TKR Hi TLKR 6/22/21

[vrknaff]

Hi, I'm new to the group. Thanks for having me I had a full left total knee replacement on june 22, 2021 and will be 12 weeks tomorrow. I had a MUA on 9/2. I'm still having daily pain and taking tylenol around the clock, Celebrex daily and a muscle relaxer at night. I just don't feel like I should still be having such persistent pain at this point. I'm uncertain if the MUA has helped at all or not. I had gotten up to 114 last Wednesday but today at PT I measured at 100. I'm definitely still swollen and stiff.

 

[Roy Gardiner]

to BoneSmart

MUA does restart recovery, pretty much. If the surgeon got full ROM under anaesthesia then you will be able to get to it as the swelling does down. Time is the healer

We are all different, as are the approaches to recovery. The key is, “Find what works for YOU.“ Your doctor(s), physiotherapist(s) and BoneSmart will offer advice and are there to help. The advice may vary, but YOU are the final judge as to the recovery approach you choose.

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.

 

[Jockette]

I had gotten up to 114 last Wednesday but today at PT I measured at 100. I'm definitely still swollen and stiff.

Swelling is what will define your ROM. It will vary day by day and even hour by hour, depending on the swelling.

Activities define the swelling. Too much activity will increase swelling. “Too much” activity varies for each of us. Activity can affect your pain level, too. This includes what type of PT you are doing.

What kind of activity are you doing, both everyday daily activities and PT, at home or in a PT office?

Full recovery for a knee replacement takes an average of a year, so at 3 months, you are one quarter healed. You can have some pain or other for some time yet. Sometimes by adjusting your activity level, you can control your pain better.

 

[vrknaff]

I'm having PT 3 days a week and doing the Nu Step and the recumbent bike as well as various other stretching exercises and then I go on the table and they stretch and bend and manipulate the knee. At home I do light stretching on my stairs, and heel slides.

 

[Jockette]

While some swelling at your stage can be common, you may be doing too much PT for your particular knee, and it is keeping it swollen and inflamed. Maybe consider cutting back some of it, or taking a break from formal PT, and give your knee a rest.

Regaining our ROM is more about Time than repetitions of a list of exercises.

Time to recover.
Time for pain and swelling to settle.
Time to heal.

Our range of motion is right there all
along just waiting for that to happen so it can show itself.

In the general run of things, it doesn't need to be fought for, worked hard for or worried about. It will happen. Normal activity is the key to success.