THR Bad knee pain after 11-19 THR

1alan1

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I had my right hip replaced the end of November. It was nice the pain was gone and back up and walking.
However I have return to work in Korea mid January. I walk close to two miles a day. About a month ago I started noticing my right knee would bother me now and then. Now its hurting worse then my hip did. Its kind of random, I usually notice it when I get up in the morning, then sometimes after I sit awhile and get up and walk. I noticed that when I walk the pain happens when I "lift" my right leg to take a step. No pain when I stand on my right leg. It feels like the pain is in my knee joint, and some times the muscles about 6 inches above my knee.
I went to one hospital with my wife and was going to see if I could do a walk in. They required a negative Corona virus test to get in. I sort of want to avoid hospitals and travel if possible.
Just curious if anyone else had similar pain, I was told it was normal but sort of unsure now it hurts worse.
Thanks Alan
 
@1alan1 I haven't had that issue mine was the reverse. My knee had been bad for 30 years and by the time I had it replaced it had worn out my Hip. Wondering if you could have the reverse issue. A knee x-ray would definitely be in order.
 
@1alan1 Welcome to the other side of surgery! Can you please give us the exact date of your surgery? The information will help us advise you.

It is not unusual to have all sorts of aches and pains when you get back to normal activity post op. You are walking differently now and your new gait may be contributing to your knee pain.

Have you purchased new shoes since your THR? We advise our members to replace any shoes they were wearing on a regular basis post op. This is because any old shoes will wearing pattern that might cause an imbalance.

Does icing your knee help at all?
 
Thanks for the replies.
In the beginning, last April they took about a dozen X-rays. They said my knee looked OK, and focused on my hip. I did buy new shoes about two weeks ago. I had the issue before then, but its really bad now. But it sort seems random, sometimes it almost goes away then comes right back. But its possible the new shoes have contributed to more pain.
I only feel it when I lift my foot to take a step. This makes me think its not the joint. Most of the pain feels like its under upper side of my knee cap. Once it sit down or lay down there is no pain at all. My brain is not helping me out to understand what is going on.
I am hoping for something to try, rather than run the Corona gauntlet for an x-ray.
Surgery date was 21 November 2019
Thanks Alan
 
Hi Alan, I’m sorry you’re experiencing pain and uncertainty especially at a time when we’re all making our best effort to protect ourselves and stay well. I’m wondering if your body is adjusting once again with the new shoes? I’d try to give it a little more time unless its really interfering with daily life and sleep. If it continues, consider communicating with your surgeon to see what he advises, or take the necessary precautions to protect yourself should you decide on an x-ray. I hope given a little more time it eases for you.
Please keep us posted, be safe and stay well.
@1alan1
 
Hello @1alan1 - and :welome:

Please will you confirm the full date of your hip replacement , so we can make a signature for you? Knowing the exact date will help us to advise you appropriately in the future.
Thank you.:flwrysmile:
 
Thank you for your surgery date. Your signature is made now and I have added your name to the November Nimbles surgery list, so you can see who else had surgery around the same time as you.
 
Thank you for the replies.
I just wanted to check with other people who went through this to see what they experienced.
I knew there was going to be some adjustments for the first couple of months. I was getting concerned I might be getting worse for some unknown reason. I over looked the new shoes and trying to walk normal after limping around for two years isn't easy, like remembering how to blink or breath.

Alan
 
It's amazing how much muscle memory we developed limping around, it was our "new normal" @1alan1. It definitely takes a while to re-train our bodies to walk normally again. I've been doing pretty well at it but if I get fatigued my wife will say "why are you limping"?
 
Like most people, I also had unexpected knee pain immediately following my hip replacement. I was so relieved when it left after a few weeks.

But then about 11 months after surgery when I had resumed many of my former activities, and took my first long hike at elevation, I ended up with a nagging pain in my opposite knee. After a few weeks of resting it and still having pain, I went back to my surgeon,. He said that it is very common to have knee pain, like mine, that seems to appear a ways after surgery. He said it often is a result of changing one's gait, and in my case, my knee cap was not tracking properly as a result. I did a few sessions of PT to help realign my kneecap which improved much of the pain. (A small meniscus tear was discovered at the same time, so there is still some pain, but it's unrelated to the hip and poor gait.)

With that said, it was a different time, when it was easy to make an appointment and not worry about going out in public and getting sick. If it were me, right now, I would try to do a reset. I'd rest, ice, elevate, take acetaminophen regularly for pain, and really cut back on activity and then restart gradually.

Perhaps you could phone your doctor or have a teleconference if it continued to be painful or worsen. I really feel for you--tough decisions to be making in such a challenging time. Keep reaching out to the folks here on the forum for support. Take care.
 
Well its August now and my knee is still hurting and I am limping around. Sometimes its fine, then it starts hurting then randomly stops after a few hours. Most of the time it hurts when I lift the weight off of that leg to move it forward to step. That seems weird to me.
I went had an Xray taken two days ago. The doctor said everything looked fine. He said its probably something soft tissue related.
I do walk maybe two miles a day back and forth to work at a minimum. It seems like it should have recovered by now almost nine months after the surgery.
 
Hello @1alan1

Hopefully it won’t be the case for you, but my knee has never been the same since surgery. I complained about it at two post op visits before they finally x-rayed it and said it was fine, very mild arthritis that shouldn’t affect me for years to come. I don’t really believe they than can judge that from all I’ve read here over the past three years. I don’t lose sleep over it, nor does it hold me back. Mine is more a tightness / stiffness and I don’t limp. The retired forum nurse always said that stiffness is a form of pain. However, if it’s not “hurting” and it‘s not keeping me from anything, I’m good. I can’t help but attribute it to the dislocation process since it never bothered me before surgery. Small price to pay for a pain free hip though, in my opinion anyway.

Hopefully your issue eases with time. You’re not even a year post op yet and I have read some OS’s say it can take up to two, even two and a half years, to completely recover, so please don’t lose hope. Is there a way you could cut back on some of your daily walking for two-three weeks and see if you notice a difference? Consider even pulling out your cane for a time and really concentrate on heel-toe walking and see if that helps. It helped me tremendously with the residual limp I had three weeks post op. It takes concentration, at least I found it did, but it works!

Wishing you comfort and relief. Hang on, I’m betting brighter days are on the way! :)
 
I still have some pain in my knee, but now I having more in my hip. I think because I lost weight and my bed is on the hard side, I think sleeping on my right side is causing this.

So in September I was walking to work and had a heart attack. I had bypass surgery on a couple small arteries on the side of my heart. I asked the doctor if it could be related to the hip surgery. I don't think he understood what I was asking. So does anyone think it could be related? I am in Korea so language is a issue. Maybe bad luck?

Thanks as always...
Alan
 
I ran across something about leg pain. It was saying that sometimes your leg may be shorter than the good leg. My wife tried to measure it and sure enough it seems to be a 1/2 inch shorter. Now this is not a NASA level measurement, but adds some suspicion to my theory. This might be why my knee is always bothering and I don't seem to walk normal. I am going to buy some inserts today and try that and see what happens. Any thoughts?
Thanks Alan
 
Alan, I am so sorry to read about your heart attack. Somehow we missed your post. Thankfully it’s been three months now and you’re on the mend. I hope you’re doing well.

As far as your leg, you really should have a professional measure your leg length for an accurate measurement. I’ll leave an article -


I hope this helps. Wishing you a happy holiday season and a great 2021!
@1alan1
 
I feel my operated leg is shorter.
I experimented and put an insert into my shoe. I started with a 1/4 inch heavy foam one. It felt way different walking on it and the pain went away for a couple days. Then slowly came back. I added the second insert and the pain went away again. I think the foam compacted over a few days causing the pain to came back. I am waiting to see how it works out over another week.

My question, is this normal? I Googled it and it was the first result that came up, unequal leg length after surgery. Too me it makes sense this would happen but never heard anything about this before hand. Just want to figure out whats going on and if inserts work that's fine. Or if its in my mind that works too.
Thanks for the reply..

Alan
 
Hi @1alan1! Sorry you are having pain! It sounds like a mystery. Did you get a chance to read the article Layla posted above? It might help your investigation.
 
My condition is opposite of the article. My operated leg feels shorter not longer.
The shoe inserts seem to work, I am using two now. I am just trying to see if this is normal for people having a hip replaced.
I never ran across this pre-op, just two weeks ago when I Googled it out of frustration.
I figured a certain percentage of people might have experienced this and share some their solutions to it.
 
The feeling of one leg being longer than the other is quite common after THR. Most people find that the feeling fades after 2-3 months while a few need inserts to be comfortable long term. Since you are only a month into recovery I would suggest contacting your OS about your concerns. There are ways to medically measure if there really is a length differential. Definitely make sure you read the article Layla left you above. Hope things are going well @1alan1.
 
I'm 13 months into recovery, or just recovered. My wife attempted to measure my legs and it came up with the right leg maybe a 1/2 shorter. But I had my doubts mainly because doing things at home can be sketchy. So I tried the shoe insert and it seems to help a lot. I just kind of want to avoid going to the doctor now after hip and heart surgeries. But then I am getting annoyed at my knee bothering me. Which had had X-rayed 6+ months ago and was fine. I should have asked for a pirate leg in the beginning :)
Thanks!
 

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