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TKR 3 weeks post op

@cait1981 glad you found the site, it has proved much valuable information for me during my recovery. Everything that everyone told you is good, valuable information.
We probably all experienced the dry, scaly skin. Hope you can return to the water. But like others said your knee is on it's own schedule and there is no rushing the healing, recovering process. I went back to work at about a little short of 10 wks, it's been a uphill battle. Even tho you may have a lot of sitting time, your leg may swell from being down. Also exhaustion, I sleep good at night, but by the end of the work day I was ready for icing and elevating. So even tho right now 9wks seems like a good amount of time to be recovered, don't be dishearted when your not there, I totally believe at this pt, it will be a yr before I feel 100 percent, I am seeing improvements all the time, but I am not where I want to be or feel I should be.
Take care, will be watching your updates, aches and pains and numbness all are normal at your pt in time and for much after, I still have a very numb knee area, recently had infection and needed treatment, couldn't feel any poking around by the dr, when cleaning and dressing wound.
I also can have trouble with cheap jewelry, so far I am not concerned about it being a allegy to metals that will cause me issues with my knee replacement. Plenty of good advice and reading on here.
 
Thank you zzevi x

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I have another question about preventing DVT - I wore the stockings for the first 3 weeks but then found I couldn't sleep in them so stopped. On my discharge from hospital (day 10 post op) I was prescribed 15 Xarelto 1 per day as I cant take asprin and ran out 2 days ago - no repeats. I move my feet around a lot doing foot pumps throughout the day and I walk around the house doing small tasks and venture out every second day to the store or for a coffee so i am exercising mildly. I also started taking Krill oil yesterday as I was told it's a gentle blood thinner and wondering if these things are enough at almost 4 weeks post op or if I should go see the Dr for more Xarelto or another blood thinner - any advice is appreciated :)

Cait
LTKR
27th October 2016

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I can't give you an absolute guarantee that you won't get a DVT but, usually, once you are getting more active, the risk of getting one decreases.

I think that your surgeon would have prescribed more Xarelto if he/she wanted you to continue taking it, but you should phone his/her rooms to check that. Don't just take my advice.
 
Thank you Celle

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I took off the TEDs at about three weeks, because they were so uncomfortable. I actually only wore one on the unoperated leg and a wrap on the operated leg because the swelling made the TED cut into the back of my knee and leave open sores. I also stopped the Lovenox shots per my surgeons orders and started taking an full strength aspirin a day for two more weeks at that time. I did lots of ankle pumps and short bouts of walking frequently throughout the day between icing and elevating and I did fine.
 
Thank you Ronsgirl. I'm having one of the not so good days today - well it's 3.30am so I hope the coming day will be better. I've been out of pain meds (Endone) for 2 days now and thought I would okay on panadol osteo but I can't sleep, anything touching my scar feels terrible, I have an upset tummy and seem to have developed an aching back. I'll go see my GP tomorrow and see if he will give me some more pain meds and blood thinners

Cait
LTKR
27th October 2016

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You can also ask for something for nausea too. Zofran was very helpful for me.
 
Did you phone your surgeon and ask about the blood thinners, Cait? You were on Xarelto for a month and he might consider that was long enough.

If you take Panadol in the correct, therapeutic dose, it can work quite well. That is 1,000 mg 4-6 hourly (four times a day) to a safe total of 4,000 mg in 24 hours. Panadol only stays in the blood stream for about 4-6 hours, so you need to take it regularly, to keep up the levels in your blood. It doesn't work as well if you take it on an "as needed" basis.

Anyway, do let us know what your GP says.
 
Cait - hope you get more pain meds. I have always been someone who shunned them and just sent a note to my OS that stepping down from oxycodone to hydrocodone was not working for me. This forum has helped me be more comfortable with feeling okay about insisting on pain relief. You cannot "will" this away (well, I can't).

Re your numbness, nervesnare funny things. I have odd spots of numbness from surgeries 15 years ago, so I fully expect to have some residual numbness. Makes it a lot easier to get tattoos in that area!!

Re the blood thinner, I did two injections a day for 10 days, and that was it. I don't sit still much, up walking at least once an hour, leg exercises every couple of hours, so I think the risk is fairly low for me.
 
@cait1981

Hello and welcome!

Re: numbness: I had a surgery 22 years ago on my left knee and I have had a numb patch over the tuberosity since then. In fact, it's still there after the TKR. (It's a fun parlor trick though!) I do have numbness on the outer side of my knee, but I'm thinking that will go away the further I get out from the surgery. I also have numbness in my left forearm after it was repaired from a car accident. It is full-blown neuropathy, and it won't get better because the nerves were severed. It's a very different feeling from how my knee feels though.

Re: blood thinners: I did not have TED stocking after surgery, but they did wrap my legs in ACE bandages for a day in the hospital. I also had the automatic leg "squeezers" for a day or two as well. I was on Lovenox and gave myself shots two times a day for 15 days. I have done nothing else for clots and I haven't thrown one yet! For my RTKR, I believe I will be doing Xarelto since the Lovenox is made from pork products (which I didn't find out until the last day of shots!) and I do not consume pork.

I hope you are doing well!
Jen
 
Thank you Celle,AC-DC Jen and ks 1960. I just left the Drs and he was fine about giving me another prescription for endone so 20 more tablets - I dont think they can give repeats on that medication. He also said dont worry about more blood thinners now I'm moving around everyday. I had just 2 hours sleep last night so I feel more relieved after seeing him this morning - he thinks my scar is looking good though advised as people on BS did, not to use creams or swim until those last few stubborn scabs fall off. Im only 3.5 weeks post op so I keep telling myself its going to get much better over time. Thanks for the great advice as always x

Cait
LTKR
27th October 2016

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Last edited by a moderator:
cait1981 said:
I also started taking Krill oil yesterday
Click to expand...
Did your OS OK the use of an supplement---sometimes, the supplements can interfere with meds---if I take supplemtns, I always talk to my MD about them.

cait1981 said:
anything touching my scar feels terrible,
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This is normal---that hyper-sensitivity will slowly subside, and the numbness will also slowly go away, as well. you may feel some "Zingers" later on as the nerves re-connect themselves together.

cait1981 said:
had just 2 hours sleep last night so I feel more relieved after seeing him this morning - he thinks my scar is looking good though advised as people on BS did not to use creams or swim until those last few stubborn scabs fall off.
Click to expand...
Sleep[ issues are normal and, unfortunately, to be expected. Just nap when you can and remember that sleep issues are something that we have all gone through---next to the length of my BTKR recovery, sleep issues were #2 on the hit list.

Be patient and do not try to rush things---this recovery can take linger than we are prepared for and longer than we would like it to be---and the same goes with your scar---let it fully heal before you put anything on it or go swimming.
 
Thanks referee 54. I get sharp random stabbing pains in the numb areas - is that the zingers you spoke of? Also I did not think to ask my OS about supplements so will do that today - thanks for alerting me to this:)

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My surgeon insists that there is NO submersion for 6 weeks. Ask your surgeon before swimming!


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6 weeks - wow - oh well it will be worth the wait :)


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You are correct Cait. Here in Australia no repeats are given for Endone.
 
Yay I did my first unassisted leg lift so then did 4 more lol. I'm almost 5 weeks post op so this might seem a small thing to some but my thigh muscle has been useless since surgery so I am happy. I have been following BoneSmart advice and stopped PT a few weeks back and just doing lots of walking, stretching, stationary bike, ice and elevate with little noticeable progress in my bend which has been at 90 to 95 degrees since leaving hospital so I get excited about any small improvement - I think flexion may have improved a little recently but not sure as I cant measure it :)
I am a little worried as I see my OS in 2 weeks - he referred me to the PT to improve my flexion so I am hoping he is pleased with where I'm at on the day of the appointment. I'm still taking paracetamol every 4 hours and 1 to 2 x 5mg oxycodone a day depending on pain level but I think my GP will stop this soon - does anyone know if panadeine Forte is a suitable step down from oxycodone as I doubt just paracetamol will be enough?

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Tramadol is a medication that is used as a step down drug. When used with 1000 mg Tylenol every 6 hours it is good at relieving pain. BTW a big congrats on the leg lifts!

Most OS are happy with 90 degree flexion at your stage and will not consider doing a MUA.
 
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