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THR Hip replacement March 22

How are you, @IndigoKnee? It's been a couple of weeks since you posted. How are things going with physio? were you able to see that second therapist?
 
@Deni444 How kind of your to be thinking about my progress when you are early in your recovery of from hip number 2.

@benne68 thanks for checking on me. I've been following your progress.

The physio was still very concerned last week about the lack of ROM and pain in the knee and tried to get me an appointment with one of the orthopaedic surgeons with no luck. I then contacted the surgeon who did my knee 2 1/2 years ago (Mr K) as it is the knee that I am currently most concerned with. I am seeing him next week. Oddly the same day as I spoke to his secretary to make the appointment I had a call from the hip surgeon (Mr S) who said if I went in yesterday and waited he would try and see me in between operations. Waited 5 hours, saw him for a few minutes, he declared all fine with the hip but arranged more x-rays and blood tests just to check. Had those and they are fine. He said that recovery from a hip replacement after trauma is slower than from elective surgery but even so it is 5 months now so I really feel I should be more comfortable and walking further. Be interesting to see what the knee surgeon says next week. I'll report back.
 
Good luck & let us know how it goes. 5 months is still pretty early in recovery process.
You will have bumps along the way during year one.
Doesn’t mean it takes a full year, you will reach milestones along the way so don’t beat yourself up.
When I told my primary I wanted to walk longer than I was walking she told me to do 3 ten minute walks rather than try. & do a 30 minute walk. Made sense.
Even now I can walk about 5-6 miles a day but I don’t do it all at once. I break it up over the course of the day.
 
Glad to hear an update! I'm impressed you are managing to arrange all this face time with surgeons, albeit not without difficulty. That is at least a step towards an answer or further reassurance! I imagine that the knee surgeon will do a very thorough observation and check. They usually guard their personal work like a hen guards chicks. That's a fantastic step forward, I imagine the surgeon will definitely be able to either diagnose or rule out any mechanical issues. I'm not up on it but I have read a little about trauma response. The body is remarkable in terms of what it will do when it detects a sudden severe injury. It can reroute all sorts and switch secondary muscles to do different jobs. That's going on all over in a very complex manner that even specialist can find difficult to map out. It's happening at a micro and macro level. On a purely logical level, l imagine that and then in addition the body having a new prosthetic!

If it were me, finding out something specific would maybe be easier... It's something to fix. Having a long wait for it to get back to normal is a longer road. Not what you want to hear, I expect!

You're a trooper though... You can do this and Sandy is a fantastic example for us all.
 
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@Deni444 Oh I can be quite persistent when I need to be! It did occurred to me that the knee surgeon would be protective of his handy work and want to make sure all is well and when I spoke to his secretary she was extremely sympathetic. I had said I was very happy to see him privately, but she told me that as it was less than three years since the operation he would see me as a NHS patient as part of his follow-up. I think I wouldn’t be quite so worried about the knee if I’d had the hip done as elective surgery but because I had such a severe fall that even though the x-ray of the knee looks okay I’m still concerned I might have damaged the knee during the accident. Also, I really trust the knee surgeon as he is extremely experienced in his field and is also a very nice man so if he tells me there’s nothing to worry about, I will be reassured. Like you, I feel happier knowing quite what I’m dealing with.
 
Not long to wait to find out! Hope you get some positive news. Keep us posted, we'll be eager to hear how it goes :)
 
Wow...a five hour wait, you're a trooper! Good news on X-rays and labs. Thankfully the results were favorable.
Best wishes with your appointment with the knee surgeon next week and wishes for many moments of comfort as you search for answers.
@IndigoKnee
 
Off to the hospital today to see the surgeon who did my knee replacement 2.5 years ago to see what he makes of the problems I have had since the hip replacement in March (lack of ROM, pain etc). He is an excellent well respected surgeon so I really value his opinion. I'll report back, probably tomorrow as it’s going to be a long day.
 
Back now from my outing to the hospital to see the surgeon who dd the knee replacement 2.5 years ago.
Mr K says some of the knee pain is coming from referred pain from hip plus the swelling of the leg is making it difficult for the knee to bend. Also the tendon that runs over quads is very tight. He going to send a report and suggested exercises to the physio and also exercises to help the abductors. He showed me the xray and said the hip is a bit offset but he measured leg lengths and said they are the same. So all in all said it’s ok, will just take bit longer. He said the same as others have said that recovery from a replacement following a fracture is a much more lengthy situation. I’m tired now :yawn:
 
That all sounds very reassuring! Has it put your mind at rest after hearing his assessment? I imagine it was a pretty exhausting day physically and the emotional anticipation.
 
Yes he has put my mind at rest. Pretty wiped now as it is a long trip to the hospital using public transport. I do trust his opinion so will get some more patience pills and look forward to the new exercises when I see the physio.
 
Thankfully you trust your surgeon and the advice he gave you. I do hope the physio and exercise he suggested brings you speedy relief. Wishing you lots of patience as you continue to heal, IndigoKnee. I hope you enjoy the weekend!
@IndigoKnee
 
I went to see the physio today to discuss exercises to stretch the quads and adductors following my appointment with Mr K the knee surgeon. The one she suggested for the quads felt scary and although I tried it my knee was really painful without feeling any stretch of the quads. It was: hold on to a support, have a chair behind me and bend my knee (foot towards bottom) then rest the foot on the chair. So we abandoned that one and I'm now doing lunges instead. I already had exercises for the adductors.
 
I was given that chair one once, I think it's a challenge to get right and it hurt my knee too. There is an alternative, laying down with bum at edge of the bed, the opposite knee bent towards chest, clasp hands on it to put spine in a good position. The other leg then dangles towards the floor. Obviously not one to do if you still have precautions. I tried it prior to any surgery. Maybe ask about it. I struggled to get my knee up to my chest and so not great for my back but I felt the quad stretching and it felt good.
 
‘Be cautious with the lunges. They can put a lot of stress on your knee. Scale back or stop if you have pain during or the next day.
 
Deni444 said:
I was given that chair one once, I think it's a challenge to get right and it hurt my knee too. There is an alternative, laying down with bum at edge of the bed, the opposite knee bent towards chest, clasp hands on it to put spine in a good position. The other leg then dangles towards the floor. Obviously not one to do if you still have precautions. I tried it prior to any surgery. Maybe ask about it. I struggled to get my knee up to my chest and so not great for my back but I felt the quad stretching and it felt good.
Click to expand...
Thanks @Deni444 I'll try this.
 
Jamie said:
‘Be cautious with the lunges. They can put a lot of stress on your knee. Scale back or stop if you have pain during or the next day.
Click to expand...
I will take it slowly @Jamie. Need to do something to loosen up the quads as that tightness is causing a lot of pain in the knee.
 
Hi everyone,
Little update. Its now 8 months since I had my accident, fractured the neck of femur and had a hip replacement.
The hip is pretty good but I still have pain and lack of movement in the knee (same side) and have a strange gait.
I saw the physio 4 weeks ago and told her the main problem is still with the knee and after some tests she thinks that there is damage to the tendon and if the patella is supported for a while (not sure how long) it should repair. She has given me a patella strap which sits under the kneecap and is pretty comfortable.

I also saw a Chiropractor 10 days ago who was excellent. He found that my pelvis is crooked, possibly from the fall or maybe from op. That is causing back pain, ankle pain, strain on the knee and tightness in the leg. He is hopeful that he can sort that with gentle manipulation and exercises.
 
I have learned over the years here that the forceful manipulation of the leg during THR can cause discomfort and even issues afterward, for weeks, even months. I experienced this myself. There's the dislocation, pulling and rotational moves which can irritate the tendons, ligaments, cartilage. I just read online that it can affect the patellofemoral joint, the area where the kneecap (patella) meets the thigh bone (femur) in the front of the knee, so hopefully the strap, which you said is comfortable, allows for further healing / repair. I am wondering if there is any arthritis in your knee that was aggravated by the surgery? The gait issue you mentioned may also be placing extra stress on the knee causing the ongoing pain. If it doesn't begin improving through the measures you mentioned, you may want to consider a visit with your OS and an x-ray to see what may be causing the persistent pain.

It's wonderful to read that your hip is good and possibly the knee is still settling from the way it worked differently before and after your THR. You're still moving forward which is great, you just need to iron out the kinks. You've come this far, you can absolutely get the rest of the way in this normally twelve month long recovery.

Thanks for stopping by with an update, IndigoKnee. Stay in touch...we do care. :)
@IndigoKnee
 
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