TKR 4 months behind me and stretching forward

[Living Bones]

Hello, this is John Tinger. I had a full knee replacement done on June 25th, 2020 at New England Baptist Hospital. Like most of you I have experienced ups and downs on my road to recovery. Despite it all, I am very thankful to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has abundantly supplied me with much grace, strength, and stamina to press on in the face of much pain, discouragement, and anxiety. I also give much thanks to my wife, brother-in-law, family members, and all my brothers and sisters in the church who have prayed, and are still praying for my full recovery.
God bless to all and may my joining this forum bring much blessings to all I connect with on this road to recovery!
Best Regards, John

 

[Living Bones]

I believe Jamie is my moderator. How do I message her to ask a question and/or should I just connect with a moderator who is currently online.
Either way I need instructions how to connect to moderators and others directly to ask questions and chat. Thank you, John

 

[Jaycey]

@Living Bones Welcome to BoneSmart! To connect to anyone on the board just scroll down to the empty box at the end of a page and start typing (as you did in the 2 posts above). Ask any questions and our members will be happy to offer you advice and input.

Which knee did you have replaced? We will get the information added to your signature for you.

 

[Roy Gardiner]

And here is your general reading

Knee Recovery: The Guidelines

1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary

2. Control discomfort:

rest​

elevate​

ice​

take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​

don't overwork.​

3. Do what you want to do BUT

a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you​

b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​

4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these

the BoneSmart view on exercise​

BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy​

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this

Activity progression for TKRs​

6. Access these pages on the website

Oral And Intravenous Pain Medications​

Wound Care In Hospital​

The Recovery articles:

The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart​

Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?​

Energy drain for TKRs​

Elevation is the key​

Ice to control pain and swelling​

Heel slides and how to do them properly​

Chart representation of TKR recovery​

Healing: how long does it take?​

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it​

Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?​

There are also some cautionary articles here

Myth busting: no pain, no gain​

Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR​

Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds​

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery.

While members may create as many threads as they like in a majority of BoneSmart's forums, we ask that each member have only one recovery thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review history before providing advice.

 

[Celle]

I believe Jamie is my moderator. How do I message her to ask a question and/or should I just connect with a moderator who is currently online.

Hi John, and

You don't have an allocated moderator.

Just post here in your own thread what you want to ask or what you would like done and one of our staff will deal with it.

 

[Living Bones]

Thank you Jacey, Roy, and Celle for your responses and welcoming me to Bonesmart.
And thank you Schnautzer for sharing your experiences.
I have to testify that the 1st time I got on the exercise bike at physical therapy I experienced alot of throbbing pain and had to stop and rest several times throughout my 10 min. session. As time went on I got stronger each week and now can do 10 minutes fairly easily. It is always hard at 1st, but after a few minutes my knee loosens up and works pretty well.

For your information it was my left knee that was replaced.

My question is what can I do to help reduce the inflammation. I was thinking diet can help, elevating, and icing after a workout??
My knee is always warm to the touch and I'm concerned that it also tightens up on me when sitting for long periods of time

 

[Pumpkin]

My question is what can I do to help reduce the inflammation. I was thinking diet can help, elevating, and icing after a workout??

Icing and elevation after a workout or any other activitys will calm your knee down. Eating well is always good for your health.

My knee is always warm to the touch and I'm concerned that it also tightens up on me when sitting for long periods of time

"Tight band" feeling across the front of my knee
Tightness after sitting is also known as the Pain: Movie sign in TKR.

 

[Sara61]

@Living Bones The warmth you are feeling in your knee is very normal at this stage in recovery, inflammation could be a sign that you might be doing too much, just try to be patient and try not to "run before you learn to walk" the tight band feeling with time will go away it may take several months, but with plenty of rest, elevation and frequent icing you will notice a big improvement, but also remember to move around from time to time and gently do your exercises. I found walking the best of all, concentrating on the heel to toe movement and slightly extending your stride.
I recently celebrated my one year post surgery and am witness to the fact it does get better, so much so I rarely think about my new knee at all

 

[Living Bones]

Thank you Pumpkin for sharing. I read the links you sent on "Tight band" and Movie sign in TKR, and certainly will apply the advice that was outlined.

 

[Living Bones]

Amen Sara, I am hoping for that day to come when my knee functions normally and I don't need to think about it, except to nourish it and all my body parts with good healthy meals. I will certainly take your advice. Thank you so much for your words of encouragement.

 

[Living Bones]

I read a poster from the "Arthritis Foundation" that for every pound of body weight I lose, it will reduce 4 pounds of weight on my knees.
How can this be?

 

[Living Bones]

I have ostioarthirtis in my right knee and eventually will need that knee replaced as well. (Probably within next year).
2 weeks ago I received a steroid cortisone shot in my right knee because it was giving me a lot of pain. It was also hindering my walking exercises for my left knee. I have been virtually pain free in my right knee until today when I went for a walk I began to feel a little uncomfortable.
I realize that this shot will probably wear off eventually and I will need another one or two before I have surgery.
Another option I have considered is a gel lubricant injection call "Gel One"
Can you please share your thoughts on this injection and if I can benefit from it?

 

[Dizzy]

I have had both the cortisone shots and the gel shots in my knees. As you said, they work to relieve the pain for a time, but a some point, surgery sometimes becomes the only solution.

 

[Sara61]

I had hyaluronic acid injected into my knee twice yearly ( 3 injections 2 weeks apart ) for nearly 4 years prior to my knee surgery, towards the end the effect was minimal therefore surgery was needed, however they were a enormous help prior especially in the colder winter months. I have an appointment in November to start injections again on my other knee as it is still to early to operate on it, I am looking forward to the relief that it brings xx

 

[allin1]

I read a poster from the "Arthritis Foundation" that for every pound of body weight I lose, it will reduce 4 pounds of weight on my knees.
How can this be?

I'm not an expert and can't vouch for the numbers, but I've heard some similar statistic. I believe they are talking about the force on your knee as you walk or go up and down stairs. Somehow those forces are magnified as you walk, or god forbid, run!

Edit. Did some research, and this seems like a pretty good explanation:

Why weight matters when it comes to joint pain - Harvard Health

If you're having the occasional twinge of joint pain when you go for a walk or climb stairs, or you're worried about arthritis because a parent had it, one step toward prevention is to check your w...

www.health.harvard.edu

" Let's look at weight and your knees. When you walk across level ground, the force on your knees is the equivalent of 1½ times your body weight. That means a 200-pound man will put 300 pounds of pressure on his knees with each step. Add an incline, and the pressure is even greater: the force on each knee is two to three times your body weight when you go up and down stairs, and four to five times your body weight when you squat to tie a shoelace or pick up an item you dropped. "