Revision TKR Lovetocookandsew’s long road to recovery

I had one after one of my surgeries and it does feel strange. Just a heads up on them...I found out the hard way that they are a one time use and the battery normally last 7 days. My appointments did not line up once and it stopped working. Of course it was on a weekend. The on call nurse had me go to the ER because she considered it wound care. After hours of hanging out for them to figure out what was going on with it they called the on call OS and was told just to take it off and bandage it. I had an appointment the next day any way...I just didn't want that saturated bandage from the Pico on my incision. If I had been able to get a hold of the OS I probably would have re-bandaged it myself instead of hanging out at the ER. I know better know and just wanted to let you know about the 7 days.
 
Thanks, @PegGar16 No one knew what the heck it was, either. So, if the battery starts to go, it'll beep non-stop? Do you have any clue as to what they're for?
 
It will just go dead, no lights or beeps. It is used to keep the moisture away from your incision. Hope it is OK that I copied & pasted this. Just didn't want you to go through the frustration that I did. :)

Single Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy
PICO represents a unique way of treating patients who would benefit from the application of Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT). PICO has been shown to provide positive patient outcomes when applied to open wounds, closed surgical incisions and skin grafts1,2,3,4.

The PICO system is canister-free which means the pump is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. This makes the system very discrete and portable for the patient to wear2.

The PICO pump generates an effective negative pressure of -80mmHg5and provides therapy for up to 7 days.

The PICO pump is connected to a conformable, innovatively designed dressing which:

  1. Is easily applied and removed, minimising skin trauma2 and delivers the negative pressure across the wound bed or closed incision1
  2. Designed to reduce the risk of pressure points and supports patient comfort 6,7
  3. Manages the fluid away from the wound or closed incision through a unique combination of absorbency and evaporation1,5.
Provided together as a convenient all-in-one-system, canister-free PICO supports patients in maintaining their daily activities. Patients may be safely discharged with PICO in place2,3,8, the size and simplicity gives confidence that they can manage the system at home2,3,8.

Health care providers can be confident in using PICO because PICO has been shown to lead to improved patient outcomes and utilisation of resources across a range of wound types and care settings2,3,8,9.

PICO is presented to provide a week (7 days) of therapy. In each carton there is one pump plus two dressings complete with fixation strips. This enables a dressing change to be carried out within the therapy life of the pump if this is clinically necessary.

Being single use, PICO can be kept on the shelf to allow easy access to the therapy when it's needed.

The PICO pump may be recycled at the end of the weekly cycle.
 
@CaliGirl I din't call you a nut....lol...but going up backwards does work well. I just can't do it myself...............well...........I suppose I could if I didn't mind tumbling head first off the step into the front of my car.......

Lol - I called me a nut! You should have seen the look on the physical therapist's face when I suggested going up backwards. She was baffled until she saw me do it - and saw how much easier it was for me. I also needed help bracing the walker, etc.

Is it really your birthday? Well, very happy birthday to you! :flwrysmile:
 
Thanks everyone for all the good wishes! While I can think of a lot of other things I'd rather be doing to celebrate my 60th birthday, I'm hoping that today's pain and the recovery still ahead, while certainly no fun, becomes a day to look back on and celebrate getting my life back!
 
I have gone down the stairs backwards for years, but never tried going up. I'm going to give it a try!
 
Back
Top Bottom