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TKR 3 days in

I kind of thought that so im going to cut back in the daytime.
 
I was 6 weeks on dec25. I saw my pt on the 24th. I left with 121 rom. My 1st tkr is 125. I was happy as was she. She says it's hard to get much better. My problem now is I have about 5 different pains around my knee cap. One of them feels like a major cut and it seems to get better and then i do something to aggravate it and then it hurts. I can walk with no limp at the pt office. I'm thinking of reducing my exercises and sticking to walking until these glitches disappear. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
I'm thinking of reducing my exercises and sticking to walking until these glitches disappear
Hey...that sounds like a great idea. Give it a try! The major cut sensation is likely related to healing tissues, inflammation, or overuse, so your plan sounds like a good one. Make use of ICE / ELEVATION also for pain relief and to reduce any inflammation.

Small sensory nerve fibers are cut with the incision. It can cause temporary sensations that normally resolve over a period of six months to one year post op. While healing you may experience sensations of tingling, pins and needles, itching, burning and even the feeling of a minor electrical shock. These are usually good signs that the nerves are spontaneously firing through the regeneration process.

Hang in there. You are only about six weeks into an often year long process. Lots of good things to come as I'm guessing you recall from your 2018 TKR. :)

Have a nice weekend, Ggh!
@Ggh
 
 
Walking and slowly resuming activities of daily life has worked for many BoneSmart members.
Those glitches are likely your soft tissues -mostly muscles and tendons - adjusting to your new post op structure, and as @Layla notes, some may be nerves waking up.

As long as you're bearing weight well, no fever, redness, severe heat at the knee you should find "tincture of time" the best medicine!
 
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Thanx. All in all great. Appetite is still off as is energy level but at our age naps are great. But they are getting better. We have hobby farm animals and rough terrain. I think I may be overdoing it however I am careful. I've started on exercise bike 2 weeks ago. Leg presses will start this week. Thanx.
 
I'm thinking of reducing my exercises and sticking to walking until these glitches disappear. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
I think you'll find that you will do just find in your recovery with just walking around and doing your normal daily activities. For most of us aggressive PT does more harm than good.
 
@Ggh
As active as you are in daily life, I would defer leg presses and similar strength building exercises for quite a while.
Muscles need two months to heal and tendons and ligaments need three months.
It's possible to develop quite a case of tendonitis overtaxing these structural supports too early.
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Just an update. I was having some nagging pains in about 5 places and one in particular when I got up from bed I couldn't put weight on it and the other felt like a major cut inside so I took about a week off all my exercises. It seemed these spots wouldn't heal. I know they were areas where the different surgical procedures were. It made a big difference. My rom last week was 121 so I was comfortable with not exercising. The nagging pains are almost gone. I'm down to 1 oxy in the evening and 4 tylenol 3s through the day and I suspect I won't renew them again. Thanx for the above chart for recovery timeliness. I see the surgeon tuesday which is 8 weeks and I expect to be done with him then. Starting to feel human again and it's nice being done with the cane.
 
Oooh!!! Walking away from the cane is a great milestone!!! :yes!: it's these small ones that add up to eventually suddenly realizing you haven't thought about your knee all day!

I'm so glad reducing activity/exercise has had a beneficial effect on your recovery.

Best wishes for 2025!
 
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Great progress, Ggh!
Thanks for sharing an update. Feels good to set the assistive devices aside, one by one.
Best wishes for your appointment on Tuesday, let us know how it goes.
Happy New Year!
@Ggh
 
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It seems my great recovery has stalled. It's not horrible but annoying. If I do all my exercises and mini farm chores I get sore. I ride an exercise bike 3 days a week and mild knee presses. The muscle just above my knee is a little weak. If I walk a lot I still have a feeling of an incision after a while. It doesn't get too hot just aches and can be hard to get good rom. I do get great rom on the bike and when I'm relaxed in bed. I'm still just 10 weeks post op so I'm hoping it's just a bump in the road. At least I'm retired with 2 part time jobs and I may not go back to one of them.
 
@Ggh at not yet three months post op I believe you've "stalled" by consistently over working your knee.

At 12 weeks, tendons and ligaments have just done their initial healing. If you've been doing "all" your exercises plus leg presses on top of chores, please rethink this. Twelve weeks is normally where we recommend just considering starting light strengthening exercises for those who insist on it.
Most people do better holding off longer, especially when their daily chores include housework and yardwork. For me, a bit of semisquatting twice daily to scoop the cat litter plus deeper squats once or twice a week weeding and pruning in the garden were the way I strengthened my muscles starting at 12 weeks and continuing for several months before getting to the gym for serious rehab.

When I had overdone things on new knees - which remains a very easy risk well into six months post op - I reduced exercise or activity by 1/3, alternated exercise and non exercise days (just walking and very light chores on non-exercise days), and made sure to elevate "toes over nose" with icing for 45 minutes two to three times daily. Once things were stable, I increased the exercise or activity in small increments.

It's also helpful, when doing exercises, to break them up into a smaller number of reps done throughout the day.
 
Hi. Ggh, Thanks for the update!
You sound like a hard working dynamo. No grass growing under your feet. :wink:
Thankfully you're only feeling annoyed rather than in pain. I agree with, mendogal, in regard to your level of activity. It sounds like a lot at this point and we don't want you to be disappointed in your recovery. It would be nice if you could give yourself a break without feeling guilty, or unproductive. You deserve some time to heal after the trauma you so recently endured. I am wondering if your farm chores and the activities of daily living are enough until you've healed awhile longer. Something to consider.
It's amazing that you're handling all of this and overall you seem to be doing remarkably well, but you deserve a well earned pause. :)
@Ggh
 
Thanks to both. I actually have been trying to balance all my activities. I slowed down my exercises because of my walking out back. I probably am guilty of trying a little too much. I did take 6 days last week and did very little for a break. I'll cut down on walking a little and work on squats instead. Thanx.
 
I'll cut down on walking a little and work on squats instead.
You are still awfully early in recovery to be doing squats. Please wait until at least the 3-month mark. As mendogal noted above, it takes those soft tissues in your leg a minimum of 12 weeks to heal from the trauma of surgery -- and squats too soon can re-traumatize them. Pushing those soft tissues before they are healed is not going to advance your recovery.
 
Your body is giving you plenty of signals…..it’s up to you to respond correctly. If you’re cutting down on one activity, please don’t try to replace it with something else. With your small farm, you are getting plenty of good exercise there. You likely don’t need any additional formal exercises at this point. And, it’s still important to watch the level of home chores as well. When you have these pains, it’s your body’s message to you that it’s not ready for that level of activity just yet.

Many times people who are seeing a physical therapist do so only 2 or 3 days a week. I suspect you are out doing your farm chores on a daily basis. Your knee does not have time to rest and recovery in between these workouts. And, no matter how it may feel to you, this type of walking, bending, lifting, etc. over uneven ground can be quite punishing to a new knee. If your knee hurts, that’s the signal for at least one day off from any exercise. It is a balance and everyone overdoes things now and then. Just keep trying to keep those overdoing days to a minimum.
 
Ok thanx. I'll break from the xtras and just do my household things. Possibly ride the exercise bike. There is no real rush this time as I am retired other than a couple small part time jobs and I may not return to one. Time is on my side. I think it's just a little difficult this time getting used to passing time knowing I don't have to go back to work and it's winter so getting out and about isn't as easy. Thanx.
 
Possibly ride the exercise bike
Using a bike to gain ROM is pretty simple:
  • Set the bike to zero resistance
  • Set the saddle low enough so that a single rotation is a challenge; difficult but not painful. When a rotation becomes easy right from the start, lower the saddle a max of 1cm.
  • Gently turn the pedals, through discomfort but without pain.
  • Continue until the knee is 'warmed up' and the rotation is now easy, or for 2 minutes, whichever is the shorter time.
  • Repeat several/many times a day, but don't go mad. Diminishing returns will apply; my guess is that half a dozen reps would be enough
  • Do not pedal fast or for more than 2 minutes, this is a stretching exercise, not training.
  • And if you get any pain or swelling in the 24 hours after doing this, cut it down until you don't
Here is a bit more chat and some pix and how 'healing' and 'training' are different
 
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