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Bilateral TKR Analysta's BTKR diary

Yah Pansy they look like they would be the easiest thing in the world, don't they? Haha, fooled us!
 
Today my RK flexion was measured three times by two people, **while my leg didn't move at all**. Guess what, they were all different ... including two measurements by the same person a few minutes apart. Looks like 4 degrees one way or the other is the error range that can be expected.
 
Visited the OS office today to pick up a prescription and got to talking with some pre and post TKR patients in the waiting room. The TKR recovery people were all doing so well! I haven't met such a happy bunch since going to a recent retirees' party.

I told them about this wonderful forum and expect some of them to show up here.

One thing we wondered was whether the length of the operation makes a big difference in recovery. I have been seeing comments here that a BTKR can take about 4 hours. Mine (and those of the people I talked to who had information on how long it took) was 45 minutes per knee. The tourniquet aspect was 6-8 minutes of that, sounds like. Just a thought. But I'm wondering if anybody else has thought about the possible relationship to recovery rate.

Also, we were wondering if having to resurface the patella during the surgery makes a difference in ease of recovery. I personally did not have to have this done, and I've gotta wonder if my recovery would have been as smooth if the patella had needed to be flipped, cut and pounded. All that happened for me was just a partial flip to inspect the condition of the surface. Again, just wondering.
 
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@analyst.....:) Sounds like you all had a very good doctor. It is wonderful that you are all recovering so nicely. Do you think it could have something to do with living in Michigan? LOL Just kidding. I am originally from Michigan. Wishing for you continued success in your recovery journey! :)
 
Tomorrow I'll be six weeks out. My main issue at this point is walking. I mean, I can walk perfectly well with a natural-looking gait ... I have had fantastic ROM and strength since the beginning ... but I was expecting to be able to deal with longer walks by now. Yesterday I walked around the block and later in the day walked about five blocks from a restaurant to the car, and I am paying for it with a lot of stiffness and swelling (not ROM-limited stiffness, but that super-stiff discomfort feeling). I have never seen "go for long walks" as recovery advice and I guess this is why. I actually feel that walking is one of the not-good things to do post-op. I'll keep working on the things that improve strength and bending, and get the treatments that get rid of muscle knots and that reactivate muscles. But I sure would like to have better ROW (Range of Walking). What have you long-termers experienced? Can you help set my expectations? Thanks.
 
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I'm not sure what to suggest. I'm coming up on five months out, and my walking limitations seem to be from my non-TKR knee (can't walk far enough to cause the TKR knee to complain). You knees are very young, so it sounds like your range right now is between one and five blocks. :heehee: And I think that's a very good place to be for you.

At this stage, I concentrated on minutes of walking. If I was comfortable walking for ten minutes, I could walk out for five minutes and back for five minutes, they I could increase by a minute or two at a time, always allowing myself time to get back without overdoing it. I also took my cane, just in case, but when I needed it, it was for my non-TKR knee. You're so lucky not to have THAT problem.

Like anything, add range slowly, and I think you'll find it will come. But don't worry too much about it for a few months. Keep it comfortable for you.
 
Hmm PolarBear I guess that's an advantage of BTKR that I hadn't thought of!
 
Analysta...It has been such a pleasure to read through your recovery thread!! I really appreciate all of the time and effort you've put into providing so much detail. It really is helpful for those of us that haven't yet had our surgeries. Your recovery has been amazing and I sure do hope that I'll be able to report something similar when I have my BTKR on 11/11/15!
 
@analysta @WestTexasGal.....I so agree. Analysta...all of your posts have been so informative as well as helpful to all of us but especially so for those who have not yet embarked on your journey. Thank you so much to you and others who are so willing to share all of the details. :)
 
@WestTexasGal and @Stefny thank you so much for saying that! I really didn't think anybody much was reading my thread (which doesn't stop me from trying to get things down on epaper for my own benefit and for family).

WTG, good luck. I think BTKR is the only way to go, honestly. The pain isn't greater ... it's just in two places instead of one. And the sense of relief ... ALL that bone-on-bone pain is gone, not just half of it ... it was profound and exhilarating for me. Not to mention the good feelings that come from other people being sooo impressed with the fact that you did both at the same time ... haha fooled them.

@Poppet, thanks for the articles. The healing article was educational about some things I had been wondering about. But I was still left with questions about what exactly the surgery does to you. I mean, there's cutting of skin and fascia and bone, but I always wonder about the rest of the damage which seems to be mainly extreme stretching. I assume there are lots of individual cells being torn? Or just stretched? I have this theory that the longer the various things are in a hyper-stretched situation, the more damage happens. I think I lucked out with a 45-minute procedure (per knee).

And, I'm now Watching your nutritional thread ... and investigating how much vitamin C I'm getting.
 
@analyst Yes, I agree the short time frame it took your doctor to do your knees is amazing. Surely, he must be one terrific doctor that knows what he is doing. Looking forward to your future posts! :)
 
I think the speed of the operation had to do with the technology; the mfgr gives the surgeon a bunch of customized (to the shape of my bones) jigs (cutting blocks, whatever) that make the cutting and drilling go super fast. Plus the fact that he's probably an excellent surgeon.
 
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Hi... I too have been walking about 25 mins. I swell after 5 with no pain just annoying. Same at work. Your strength takes time
To come back
 
I'm finding that the PT sessions are a workout of their own these days. At first the PT was simple little bends and easy moves, but they have been really putting me through it, to the point of me having to change clothes before going to work! Today they had me roll this tool against my ITB for just six minutes, using as much pressure as I could. Upper body workout! Then tough stretches where I have to maintain crouches, donkey kicks (lots) and a variety of creative and grueling ways to move up and down. An hour of this stuff, on top of a half hour of manual manipulation. Yet there hasn't been much swelling afterwards.

I'm going to try 20-25 minute walks and watch for the point when the swelling happens; that's a helpful metric, Dearjr.
 
Sounds like my pt. Do you do steps? Or machines?
I get swollen after 10 mins of standing or walking. But I think it's getting slightly less every week...6 minths cannot come too soon
 
No machines yet for me at PT, other than the exercycle which I don't do any more because I have one at home. It's all bits of static equipment - wedges, tables, walls, stretchy things, and the roll-up-and-down the ITB rolling pin torture device.

Do they have you do machines Dearjr?
 
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Never heard of a itb rolling pin
I have other torture
Balancing on the board from and back is torture
Only 15 mins of manipulation
 
Ok @analysta your PT is starting to scare me lol. I'm starting outpatient therapy on Thursday and I seriously couldn't imagine doing the things you are doing. Of course I'm only 3 weeks post-op but still.....yikes.
 
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