 
Thanx for the reply! Sounds like we r in the same healing process! I would love to go to a movie but none of the theaters close enough have recycling seats. I too have a ice pack that wraps around knew with Velcro. I wear it everywhere and always carry ice with me.
What r U doing for exercise?
 
Hi Jana,

I still go to PT 2 times a week and I do exercises at home every day as well. However, I am allowing myself to be more gentle with myself in the past few weeks after reading the replies here and that seems to help. I was initially doing the PT 3 times a day like I was instructed by the PT and MD and I felt like it took up a huge portion of my day and I did not feel it was making me get better any faster and in fact, may have made my recovery slower as it was aggravating my knee and tissues.. So now, I concentrate on the heel slides and other exercises that the PT taught me that do not hurt and do them as I feel up to it. Plus, I walk around the house quite a bit on a daily basis. I am still icing and elevating quite a bit. When I do too much, like I did yesterday (pulling out weeds for 1 1/2 hours), my knee feels it later and I have trouble sleeping. I still have quite a bit of that hypersensitivity around the side of my knee that drives my bonkers sometimes and prevents me from falling asleep. I have to remember to ice before going to sleep every night. That seems to help me sleep better.
 
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Nine weeks on Tuesday, here. What you're experiencing sounds pretty normal. My swelling is going down, but is still there at the top of and above my knee. Stiffness varies throughout the day, but it never feels loose and free-moving.


Jean

LTKR (Stryker Triathlon): 21 April 2015
Right Knee Arthroscopy: 25 July 2006
Left Knee Arthroscopy: 10 February 2005
 
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