TKR Kigeliakit's Recovery Thread<

kigeliakit

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So I got my replacement on November 26th. I was in the hospital overnight. I

I went to a Rehab Center on Tuesday, November 27th. I came home on Saturday December 8th.

My worst pain was at the Rehab Center the day I arrived. I had taken my last pain medication at 2:30. The Transportation team came at 6:20. Due to some sort of mess up, where the pharmacy claimed I was allergic to the pain meds, I didn't get any medication until 11:45. By this time, I was blacking out from the pain, or a real 10. It took all through the next day to get my pain back under control.

I am going to PT three times a week. We are starting off with 4 exercises to do at home twice a day, and they seem to be helping; I can feel myself getting a little stronger and a little more flexible each day. My left knee did not have a full range of motion going in, so I am expecting it to be a little long in getting there.

I am going to be getting my right knee replaced on February 25th, and I am scheduled to return to work on May 31st. My job is in Horticulture, and it requires standing, bending, squatting, lifting and a lot of walking (up to 25,000 steps or more a day).

My right knee is stronger, and I am doing all of the exercises that I am doing for my left knee for Pre-Hab. It also does not have full range of motion, but it is better than the left knee was.
 
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Hi and Welcome to Bonesmart!

Best wishes as n your joint replacement journey!

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.

Knee Recovery: 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. Here is a week-by-week guide for

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.
 
I am going to PT three times a week. We are starting off with 4 exercises to do at home twice a day, and they seem to be helping; I can feel myself getting a little stronger and a little more flexible each day.
PT can be helpful, but can also be the cause of over activity, so go easy on any exercises that you do. Don’t do them to the point pain.

This is because it’s not exercising that gets our range of motion back, it’s Time:

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. Exercise as in strength training is counter-productive and in the early weeks does more harm than good. Normal activity is the key to success.
 
I'd echo Jockette's comments. Never was a truer word spoken!


I'd really like to offer you some structured advice but in order to do that, I also need to ask you some questions. Are you willing for me to do that?
 
Sure, you may ask me questions.

ETA: My PT place does not believe no pain no gain. They are very gentle with the exercises I am doing.
 
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Congrats and welcome to the other side! :flwrysmile:

I didn't get any medication until 11:45. By this time, I was blacking out from the pain, or a real 10. I
:flabber: THAT'S HORRIBLE!!! What were they thinking?! Well the only up side to that is that it's likely the worst pain you will have from here moving forward.

Sounds like you have good timing planned out for your next knee and return to work. Hope it's all smooth sailing for you. Your PT sounds wonderful, so that's a plus! :thumb:
 
Here y'go then!

It would be very helpful if you would answer each one individually - numbered as I have done - in as much detail as you can then I'll come back as see where you are ....

1. what are your pain levels right now? (remember the 1-10 scale: 1 = no pain and 10 = the worst you can imagine. And don't forget to factor in other forms of pain such as soreness, burning, stabbing, throbbing, aching, swelling and stiffness).

2. what pain medications have you been prescribed, how much are you taking (in mg please) and how often?

3. how swollen is your leg compared to these?
ai63.tinypic.com_eta39s.jpg


4. what is your ROM - that's flexion (bend) and extension (straightness)

5. are you icing your knee at all? If so, how often and for how long?

6. are you elevating your leg. If so how often and for how long?

7. what is your activity level? What do you do in the way of housework, cooking, cleaning, shopping, etc., and

8. are you doing any exercises at home? If so what and how often?
This is the most crucial question so please help me by using the format I have left as an example
(which means please make a list and not an essay!)

Exercises done at home
- how many sessions you do each day
- enter exercise by name then number of repetitions of each
etc., etc.

Anything done at PT
- how many times a week
- enter exercise by name then number of repetitions of each
etc., etc.
 
Sorry it has been a while.

1 the knee that needs done is a 3.

2. Hydrocodone/acetaminiphen 10/325 I haven't taken any for about a week.
I have been taking Aleve 225 mg am and pm

3. moderate

4. 120 and 3

5. yes. icing erratically. for about 20 minutes.

6. yes. elevating erratically when I ice.


Walking about 10 minutes 3 times a day
Quad set (pushing knee with quad muscles into mat 10 for 10 seconds ea
Hamstring stretch 3 ea 30 second hold ea
Straight leg raise 2 sets 10 ea
Supine heel pull with strap 10 10 seconds each (only till I feel a slight pulling)


Have been going to PT 3 times a week.
Will be going 1 time a week now
Exercises vary depending on therapist.
 
Sorry, you've missed out detail
1 the knee that needs done is a 3.
I don't understand what you mean by this. Do you mean "the knee that needs doing" being the right knee or "the knee that's been done" being the left knee.
Exercises vary depending on therapist.
I do need some information about what you are doing and how much.
 
The knee that needs to be replaced hurts more often than the knee that has been replaced. The knee that has been replaced goes from a 1 to a 2. The right knee that needs to be replaced goes from a 1 to 4. It would hurt more if I was back to doing the same sort of things I was doing before surgery. Namely, lifting 25 pound bags of soil, assorted plants; squatting, and walking 15,000 to 20,000 steps a day.



PT Bicycling 8 mins, Same exercises as at home, standing up and sitting down in a chair 20 reps
 
@kigeliakit well come on board a brave woman getting your second done on the 25th February doesn't leave a lot of recovery time between knees. You appear to do quite a lot of heavy lifting, I would be wary of putting that kind of pressure on your knees shortly after having them done please be careful and look after yourself. They said walking is the best form of recovery when I was in hospital but 15,000 steps does seem a lot.
 
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@kigeliakit welcome to Bonesmart. I believe that Josephine wanted answers to the questions based on your replaced knee. I believe that you will find that the schedule you have set for yourself will be quite ambitious. People make plans, knees giggle at them. This process is like nothing I have ever encountered. I was amazed at how very different as someone who has dealt with many many injuries requiring surgeries in my lifetime. I sincerely hope your experience follows your plan but either way the wonderful people here will be here to support and guide you through your recovery.
 
@forbesy I do do a lot of heavy lifting. But three months for each knee is the maximum that my work will allow me to be out. So, I have an ambitious schedule. So far, I am recovering to plan. I am able to walk 4000 steps a day now. (not all at once). The right knee is my stronger leg, so I am hopeful that it will recover quicker. Right now, my left knee has more ROM than it did before my surgery.

Thank you for your well wishes.

@Larryhg3 Thank you for your well wishes.
 
The knee that has been replaced goes from a 1 to a 2.
Not too bad then?
2. Hydrocodone/acetaminiphen 10/325 I haven't taken any for about a week.
I have been taking Aleve 225 mg am and pm
Why not take Tylenol 1,000mg 4 times a day? Because Aleve is good but it's an NSAID and as such, a pretty poor pain killer.
3. moderate
Okay
4. 120 and 3
That is good for 4 weeks out!
5. yes. icing erratically. for about 20 minutes.
6. yes. elevating erratically when I ice.
You accomplish little or nothing in 20 minutes. Ice for at least 40-60mins and more than 4 times a day.

Walking about 10 minutes 3 times a day - that's good but make it once day, not 3 times
Quad set pushing knee with quad muscles into mat x10 for 10 seconds each - I recommend you do only one or two of these a day
Hamstring stretch 3 with 30 second hold - these are okay provided you really do have hamstring pain
Straight leg raise 2 sets x10 - once you can do an SLR, you don't need to do them any more!
Supine heel pull with strap 10 10 seconds each (only till I feel a slight pulling) - no, no, no! Bad exercise both being supine and using straps.

Have been going to PT 3 times a week -I suggest you stop

If you are concerned about refusing to do therapy, you need to read this Saying no to therapy - am I allowed to?
 
The reasons I'm not taking Tylenol are:

It doesn't really work for me. (Everybody is different; otherwise there wouldn't be so many different medications available for the same disease)
I take Methotrexate, and I try to avoid other medications that affect my liver
Aleve works for me.

ETA: I was SO happy to come home from Rehab and to be able to take Aleve instead of Tylenol. Finally, I could get my pain levels down without using a narcotic!
 
1000 mgs and yes I am familiar.

I have been diagnose with psoriatic arthritis for over four years. I have used Tylenol, Advil, Meloxicam and Nabumentone. Right now, Aleve is working for me. When it stops, I will talk to my Rheumatologist about another prescription NSAID.
 

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