ROFL what a smart kitty! He figured out that wheel chair is for injured feet/paws. Gotta love the kritters -- they do be the best purr-a-medics! And keep us entertained. 
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THR Kritterkiddo's L THR recovery
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Kritterkiddo
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ROFLACGU. "rolling on the floor laughing and can't get up"
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Now, that's funny!
Elf1
Staff member since October 2019
Happy to see you're keeping your sense of humor through all of this. It really does help! And fur babies are so good at giving us things to giggle about.
Mine were really good about staying out from under foot while I was recovering but now its like all bets are off! Lets see who can knock her down first!
Mine were really good about staying out from under foot while I was recovering but now its like all bets are off! Lets see who can knock her down first!
Kritterkiddo
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Can people with a TKR use a knee scooter?
If not, that is too bad. I borrowed one to use as my broken toe heals. Even the cat likes sitting on it if I am in his wheel chair. It is not good in the house because we have tile floors so there is a lot of rattling and bumping along, and my foot swells up really fast.
But speaking of really fast, I took it to Walmart to get one item, a box o coffee, when the store was relatively empty and oh my gosh was that fun! That knee scooter just scooted along effortlessly with just one push, like I was on a magic carpet. If my husband wasn't waiting in the car I would have taken advantage of the empty aisles and really skated along.
I zipped into the check out line and then had to wait. and wait. and wait. I guess that was giving me the hint to slow down.
So I highly recommend a knee scooter for fun. Please note though that it was really slow in the bumpy parking lot.
Peace
If not, that is too bad. I borrowed one to use as my broken toe heals. Even the cat likes sitting on it if I am in his wheel chair. It is not good in the house because we have tile floors so there is a lot of rattling and bumping along, and my foot swells up really fast.
But speaking of really fast, I took it to Walmart to get one item, a box o coffee, when the store was relatively empty and oh my gosh was that fun! That knee scooter just scooted along effortlessly with just one push, like I was on a magic carpet. If my husband wasn't waiting in the car I would have taken advantage of the empty aisles and really skated along.
I zipped into the check out line and then had to wait. and wait. and wait. I guess that was giving me the hint to slow down.
So I highly recommend a knee scooter for fun. Please note though that it was really slow in the bumpy parking lot.
Peace
I can't imagine a TKR patient using a knee scooter, that is if I am thinking of the correct sort of scooter.. Wouldn't you need to have a deep flexion of the knee to get into place on it?
But girl, you had some fun now, didn't you?
Maybe you can find a reason to return to Walmart again soon!
But girl, you had some fun now, didn't you?
Maybe you can find a reason to return to Walmart again soon!
Kritterkiddo
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@CricketHip. Return to Wal-Mart wi the knee scooter?!!!I can't imagine a TKR patient using a knee scooter, that is if I am thinking of the correct sort of scooter.. Wouldn't you need to have a deep flexion of the knee to get into place on it?
But girl, you had some fun now, didn't you?
Maybe you can find a reason to return to Walmart again soon!
Oh yea, that is how I will break something else....
'I can resist anything but temptation' (Oscar Wilde)
But it was sooo fun!!
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Kritterkiddo
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Seven months almost
Patience
Who knew that one toe bone, so much smaller than a hip joint, could have such a greater impact on day to day life. This must be what a TKR would be like.
Preparing for my THR included staging stuff for convenience but mostly left in its own home. Like meals were frozen & in the freezer. Like waters, meds, favorite things were on the bedside table. Like fav clothes & jammies were handy. And I could walk on two feet & at my most vulnerable state my walker had a basket so I could fetch stuff.
This broken toe, tho, needs no walking for 10 weeks. Needs crutches, wheel chair or knee scooter, each of which needs two hands. Needs the day to day stuff left out on the counter for convenience. Clothes every where. What a mess.
Unfortunately, one of my hands & wrist have said they are not participating any more. Out of respect for them, I get the minimum tasks done and raise up my foot for a good part o the day. Rest. Ice now on foot, hip, hand, wrist, shoulder. Patience.
Patience gets practiced when all the rest of my good parts want to just get up & go out & play. Or clean! (Did I say that?)
The mental gymnastics come out. Need my adult to show up... Need to allow proper healing... I only get one chance to heal... count the days to the doctor's appointment (14)...
Count my OH so many blessings... & no snacking...
Saluting all you TNR-s!
Peace
Patience
Who knew that one toe bone, so much smaller than a hip joint, could have such a greater impact on day to day life. This must be what a TKR would be like.
Preparing for my THR included staging stuff for convenience but mostly left in its own home. Like meals were frozen & in the freezer. Like waters, meds, favorite things were on the bedside table. Like fav clothes & jammies were handy. And I could walk on two feet & at my most vulnerable state my walker had a basket so I could fetch stuff.
This broken toe, tho, needs no walking for 10 weeks. Needs crutches, wheel chair or knee scooter, each of which needs two hands. Needs the day to day stuff left out on the counter for convenience. Clothes every where. What a mess.
Unfortunately, one of my hands & wrist have said they are not participating any more. Out of respect for them, I get the minimum tasks done and raise up my foot for a good part o the day. Rest. Ice now on foot, hip, hand, wrist, shoulder. Patience.
Patience gets practiced when all the rest of my good parts want to just get up & go out & play. Or clean! (Did I say that?)
The mental gymnastics come out. Need my adult to show up... Need to allow proper healing... I only get one chance to heal... count the days to the doctor's appointment (14)...
Count my OH so many blessings... & no snacking...
Saluting all you TNR-s!
Peace
Kritterkiddo
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How long is one non-weight bearing wi a TKR?
luvcats
post-grad
When I had mine they had me up out of bed walking to the loo as soon as I needed it. So, hours. With a TKR you spend an awful lot of time in the first month laying in bed, sad, with ice on your elevated knee. But you are allowed to and required to walk daily. And 10 weeks. ouch. I had my second knee done at 8 weeks.
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Weight bearing as tolerated once fully awake, having had something to drink, perhaps a light snack.
I had no difficulty using my front wheeled walker to walk to the recovery area bathroom, then a short walk up and down the hall.
I was discharged home 2 - 2.5 hours after arriving in recovery and walked from the car to the front door, up one step, into the house, thence to the recliner.
The regimen from arrival home was a short walk every hour while awake.
I had no difficulty using my front wheeled walker to walk to the recovery area bathroom, then a short walk up and down the hall.
I was discharged home 2 - 2.5 hours after arriving in recovery and walked from the car to the front door, up one step, into the house, thence to the recliner.
The regimen from arrival home was a short walk every hour while awake.
Kritterkiddo
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Not to diminish that... there's serious pain and swelling (need a pain med schedule initially); even with short acting IV sedation, the surgery leads to short term brain fog; the process of gaining functional milestones takes a loooong time due to prolonged healing process.
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Kritterkiddo
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I have always wondered if the sedation giving during surgery can affect our memory long-term.
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Re: effects of sedation.
There's a huge difference between general anesthesia and the short acting meds more often used in joint surgery nowadays.
The most common combination at least here in northern California is a spinal anesthetic plus two short acting IV meds: fentanyl, an opioid that clears out quickly, and medazolam (Versed), a very short acting sedative-hypnotic (same class as Valium).
None of these act on the central nervous system the way general anesthesia does.
Some anesthesiologists, by no means most, hesitate to use sedative-hypnotics with seniors. My first TKA was done with all three; my second a few months later with a different anesthesiologist, skipped the Versed. My experience both times was awakening fully very quickly.
The only difference was that with Versed I had no memory of the administration of the spinal (that very short term amnesia with even low dose, mild sedation is considered a benefit - which is why my dentist uses benzos for oral sedation with highly anxious paients, and it was used IV for my cataract surgery).
Without Versed I have a crystal clear memory of receiving the spinal (it was NOT painful or traumatic!), which was good because it let me remember the anesthesiologist casually mentioning I have mild scoliosis.
General anesthesia does have a significant positive correlation with higher risk of developing cognitive impairment, according to the majority of studies referenced on the NIH website. The risk may increase with repeated use.
Some orthopedists use an IV form of general anesthesia called propofol.
In a study with mice who were primed for Alzheimer's (AD) via the APOE4 gene , propofol was associated with cognitive impairment and amyloid pathology. So for people with that genetic predisposition to AD, this may be a risk factor to consider. It's by no means a cut-and-dried issue as this is one small study, and in cases where general anesthesia is warranted, propofol really has become the standard at least in the USA as it's short acting and safer than older inhaled forms.
There's a huge difference between general anesthesia and the short acting meds more often used in joint surgery nowadays.
The most common combination at least here in northern California is a spinal anesthetic plus two short acting IV meds: fentanyl, an opioid that clears out quickly, and medazolam (Versed), a very short acting sedative-hypnotic (same class as Valium).
None of these act on the central nervous system the way general anesthesia does.
Some anesthesiologists, by no means most, hesitate to use sedative-hypnotics with seniors. My first TKA was done with all three; my second a few months later with a different anesthesiologist, skipped the Versed. My experience both times was awakening fully very quickly.
The only difference was that with Versed I had no memory of the administration of the spinal (that very short term amnesia with even low dose, mild sedation is considered a benefit - which is why my dentist uses benzos for oral sedation with highly anxious paients, and it was used IV for my cataract surgery).
Without Versed I have a crystal clear memory of receiving the spinal (it was NOT painful or traumatic!), which was good because it let me remember the anesthesiologist casually mentioning I have mild scoliosis.
General anesthesia does have a significant positive correlation with higher risk of developing cognitive impairment, according to the majority of studies referenced on the NIH website. The risk may increase with repeated use.
Some orthopedists use an IV form of general anesthesia called propofol.
In a study with mice who were primed for Alzheimer's (AD) via the APOE4 gene , propofol was associated with cognitive impairment and amyloid pathology. So for people with that genetic predisposition to AD, this may be a risk factor to consider. It's by no means a cut-and-dried issue as this is one small study, and in cases where general anesthesia is warranted, propofol really has become the standard at least in the USA as it's short acting and safer than older inhaled forms.
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Kritterkiddo
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Kritterkiddo
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One year one month twenty days
Not happy.
I was happy most of this time. My hip was pain free at my one year checkup. My broken toe is healed.
So why am I having difficulty walking?
When I step onto my left foot there is a sharp pain in that quadracep. It makes me roll over to the side. I walk like half a gorilla.
Every once in a while the sharp pain is in the hip joint.
Peace
Not happy.
I was happy most of this time. My hip was pain free at my one year checkup. My broken toe is healed.
So why am I having difficulty walking?
When I step onto my left foot there is a sharp pain in that quadracep. It makes me roll over to the side. I walk like half a gorilla.
Every once in a while the sharp pain is in the hip joint.
Peace
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Oh no!
You may want to do two things:
Check in with your ortho and see if xrays show any implant issues.
Find a non-surgeon specialist who can assess for potential soft problems (it's more often soft tissue - muscle, tendon, bursa stuff or a structural imbalance - than an implant issue):
sports medicine doc, physiatrist (physical medicine doc), pain specialist, or even a doctorate-prepared PT.
Please stay in touch on this.
You may want to do two things:
Check in with your ortho and see if xrays show any implant issues.
Find a non-surgeon specialist who can assess for potential soft problems (it's more often soft tissue - muscle, tendon, bursa stuff or a structural imbalance - than an implant issue):
sports medicine doc, physiatrist (physical medicine doc), pain specialist, or even a doctorate-prepared PT.
Please stay in touch on this.
