TKR Adventures with my new knee - w/pix!

[benne68]

@dnhTX87 Yep! I had a similar experience about two months post-op. I think we just don't realize how much we have contorted our bodies over time to compensate for the knee pain. Then, when the knee is corrected, everything else is out of alignment!

My PT urged me to slow down my walking and focus on proper heel-toe gait. I'm always in a hurry, so this was difficult for me. But I'm now 4+ months out and the hip is doing just fine.

 

[dnhTX87]

I'm assuming I've aggravated some soft tissue in my hip from walking with a different gait than I had before, but that's just an assumption.

I agree the hip pain may be a side effect of aggravated tissue due to your gait or due to just plain overdoing it. I made the mistake of attending a business meeting around my 8th week on my LTKR and really paid for it. I had no idea how much walking from location to location and standing around I took for granted. The gait is something that I had to correct after many years of protecting one or both knees.

Agree. Airports with a heavy backpack, several block walks to dinner each night, etc. I love new shoes. Need to convince my wife I need another pair.

 

[FourCats]

@dnhTX87 when I traveled for thanksgiving, it was really a difficult and painful time for both of my knees. I had a two hour drive to the airport, a lengthy walk to the terminal from the parking deck (the closest option which cost me a fortune), then standing in line for TSA and the lengthy walk to my departure gate (last gate on the last concourse) but being cramped in the seat for the two hour flight (I’m tall and the legroom isn’t enough to be able to even stretch my legs even an inch or two). The return was even worse as they made people check their carry on bags when the overhead bins got full so I had the extra walk and wait at the baggage claim which was not in the same direction that my car was! It took over two weeks when I got home to feel like my knees had recuperated.

 

[dnhTX87]

@9.5 weeks and went to my BodyPump gym class for the first time since my surgery in November. It's light weight lifting with lots of reps, some squats and lunges, and abdominal work. I took it easy, stayed on the lighter end of the weights I've used in the past, and felt good afterward. We'll see how the hip/leg nerve issue is affected good or bad.

 

[hawk2go]

It must have felt good to be back at the gym. My Knee complains about squats and lunges every time, most recently last week. The LTKR doesn't mind so I guess the RTKR will catch up eventually.

I love new shoes. Need to convince my wife I need another pair.

Just add it to the cost of surgery (like your walker/cane and other aids).

 

[LifeinParadise]

I read up prior to surgery and saw that extension was a big deal. I also looked at what was suggested to attain that. Since I didn't have 0 degrees for extension, I worked on that. I, too, would hang my leg off the edge of the bed while lying on my tummy and let gravity work. Also would rest my heel on a higher stool and let my knee "sag". Just letting gravity do it's work. Wow, that was painful. It was amazing how quickly it began to feel comfortable and how much more straight I could get my leg (pre-surgery). I attribute that to how quickly I was able to attain the 0 degrees goal so quickly (2nd week of P.T.). I had attained my 125 degrees of flexion goal by week 4 of P.T. I have to say, I worked my butt off to get into shape prior to surgery. It hurt a lot but I knew muscle strength and range of motion were critical. I did one month of P.T. starting one week after surgery, 2X a week. I did 2 more sessions one week apart. I walk a mile a day and am now gardening, pruning trees, walking our rough terrain (in Hawaii that means walking across much uneven lava in our yard) which works the muscles in my calves and helps my balance. P.T. said I was way ahead of the curve and I attribute all that to getting in shape before the surgery. Now if I can just stay in shape until the next surgery (other knee). I so look forward to at least an interval period of no pain. That may not happen as I could have the other knee done as soon as mid March if they can schedule me in. It is so hard to decide! Get it over with or have a (maybe) pain free period until mid May.

 

[Layla]

Hello @LifeinParadise
Welcome to BoneSmart! Thank you for joining us. I‘ve read some of the supportive messages you’ve left others here and encourage you to start a thread of your own and tell us a little about yourself. I understand you‘ve experienced a TKR and you’re looking at another surgery, possibly as soon as mid March for your other knee. We’d love to have a place to follow your journey and encourage you along the way. Please join us!

 

[dnhTX87]

10 Week update as of today. Knee finally feels like it might feel normal at some point in the future. I worked on the car over the weekend, and had to get up and down several times to crawl under, and afterwards my knee was barking at me. Really not the knee itself but muscles around. Better today. I've gone to exercise class a couple times now, and feel like that's coming along. It needs to warm up outside so I can get going on some serious bicycle miles, and work off these holiday extra pounds.

Sleeping: Some nights, I sleep as many as 4-5 hours in a row. From going to bed at 10-10:30 to waking up around 3:00 or 3:30. That's real progress from the many weeks of going to bed at 10-10:30 and waking up at midnight, then repeat that 1-2 hours sleep cycle 3-4 times a night. That's more the exception now. That's encouraging, but not getting as much 2:00 am reading done anymore.

Range of motion: I feel good about my bending, but still have some ways to go on straightening. At PT, I can get it almost as straight as my non surgical leg after stretching, heat, and hard work, but it's not really functional just yet.

Activities of daily living: Walking is not a big problem at this point. I don't walk long distances, really just around the house and office, grocery store, etc. Squatting is not quite there. Chasing the dog in the yard is slow, and not really what I would call running. Running was my passion and life for several decades, but that's been gone for several years at this point. Like I said, worked on the car (finally felt capable of doing it), carry stuff around, go to the grocery store, worked on the plumbing under the bathroom sink - all these things require some physical dexterity, which is coming back.

Pain level: I take a couple X-strength Tylenol at bedtime just to take the edge off but probably don't need it. Otherwise, I don't take any pain meds regularly. My knee is still stiff in the morning, but not really painful. Muscles are coming around but not there quite yet. I'll need to get some bike miles built up to get there.

Take it easy - your mileage may vary.

 

[hawk2go]

That's great news @dnhTX87! I'm glad you've recovered from your trip. Love YMMV, strewth.

 

[glidefloss]

Hi @dnhTX87 , awesome report which gives me great hope for the coming weeks! I'm day 51 post-op with a lot of things to look forward to ... until the other knee gets its own replacement.

Are you able to easily get down and up off the ground? Are you able to kneel occasionally? What is squatting like for the new knee? (At PT I've been doing TRX squats but haven't really tried to see how deep a squat I can go in the "real world".)

Looking forward to your next report!

 

[dnhTX87]

I haven't posted in a while, more or less back to normal activities at 34 weeks as of today. Normal exercise routine, including squats w/o weights, lunges w/o weights, bicycling a lot. My leg has full extension and probably 135-140 deg bending. Still a little painful and stiff at times. I don't take anything for pain or swelling.

One issue I do have is that when I sit for a while, or ride in a car for a while, when I begin to get up, I have pain and weakness in my knee, like it wants to buckle under me. A couple of steps and the tightness and sore feeling seems to go away. Thought I would throw this out to the group for comment.

 

[sistersinhim]

At your stage of healing, the stiffness and discomfort upon getting up are pretty normal. You are doing great and there's nothing to worry about this issue. As your healing continues, you'll notice that getting up from sitting will take less time for the pain and stiffness to go away. Before you know it, you won't even notice it anymore.

 

[dnhTX87]

Today Nov 15, 2022 is one year out from my left total knee replacement. Things are going well and I’m glad I had the procedure. Doctor has released me for annual visits going forward. My knee and leg are back to 98% of their strength and 110% of range of motion compared to prior to surgery. I’ve ridden my bicycle right at 2300 miles since surgery.

So…success!!

Now my right knee is keeping me awake at night. :-( Appointment to see my Doctor next week. Hopefully just a cortisone shot and I’ll be good for a while. I’ve never had any treatment at all on my right knee. Although it does have the same mileage as my left knee, LOL.

 

[sistersinhim]

Ut oh, it sounds like your right is getting ready for a remodel! If you do need a replacement, it's best to get it sooner rather than later since it will only get worse.

 

[dnhTX87]

I’m hoping for a year or three before that’s needed but we’ll see. It was nice for a time to have two good knees though.

 

[hawk2go]

I struggled with the decision to get my RTKR which the OS wanted to do 3 months after my LTKR. Surprise upon surprise, the right knee was great with occasional cortisone shots for more than 5 years. Now my knees are on different schedules. I have to say my left knee is gaining strength since it can once again share the work instead of being over worked.

 

[dnhTX87]

I had pretty good results with cortisone and orthovisc/synvisc treatments for several years in my left knee.

 

[dnhTX87]

I had a steroid injection in my right knee the day before thanksgiving, so about 6-1/2 weeks ago. Now I'm back to the same pain level as before the injection, if not more. I have set up another Dr. appointment in a couple of weeks (soonest I could get in), to talk about something more, i.e. orthovisc or equal.

 

[DJL1967]

@dnhTX87 Sorry to hear that your right knee is now giving you issues. I had cortisone injections in my knee prior to replacement that only lasted 4-5 weeks before the pain came back even stronger than prior. I also had a Synvisc injection which was like adding fuel to a fire the minute it was injected into the knee.

Unfortunately, these treatments did nothing other than diagnose that I needed a BTKR. I think you are going down a path to another TKR.

Good luck and all the best.

 

[Jaycey]

I have set up another Dr. appointment in a couple of weeks (soonest I could get in), to talk about something more, i.e. orthovisc or equal

If you are symptomatic I am afraid the only solution is TKR. "Alternate" remedies are just a waste of money at this stage.

Please let us know what your doctor advises.