Revised PKR to TKR JAS20's problem knee

JAS20

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Mar 17, 2019
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I am 8 months post surgery following a partial knee replacement, in this time I have been admitted into hospital with an infection, they said it wasn’t in my knee but it affected the soft tissue, 4 months ago I had revision surgery to replace a displaced bearing, since the middle of January I have been in pain, I find it difficult to climb stairs, walk any distance, I went to see another consultant last week and I have to have a full knee replacement, I was active until I had the operations, I am only 57, I would like to be without the continuous pain and have an undisturbed nights sleep.
 
@JAS20 I’m so sad to read this as I know all to well! I wished they had done the full tkr instead of a partial revision. As you’ve probably read this has been a nightmare for me so far. I am 10 days post op from my tkr revision . I’m being positive that this time this will give me my life back and like you just I want to be pain free and walk! When is your tkr scheduled? Big hugs this is not a fun ride.
 
On the waiting list, phoning tomorrow to see if they have a date. Good luck hope you get back to being pain free soon.
 
Hello @JAS20 - and :welome:

Please will you tell us the full dates of your knee surgeries and which knee it is, so we can make a signature for you? Thank you.:flwrysmile:

I'm sorry to read your knee is still giving you problems.
I hope you get a date for surgery soon.

I have started this thread for you, so that your knee story doesn't derail Jolease's thread about her knee. Please post anything new about your knee in this thread from now on.

Here is the recovery advice we give to everyone:
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
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 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.
 
I had a Partial Knee Replacement in July 2018, initially things went well, I was discharged from physio after 2weeks. I felt very positive.

Unfortunately after 5 weeks I had to attend A&E due to a raised temperature and I could not bear anyone near my left knee.

I was admitted and had to go to theatre where they aspirated my knee. They were unable to find the initial cause of the infection. They said the swelling and pain in the knee was due to the soft tissue being affected by the infection. I spent 5 days on intravenous antibiotics.

I attended several outpatients appointment and discussed the pain in my knee. I was informed that the pain was due to soft tissue damage and prescribed medication.

As time went on I struggled to walk without a limp. At the end of October I was once again in A&E due to excruciating pain. I was unable to weight bear.

At the hospital I was sent to have an xray. The Doctors were unable to identify the problem and I was discharged with pain relief.

The next morning my husband took me back to A&E. I was seen by the Orthopaedic Registrar, who sent me for an ultra sound as they attributed the pain in my leg to a possible DVT.

The report from the ultra sound was that there had been movement since the last one and the report asked for an Orthopaedic Review. Unfortunately the Registrar dismissed this and after 7 hours we left.

I had an outpatients appointment 3 days later, when we got there we were informed by the Orthopaedic Surgeon that the bearing had displaced. 8 days later I had revision surgery to replace the bearing.

Again everything was OK for the first couple of weeks. I did notice that I struggled compared to how I had been following the first operation.

In January the problems got worse. I am in pain most of the time, I struggle with walking, sleeping and doing basic daily tasks. I had an appointment at the end of January. Due to the my knee crunching and the pain accompanying this I was referred for a second opinion.

I had this appointment last week. The consultant believes that my kneecap is hitting the replacement. There is no revision surgery available so I have to have a TKR.
 
@JAS20 you will notice that I have merged your two threads together as we prefer that members in recovery only have one thread.

This is for three reasons:
1. if you keep starting new threads, you miss the posts others have left you in the old threads
2. it often ends up that information is unnecessarily repeated
3. it's best if we can keep all your recovery story in one place so it's easily accessed if we need to advise you.

Please keep all your questions and updates on this thread. If you would like a new thread title just give a shout.
 
There is no revision surgery available so I have to have a TKR.
It is normal practice to revise a failed PKR to a TKR.

Revision to a second PKR seldom works well.

After this revision to a TKR, you will have a new knee that will potentially last you for 30 years or more - much longer than a PKR would have lasted.
 
I’m sorry you are now facing a third surgery.

Was your partial a Patellofemoral? That’s what I have. I’m 2 years post op and it has never felt right. I’ve had 2 second opinions and my X-ray looks fine so they won’t look any further for a problem.

I am going to tag @Josephine
our forum administrator and nurse director to address your concerns.
 
I'm so sorry you are going through all this. Some of the doctors you saw could do with bumping up their diagnostic skills!
 
@JAS20 how are you doing after your TKR. I'm recovering well, but spend most of my time resting and icing, and slowly doing bit by bit more every weeks.
 

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