TKR How long to wait to soak in epsom salt

43fullknee

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How long should I wait? Knee replacement was 4/19/2022.
 
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Surgery went a little longer than they thought. Had to remove extra bone that was bad.
 
Almost 3 months in now since surgery. Have good days and bad days. Walking with cane most of time. This last week has been rough my ankle is sore so can’t put weight down on surgery leg.
 
Hi and Welcome!

Before immersing your leg in water make sure your incision is well healed, with no scabs. Be careful with how warm/hot the water is, as that can increase your swelling, which is counterproductive.

Is this a new ankle injury or has it been like this the whole recovery?

I will leave you our Recovery Guidelines. Each article is short but very informative. Following these guidelines will help you have a less painful recovery.

Just keep in mind all people are different, as are the approaches to this recovery and rehab. The key is, “Find what works for you.“ Your doctors, PTs and BoneSmart are available to help, 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
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​

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

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this

6. Access to these pages on the website

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 the 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 the member’s history before providing advice, so please post any updates or questions you have right here in this thread.
 
The ankle is new pain. Been trying to walk more in my yard and at park. Not sure if it’s just from not being on uneven ground for a little while.
 
You will have aches and pains pop up in many different places. With this new knee, you are walking differently. That affects your whole body. The uneven yard is probably contributing to your ankle pain. You can ice that, too. You could use heat if the ice doesn't help.
 
I had all kinds of aches particularly after knee #1. I found using a magnesium foam helped. I also tried aspercream with lidocaine which also helped. There are probably other "linaments" that would offer relief.
 
Therapy went well today. Not much strength work because of ankle. Stretching trying get it to get straighter. I could only bend to 26 before surgery and about 25 trying to straighten it. I’m at 90 bending and 10 straight now.
 
@43fullknee, sounds like your ROM is coming back, slowly but surely.

I had new non-knee pains once I got past the intensity of the surgical pain. New shoes solved the problem for me. My old shoes forced a gait because of wear pattern that my new knee did not care for much. Once I changed shoes, the walking pains eased then disappeared. I also paid particular attention to my toe-heel follow through and my stride length to encourage muscles to support my new way of walking.
 
I could only bend to 26 before surgery and about 25 trying to straighten it. I’m at 90 bending and 10 straight now.
Wow, what an improvement!

Walking with a longer stride with your heel coming down first and then rolling up on your toes should help your extension. This helped mine more than anything.
 
@43fullknee, sounds like your ROM is coming back, slowly but surely.

I had new non-knee pains once I got past the intensity of the surgical pain. New shoes solved the problem for me. My old shoes forced a gait because of wear pattern that my new knee did not care for much. Once I changed shoes, the walking pains eased then disappeared. I also paid particular attention to my toe-heel follow through and my stride length to encourage muscles to support my new way of walking.
I have new shoes I bought right before surgery because I didn’t want to use old wore out ones.
 

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