TKR 6 weeks post op and doing well

[Mimi2u]

Mimi. Are you feeling a little better now that you have bonesmart ??? I hope so. We are in this together. Same week for surgery. Keep on reading. Best of luck

Yes, I am feeling much calmer about it after finding this forum and reading others posts. I know we will do just fine and we can compare notes and offer encouragement to each other and the other Februrary Valentines as we go along! Bring it on.

 

[icep707]

Thats great. I cant wait. Although I had a weird dream last night. I dreamed that I was post op and asleep. But couldnt sleep ( you know the stories) . Restlessness , pain etc. It was very vivid. Woke up grabbing my knee ! And sweating, WHEW! I guess I could wait just a bit more

 

[Mimi2u]

Thats great. I cant wait. Although I had a weird dream last night. I dreamed that I was post op and asleep. But couldnt sleep ( you know the stories) . Restlessness , pain etc. It was very vivid. Woke up grabbing my knee ! And sweating, WHEW! I guess I could wait just a bit more

Just remember to take your prescribed pain meds and you will be ok. I just want to get the surgery over with and get on to recovery, don't you?

 

[jeano]

icep and Mimi, it is just the greatest feeling in the world to start ticking off the milestones of recovery and realizing that your knee is getting BETTER instead of worse. For me at least the "healing" pain has been much less dispiriting than the "this knee is never going to be right again" pain of osteoarthritis. And you will be sooooo happy to discover that your knee is stable. Not having to worry constantly that I might fall down like a ton of bricks alone has been worth the price.

 

[Mimi2u]

icep and Mimi, it is just the greatest feeling in the world to start ticking off the milestones of recovery and realizing that your knee is getting BETTER instead of worse. For me at least the "healing" pain has been much less dispiriting than the "this knee is never going to be right again" pain of osteoarthritis. And you will be sooooo happy to discover that your knee is stable. Not having to worry constantly that I might fall down like a ton of bricks alone has been worth the price.

Thanks for the encouragement, Jeano. I just want to get it over with. BTW, did you have a Cyro-cuff or Polar Ice machine at home? I am thinking of purchasing one or the other and wanted to know if you think it is worthwhile. Thanks!

 

[jeano]

I have the Breg Polar Care Cube--it was on my leg when I woke up in recovery and came home with me. If your hospital has a similar arrangement keep after them to keep putting ice in it--they were sloppy about this at our local hospital. It has been a Godsend. I am still using it daily. (Its a cold day so I'm not running it this minute but have used it this morning.) They are pricey on Amazon ( I checked out of curiosity, wondering just how much insurance had forked over for it) but worth it in my opinion. If your knee is like mine you will go through a lot of ice, so MAKE SURE your home icemaker is up to the task, since you will be melting that ice with your nice hot knee 24/7 for a while at lest. We had to buy bag ice every couple of days for several weeks so we could also have ice for us. I'd buy some ice if you have room in your freezer (or on your back porch depending on your climate) anyway since icemakers can go on the fritz. You just dont want to run out. For me ice and elevation have been MORE important than opiates for pain reliief. I've only taken a half of a lortab so far in 2014, but I've run through some serious ice.

Nowadays, a little over 2 months out, I can fill it in the morning early, ice several times during the day, go to work at 4PM and still have a low enough temperature in it for it to work for me even though its midnight and the ice has long since melted. I would buy stock in Breg in a heartbeat. If your knee is aching because you've been out and about or went at PT too enthusiastically you will just sigh with relief as soon as that cold water starts circulating in the wrap.

I know others dote on the Cryo Cuff but I loooooove my Polar Cube. I have even fallen asleep with it going.

 

[Mimi2u]

I have the Breg Polar Care Cube--it was on my leg when I woke up in recovery and came home with me. If your hospital has a similar arrangement keep after them to keep putting ice in it--they were sloppy about this at our local hospital. It has been a Godsend. I am still using it daily. (Its a cold day so I'm not running it this minute but have used it this morning.) They are pricey on Amazon ( I checked out of curiosity, wondering just how much insurance had forked over for it) but worth it in my opinion. If your knee is like mine you will go through a lot of ice, so MAKE SURE your home icemaker is up to the task, since you will be melting that ice with your nice hot knee 24/7 for a while at lest. We had to buy bag ice every couple of days for several weeks so we could also have ice for us. I'd buy some ice if you have room in your freezer (or on your back porch depending on your climate) anyway since icemakers can go on the fritz. You just dont want to run out. For me ice and elevation have been MORE important than opiates for pain reliief. I've only taken a half of a lortab so far in 2014, but I've run through some serious ice.

Nowadays, a little over 2 months out, I can fill it in the morning early, ice several times during the day, go to work at 4PM and still have a low enough temperature in it for it to work for me even though its midnight and the ice has long since melted. I would buy stock in Breg in a heartbeat. If your knee is aching because you've been out and about or went at PT too enthusiastically you will just sigh with relief as soon as that cold water starts circulating in the wrap.

I know others dote on the Cryo Cuff but I loooooove my Polar Cube. I have even fallen asleep with it going.

What is the difference between your Polar Cube and a Cyro Cuff? I am on Medicare and have supplemental insurance, so I assume Ins will pay for whatever device I choose, right? What if my hospital doesn't use a device like this on my knee after surgery? I saw a post from someone that said their Hospital didn't use them. Although, I can't imagine them not using it when it is so important to keep the knee iced after surgery and in recovery. I see them for sale on Amazon.com but then I don't know if I could get reimbursed for it. So glad to hear you are able to go to work at only 2 months out from your surgery! I am having a TKR so don't think I'd be able to go to work after 2 months...I sell real estate, so I have to be able to go up and down stairs fairly easily and can't be using a cane. Can anyone give me any input on time frame for me possibly being able to work? What kind of work do you do? Thanks so much for responding to my question.

 

[Jozilla]

Welcome. Your OS should know if the hospital uses them. If they do not use them see if your doctor will write a script that you can bring to a medical device store or pharmacy and then it should be covered by insurance. Mine is a Donjoy polar ice machine and I love it!

 

[jeano]

Some of the Cryo Cuffs are gravity fed, meaning no pump to circulate the ice water. You have to hoist those up into the air to refill the cuff when the ice water warms up. They also make ones with a little motor integrated into the lid, which is essentially the same concept as the Breg. The gravity fed contraptions seem appealing in a low tech sort of way but for obvious reasons would be tedious to worthless if you were going to be icing for hours or trying to get a nap or a night's sleep while icing (unless you wanted to make lifting the cooler part of your upper body workout). In a quick look on Amazon, the motorized Cryocuffs seemed a little pricier than the polar care cube, but about the same price as the Polar care kodiak, presumably a bigger model.

My horse vet reportedly used an arrangement made for horses when she had to have extensive knee surgery--bet she didnt have to fill it with ice oftener than a couple of times a week!

 

[Mimi2u]

Some of the Cryo Cuffs are gravity fed, meaning no pump to circulate the ice water. You have to hoist those up into the air to refill the cuff when the ice water warms up. They also make ones with a little motor integrated into the lid, which is essentially the same concept as the Breg. The gravity fed contraptions seem appealing in a low tech sort of way but for obvious reasons would be tedious to worthless if you were going to be icing for hours or trying to get a nap or a night's sleep while icing (unless you wanted to make lifting the cooler part of your upper body workout). In a quick look on Amazon, the motorized Cryocuffs seemed a little pricier than the polar care cube, but about the same price as the Polar care kodiak, presumably a bigger model.

My horse vet reportedly used an arrangement made for horses when she had to have extensive knee surgery--bet she didnt have to fill it with ice oftener than a couple of times a week!

Thanks for the info. I wouldn't have known that some are motorized and some not - and it looks like that is important! Also, interesting about your horse vet using an ice machine for horses!!! LOL Whatever works, huh?

 

[jeano]

I'm sure it covered her leg from crotch to ankle as she's not a big woman. And my friend who has actually seen this and told me about it said the cooler part is immense. Since the vet actually has an infirmary for horses she had the device already, why the heck settle for a gocart when you can use a cadillac.

Yeah, the gravity feed would be a turn off for me, but some people find the humming of the pump annoying. (wonder if the horse model sounds like an airplane engine). If you were looking at a used CryoCuff on Craigslist or Ebay you'd want details before investing, that's for sure.

I've actually only seen a cryocuff once at PT--one of the long suffering PTs was hoisting the cooler end of it up in the air for a lady who had a broken foot--that would be a body part you just wouldnt be able to ice with their standard gel paks.

 

[Coniglietta]

Mimi2u,
I had a cryo cuff for both knee replacements. The hospital I had mine done at gave me one each time so I ended up with 2. I kept mine in the fridge which cooled them really, really well. I actually gave one of mine away to my daughters 16 year old friend who is waiting for surgery on a deformed knee that becomes inflamed from time to time due to it being twisted. This is something she was sadly born with but she said the cuff helped her enormously and cooled down her knee.
I think its a matter of preference since the main object of it is to ice your knee and as long as this happens then it wont even matter if its a bag of ice in a pillowcase.
Good luck with everything, the "other side" is a wonderful place to be.

Much love

 

[skigirl]

I used gel packs--have about six of them. So, if you cannot get an ice machine, you will be okay with gel packs like many of us use. I think mine were $6 or $7 each.

 

[referee54]

I used gel packs--have about six of them. So, if you cannot get an ice machine, you will be okay with gel packs like many of us use. I think mine were $6 or $7 each.

I also went "old school." I used these:

They were about 12"X18". I still have them for bumps, bruises, or muscle pulls, etc.

 

[Jamie]

Not all surgeons support the use of these machines, so you must ask. And....not all insurance covers them so you also need to check about that too. If you get one through the hospital that is not covered by your insurance, watch the cost. I asked for mine with my second knee and the cost if insurance had not covered it was going to be over $400. You can buy one for less on your own if that's the case.

 

[jeano]

God only knows how much we or our insurance was bilked for my Polar Cube--there's a lumped together medical supplies item on the invoice that runs into the thousands.

Our out of pocket expenses total were 700 bucks or so--I sure hope that didnt include a 400 dollar charge for a 140 dollar icer!

 

[1ELISEA]

Many of our members use a combination of rubbing alcohol and water, or syrup and water in a baggie; the water turns into slush in the freezer and fits well around the knee. The recipe is available in the Library above.

A major factor for me with the electric cryo cuff was that it kept an even temperature or would be colder as necessary. The faster the water circulated, the colder the cuff; as the ice melted and the water was not as cold, I would turn up the flow and the water would circulate faster.

Also, I'd advise to purchase a new replacement knee pad that wraps around the knee if using a second hand cryo cuff. It assures that it is a new and unused wrap around your knee and incision.
HERE, for example, is one type of replacement knee pad on Amazon.

 

[Jamie]

Our out of pocket expenses total were 700 bucks or so--I sure hope that didnt include a 400 dollar charge for a 140 dollar icer!

Don't worry about the charges. You can bet that the insurance company is NOT being overcharged by the hospital. These guys know what they are doing when they develop their pricing schedules - all of which are agreed to prior to contracts being signed. It's never a simple fee for service or product deal. There is much more involved and it's incredibly complex. There are "checkers" on both the hospital and the insurance side, so I doubt if there is much getting put over on anyone.

 

[hbacres]

When I went to the knee school before surgery they showed us what we would get. I got the gravity fed Cryo Cuff. It was on my knee when I woke up from surgery. I don,t mind the gravity fed too much, it is on the floor for draining and I lift it and put it on my head for filling. If they give you the gravity one and you want the motorized you can get the motorized lid on ebay for 40.00 to 70.00 dollars. Anyway you should be able to find out in advance at knee school.

 

[referee54]

Don't worry about the charges. You can bet that the insurance company is NOT being overcharged by the hospital. These guys know what they are doing when they develop their pricing schedules - all of which are agreed to prior to contracts being signed.

Yep---those people know exactly what services and products should cost, and nothing gets by them.