OP
OP
meewee
junior member
United StatesHelp! Need advice about MUA. I'm continuing to recover from BTKR on Sept 29th. It has been a rough ride for me but I'm still (tentatively) glad I made the choice to get it done. Just call it Murphy's Law, but it seems like I've had many of the "fine print" issues, and now need to make a decision whether or not to have MUA on both knees.
During my hospital stay, and 10 day rehab, I had severe abdominal pain and some nausea and would mention it to every single nurse and doctor who cared for me. They explained it was likely from the meds, lying on my back for so long, digestive issues, etc. When they would ask me for my pain level, I'd say for example, knees 5, abdomen 6. Absolutely no one seemed concerned. I mentioned it every single time I went for PT.
I went home and had wonderful care from my family. The home health care nurse also dismissed my mention of abdominal pain. It was such that I could no stand anything around my waist. They had me on lots of Senna and laxatives, to the point I had severe diarrhea. I did the home PT and made pretty good progress, despite the pain. Flexion +/-100 and extension +/-6-8 on both knees.
Just before Thanksgiving, I was in such pain, I went to my primary care physician and told her I was just a mess. That is strong language for me, as I've always had a high pain tolerance and been quite healthy. She checked me thoroughly, and ran many tests from thyroid, to blood sugar, blood count, etc. She noticed from my online records that when they did the CT for my blood clot in the hospital (1 day after surgery), there were gall stones. No one ever mentioned them to me. I guess they were focused on the blood clot. She noticed my appendix was tender and scheduled a CT immediately. I had eaten that day, so the next morning I had a CT. It showed a thickened gall blader and a very very angry appendix. They scheduled me for Gall Bladder and Appendix removal (laproscopic, general anesthesia) on Dec 2. I had to wait that long to go off the Xarelto and start the Lovenox shots. The surgery went smoothly and even though it took about 10 days to recover, the recovery was so much less painful, it was heavenly.
Now I no longer have the abdominal pain, but have been to PT twice a week - they are very gentle and don't push me to the point of pain, just a bit uncomfortable. I started back to work 4-6 hours a day about 3 weeks ago. We're a small company and mine is mostly a desk job, and they have been very generous and understanding with me having THREE months off. At work I try to be careful to elevate and ice whenever my knees get sore, but I have to say I am very glad to get home and really take it easy.
At my follow up last week, the OS strongly suggested that I have MUA in both knees due to scar tissue and/or adhesions; that my knees are extremely tight and I won't go much further without it. Both my PT's agreed (separately) and that was a surprise for me. Last week at PT they only got +/-90 flexion, and +/-14 extension.
I want to do what is best for my recovery but am extremely anxious about another procedure. My right knee is more painful than my left. The pain never gets below about a 5 on that knee, even with meds. Left pain is 2-3. Walking actually feels pretty good (for short distances), but I have to work on keeping my posture straight as I can't extend fully. Standing for more than 1 minute is painful. I still haven't slept through the night.
Sorry for the long post, but I need to make a decision fairly quickly. The OS and my PT said I would be sore for about a week, but then progress quickly. Also said if he did it on a Thurs, I would be ok to go back to work on a Monday.
Any suggestions or advice is greatly appreciated. This forum has been a lifeline and I have read all the bone smart mantras and articles many times. I hesitated to add my experience because I did not want to discourage anyone from having a replacement. I think I've just had some bad luck!
Here's to good knees!
Meewee
During my hospital stay, and 10 day rehab, I had severe abdominal pain and some nausea and would mention it to every single nurse and doctor who cared for me. They explained it was likely from the meds, lying on my back for so long, digestive issues, etc. When they would ask me for my pain level, I'd say for example, knees 5, abdomen 6. Absolutely no one seemed concerned. I mentioned it every single time I went for PT.
I went home and had wonderful care from my family. The home health care nurse also dismissed my mention of abdominal pain. It was such that I could no stand anything around my waist. They had me on lots of Senna and laxatives, to the point I had severe diarrhea. I did the home PT and made pretty good progress, despite the pain. Flexion +/-100 and extension +/-6-8 on both knees.
Just before Thanksgiving, I was in such pain, I went to my primary care physician and told her I was just a mess. That is strong language for me, as I've always had a high pain tolerance and been quite healthy. She checked me thoroughly, and ran many tests from thyroid, to blood sugar, blood count, etc. She noticed from my online records that when they did the CT for my blood clot in the hospital (1 day after surgery), there were gall stones. No one ever mentioned them to me. I guess they were focused on the blood clot. She noticed my appendix was tender and scheduled a CT immediately. I had eaten that day, so the next morning I had a CT. It showed a thickened gall blader and a very very angry appendix. They scheduled me for Gall Bladder and Appendix removal (laproscopic, general anesthesia) on Dec 2. I had to wait that long to go off the Xarelto and start the Lovenox shots. The surgery went smoothly and even though it took about 10 days to recover, the recovery was so much less painful, it was heavenly.
Now I no longer have the abdominal pain, but have been to PT twice a week - they are very gentle and don't push me to the point of pain, just a bit uncomfortable. I started back to work 4-6 hours a day about 3 weeks ago. We're a small company and mine is mostly a desk job, and they have been very generous and understanding with me having THREE months off. At work I try to be careful to elevate and ice whenever my knees get sore, but I have to say I am very glad to get home and really take it easy.
At my follow up last week, the OS strongly suggested that I have MUA in both knees due to scar tissue and/or adhesions; that my knees are extremely tight and I won't go much further without it. Both my PT's agreed (separately) and that was a surprise for me. Last week at PT they only got +/-90 flexion, and +/-14 extension.
I want to do what is best for my recovery but am extremely anxious about another procedure. My right knee is more painful than my left. The pain never gets below about a 5 on that knee, even with meds. Left pain is 2-3. Walking actually feels pretty good (for short distances), but I have to work on keeping my posture straight as I can't extend fully. Standing for more than 1 minute is painful. I still haven't slept through the night.
Sorry for the long post, but I need to make a decision fairly quickly. The OS and my PT said I would be sore for about a week, but then progress quickly. Also said if he did it on a Thurs, I would be ok to go back to work on a Monday.
Any suggestions or advice is greatly appreciated. This forum has been a lifeline and I have read all the bone smart mantras and articles many times. I hesitated to add my experience because I did not want to discourage anyone from having a replacement. I think I've just had some bad luck!
Here's to good knees!
Meewee
