THR Knee pain operative side

[breezing]

I had my left hip replacement on January 17th, 2019. I am feeling great and am up and about making short journeys without crutches. I have a sense of something invasive in my operated hip area which I imagine is normal given the circumstances. It varies from tpainfree to an uncomfortable twinge. This isn't my main difficulty though. My left knee is very painful. It is bruised all around and behind without having sustained any knocks. I have had a cough recently and each cough has resulted in severe jarring knee pain. I am waking with knee pain. The hip is fine in comparison. Any ideas or comparable experiences. I'm not sure if I should be worrying or if this is just part of the process.
Thanks

 

[Layla]

Welcome to BoneSmart and Recovery Thanks for joining us!
Congratulations on your new hip. Your knee pain is a very common complaint. Often the knee is maneuvered
in an aggressive manner in an effort to disclocate your hip during surgery. Ice your knee right along with your hip if you're not already. It should help and the pain and bruising will gradually ease. My bruising and discomfort didn't show up until 17 days post op, so I can sympathize.

Read the Recovery Guidelines thoroughly. You'll find a lot of useful info.
Stop back often, we'd love to support you as you're healing.
Wishing you comfort and a restful evening!

Hip 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!)
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
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy
5. At week 4 and after you should follow this
Activity progression for THRs
6. Access to these pages on the website
Oral And Intravenous Pain Medications
Wound Care In Hospital

Pain management and the pain chart
Healing: how long does it take?
Chart representation of THR recovery

Dislocation risk and 90 degree rule
Energy drain for THRs
Pain and swelling control: elevation is the key

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

BIG TIP: Hips actually don't need any exercise to get better. They do a pretty good job of it all on their own if given half a chance. Trouble is, people don't give them a chance and end up with all sorts of aches and pains and sore spots. All they need is the best therapy which is walking and even then not to excess.

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. @breezing

 

[breezing]

Thanks a lot. It's a comfort to know someone with knowledge and experience is responding. I'll get the frozen peas going

 

[Layla]

You're welcome! In case you don't get to the article on ICING right away,
the forum Nurse Director, Josephine, recommends icing for no less than 40-60 mins each time you ice.
Target several times daily and hopefully you'll feel better soon.
@breezing

 

[Eman85]

Knee pain is very common. When I started walking any distance my knee hurt more than anything. It would feel like a burning and aching just above the knee cap. If you research the muscle groups in your leg you'll see how they terminate at the knee. They're just upset and that is where they've directed the pain.

 

[Debru4]

I had the knee pain as well, starting around week 3. Mine was above the knee cap, and to the outside, as well as behind the knee. It lasted, even worsening until about 2 months.

While not excruciating, the fact I had it at all really worried me. I was afraid my knee was going out, or there was something wrong with my back. I iced and used tylenol regularly.

What was so weird, is that one day around 4 months out, I realized I no longer had it.....not even sure when it left ---(sometime between 2 and 4 months obviously)

I would say given how early you are in your recovery, it is perfectly normal, and probably just reminding you to be sure you are resting and icing.( And as Eman85 said, as you increase your walking, the pain may increase as well.)

Overall, it sounds like you are doing great!

 

[breezing]

Thank you for sharing everyone. It's a great support group.

 

[Mojo333]

Just wondering how recovery was coming along?
Is the knee better?
One month and lots of healing still happening so hang in there friend.

 

[breezing]

Hi Mojo333
Thanks for asking. My hip is feeling great now. I no longer get the twinges I was talking about.
My knee is another story. I'm in a lot of pain. I'm unable to raise my leg when lying down because the pain in the left knee is excruciating (I can raise the other leg to 90 degrees). I am going to see the PT again on Friday and will be insisting that it be investigated further as I am really afraid that this is something entirely unrelated to my hip.
All the best

 

[Jaycey]

@breezing they grab your knee and sometimes twist it pretty aggressively during the THR procedure. Do ask PT about this continuing pain. Are you still icing the area as Layla suggested?

 

[Layla]

Hi @breezing
Please consider checking in with your surgeon if the pain is as excruciating as you've described. Looking back, you've been suffering with this from the beginning. Wondering if you had a post op appt with your surgeon yet and if so, what he had to say about your knee pain?
Personally, I'd bypass the PT's opinion and go straight to the doctor for advice and direction.
Wishing you comfort and speedy relief.

 

[Debru4]

So glad to hear your hip is coming along so well, but that knee situation really stinks! It must be so distressing to feel like it is worsening. It's still really early in your recovery, so hopefully it is just related to what happened during your surgery. I hope you can get some answers from your doctor soon. Take care...

 

[Goterp75]

@breezing, hope you are able to get some input from surgeon and/or PT. I had my hip replacement on January 30, and had terrible swelling and bruising which really impacted my knee. It was worse than my hip and I could barely bend my knee. I sent my husband to get K Tape, and when he went to put it on, he said the back of my leg was black with bruising. The discoloration extended down my shin and outer calf. My surgeon had me wear compression socks for a month (until today!) which I think helped the swelling. The PT switched from ice to heat and stim, and did (very light) massage on the area to improve the circulation. I complained about it at my 2 week follow up and basically got a “what did you expect, we moved a lot of stuff around” reply. Also remember the tissue and muscles may have been on vacation as your hip worsened, and may be highly annoyed at being called into action again. Mine is much improved, but still the area around my knee is quite tender and the bruising is not entirely resolved. My quad and hip flexor do not work very well yet - only last week was I able to do a straight leg lift at all; I am only up to about 25-30 degrees and I can only do about 20. Definitely get surgeon/PT input, but don’t despair, it will get better with time. Good luck!