PKR Loose implant!

[Archbarn28]

So I stopped PT and now wonder if I am in severe pain from not going?

I am moving around doing my home exercises but I have had excruciating pain just under my kneecap on the outer part of my leg. If I press there I feel an extremely sharp pain as I go lower the pain continues down to my ankle. I have had the sharp pain since surgery and it has grown worse recently. Sometimes the pain is so bad I feel like I need to go to the ER. I need to get better work starts soon and besides I'm tired of being in pain help!

 

[Jockette]

I’m sorry you still have such s high level of pain. I am going to tag @Josephine, our forum administrator and nurse director to address your concerns.

What kind of home exercises and activities are you doing? Just because you are not going to a PT facility doesn’t mean you can’t overdo the exercises. Some of us get a huge list of them to do.

 

[Archbarn28]

I am mostly doing hamstring stretch, calf stretch, bike, ankle alphabet. I'm walking around but I don't think I'm overdoing it. I seriously think something inside is broken or misaligned it just does not feel right. I made another appointment with my Ortho surgeon but I'm afraid he will just say the last xrays looked good and it takes time to heal. Should I ask to get an MRI? I tried to attach a photo of where my pain is mostly,
but it said file was too lg.

 

[Jockette]

Cut back on those exercise and let your knee rest and heal. Most of us don’t think we are overdoing things, but the knee disagrees, and the knee has the final say.

What is ankle alphabet?
How long do you ride the bike?
Do you ride every day?

Two months post op is still very early in a 12 month, on average, recovery. This surgery causes a lot of trauma and pain, but some things we do can increase that pain.

I’m glad you made an appointment with your Dr. He may take a new X-ray. Mine took X-rays every time I went.

Were you told that partials have quicker, easier recovery? If so, many of us partials don’t find that to be true. I sure didn’t!

 

[Josephine]

Would you show me where you have this pain using this chart?

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?

 

[Archbarn28]

Yes of course. How do I fill out the form?

 

[Jaycey]

How do I fill out the form?

The instruction are on the little image on the left. Just pick your pain point and note the grid references as illustrated in the example.

 

[kneeper]

I'm not sure why they're having you do the ankle alphabet unless you had an ankle injury/stiff ankle.
I'm glad you will see your OS to see what's going on with this pain.

 

[Archbarn28]

Hey all! Went back to my OS and described my pain. He seems to think I have a lot of scar tissue. He also gave me a cortisone shot that did nothing. Went back for a follow up and he decided to do an MRI. Here are the results. I have absolutely no idea of what they mean. Hoping someone here will. I see him in a few days but am curious about my results since I am in constant pain!

FINDINGS: There is a minimal knee joint effusion. No Baker's cyst or fluid collection is seen around the knee.
There is focal change in the medial compartment consistent with unilateral arthroplasty. This creates some signal artifact.
Within the limits of the study, the anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament appear intact. The lateral collateral ligament complex is normal. The popliteus tendon is intact but surrounded by fluid. The iliotibial band is not thickened.
No lateral meniscal tear is seen. The lateral articular cartilage is intact.
In the patellofemoral joint space, there is mild thickening of the patellar tendon. There is focal abnormal signal in the quadriceps tendon just proximal to the insertion onto the patella. Attention sagittal image 12 of series 9 and axial image 5 of series 10. The articular cartilage is thinned in the patellar facets with focal subchondral changes. Similar findings are noted in the femoral trochlea. Minimal edema is seen in the inferior one half of the patella.
Compared with the prior CT, the changes in the quadriceps tendon and patellar tendon are new. There is a decrease in the size of the knee joint effusion compared to the prior CT.

IMPRESSION:
1. There is a minimal knee joint effusion.
2. There is degenerative change noted in the patellofemoral joint space as above.
3. There is thickening of the patellar tendon consistent with chronic patellar tendinitis.
4. There is focal thinning and abnormal signal in the quadriceps tendon just dorsal to its patellar insertion. Correlation with physical exam is recommended.
5. The lateral compartment is unremarkable.

 

[sistersinhim]

@Josephine, will you look at Archbarn28's MRI results?

 

[Josephine]

He seems to think I have a lot of scar tissue.

Surgeons always seem to think there is a lot of 'scar tissue' when there's really not.

1. There is a minimal knee joint effusion.
2. There is degenerative change noted in the patellofemoral joint space as above.
3. There is thickening of the patellar tendon consistent with chronic patellar tendinitis.
4. There is focal thinning and abnormal signal in the quadriceps tendon just dorsal to its patellar insertion.

These three indicate there is something amiss such as chronic inflammation.

5. The lateral compartment is unremarkable.

It's their way of saying "I see nothing wrong".

 

[Archbarn28]

So, I guess there is nothing wrong? Sure doesn't feel that way! I don't want there to be anything wrong but I do want an answer to why I am in constant pain!

 

[traceys]

Because you had major surgery and it’s not getting a chance to heal.

Time and patience. It took forever to get where you needed the kr. It’s gonna take time to recover too.

 

[Jockette]

Were you told that recovery from a partial would be quicker than from a total? Many of us are told that, but it didn’t happen in my case.

Was your other partial an easier recovery? Many members report that their two knees have very different recoveries.

You are still in very early days in this one year, on average, recovery. Where you are now is not where you will end up.

 

[bowhunter8]

I remember at 2 months(ish) after my partial I had some serious pain on my tibia side where my replacement was done and it went half way down my leg. I too thought something was wrong as I wasn’t able to walk much without a lot of pain. I didnt do any formal PT and didn’t think I was overdoing it. I rested on the couch, iced ALL thE time, elevated and used my TENS unit for over a week and did zero exercises until I felt ready too. It went away and I haven’t had it since. I remember others telling me similar events around that mark. I am around 4 1/2 months and I just got in a bike for the first time last night with no issue, not sure all my soft tissue would have liked that at 2 months. I’m my case I thought it was absolutely ridiculous that I was doing too much, I mean I am a healthy 34 yo male who is very active for crying out loud but after I basically just stopped moving around so much, I felt better.

I know everyone pushes PT very hard and I have received criticism from some of my friends in the medical field for not going to PT but if what you are doing is hurting you then it may be a good idea to back off until it feels better and gradually work it back in.

I really hope your pain dies down!!

 

[NavyGunns]

Very well said @bowhunter8 !

 

[Dolly Girl]

This person is delusional or sick. Stay away, find another PT or do it at home. She's hurting you mentally and physically. It's up to you to put an end to this abuse.

 

[Archbarn28]

Hi after months of seeing Drs. and misdiagnosis as well as severe pain and depression, I finally found out through my pain mgmt specialist that my implant appears to be loose. Of course my Ortho Dr is away for a week so I was wondering what exactly this means to me? More Surgery?
Less activity?
Help!
Not sure what to do now!

 

[Josephine]

What it means for you definitely is another surgery but it would probably be better if it was a conversion to a total knee replacement. Partials don't do well have those little implants replaced. So make sure your surgeon doesn't plan to do that.

As for time, it should be okay to kind of live normally and maybe even for a few months but you will need to go easy on it to avoid the worst pain.

As it happens, I too have a loose implant. My symptoms started last summer and my surgeon was a bit casual about it. I asked him outright if something was loose and he said "naaah! But if it gets any worse, come back". Two months later I went back and got a bone scan - it was confirmed! So now, like you, I am waiting for a surgery date but this being good old UK NHS, looks like I will be waiting 7-10 months! Hope you don't have to wait that long.

Call on me if there are any questions you want to ask and I'll do my best to answer them.

 

[Pumpkin]

@Archbarn28
You'll notice that I have merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread. For several reasons, we prefer that you only have one recovery thread:

• That way, we have all your information in one place. This makes it easier to go back and review your history before providing advice.
• If you keep starting new threads, you miss the posts and advice others have left for you in the old threads, and some information may be unnecessarily repeated
• Having only one thread will act as a diary of your progress that you can look back on.

So please post any updates, questions or concerns about your recovery here. If you prefer a different thread title, just post what you want and we'll get it changed for you.
If you need an urgent response to a question, just tag a member of staff.
How to tag another member; how to answer when someone tags you

Here are the instructions on finding your thread, How can I find my threads and posts? . Many members bookmark their thread, so they can find it when they log on.