TKR 1 yr 7 months post right TKR

bestcocker

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I had TKR 7 months ago. My ROM is great but I still have a lot of numbness on outside of knee. Still feels stiff and very tight. Some pain but not much. Is it normal for it to feel so tight?
 
@bestcocker
:welome: to BoneSmart. Please can you give us the exact date of your surgery and we can create a signature for you.

Although you had surgery 7 months ago I will leave our guidelines, here you will find some interesting articles relating to your recovery.

Knee numbness is very common, the surgeon cut through nerves, muscles and tendons most realign but I was told that occasionally some don't, I too still have a numb patch and I'm past 10 months.

Stiffness & tightness is caused by swelling, what sort of activities are you doing on a day to day basis

Knee 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!)
don't overwork.
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
the BoneSmart view on exercise
BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy
5. At week 4 and after you should follow this
Activity progression for TKRs
6. Access these pages on the website
Oral And Intravenous Pain Medications


The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?
Energy drain for TKRs
Elevation is the key
Ice to control pain and swelling
Heel slides and how to do them properly
Chart representation of TKR recovery
Healing: how long does it take?

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds


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.
 
Many nerves were cut during this surgery so numb areas are inevitable. Most times they go away in a year or so. In the meantime, you will probably have what we call zingers. They are sharp pains that shoot through your knee like a lightning bolt. These are those nerves reattaching, healing, or rerouting. I still get mild ones in my numb areas occasionally. Amazing that after 4 years I'm still having healing going on!
 
My ROM is great but I still have a lot of numbness on outside of knee
That numb area is because nerves had to be cut to access your knee for surgery. This article explains:
Numb area after TKR: how long will it last?

Still feels stiff and very tight. Some pain but not much. Is it normal for it to feel so tight?
Complete recovery from a knee replacement takes a full year, so you're only just over half way there. That tightness should fade gradually, but it can take quite a long time.
For some people, tightness is one way in which they feel pain. For others, their knee feels tighter after a lot of activity - that's because of internal swelling.
Another cause could be this: "Tight band" feeling across the front of my knee
 
Where can I type in my surgery date? I was planning to have ltkr in January. I am getting more hesitant about it since I still have such tightness in the right knee
 
If you tell us your surgery date and which knee it is, we'll put it into your signature for you.
Just post it in this thread.
 
By the way, @bestcocker
You'll notice that I have merged your two threads together as we prefer that members in recovery only have one thread.

This is for three reasons:
1. if you keep starting new threads, you miss the posts others have left you in the old threads
2. it often ends up that information is unnecessarily repeated
3. it's best if we can keep all your recovery story in one place so it's easily accessed if we need to advise you.

Please keep all your questions and updates on this thread.
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.
Tagging other members and answering tags

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. Please will you do that?
 
Right TKR Jan 10, 2020 I am experiencing great flexion but a lot of hyperextension with soft tissue burning and feeling of tightness. No noticeable swelling. Unable to walk long distance. Pain and feels like it will lock up. Abnormal gait, severe rt sided low back pain. Surgeon just attributes hyperextension to the hypermobility I have in my joints. My left knee needs replacing but it does not hyperextend and as I've aged all my other joints aren't hyper-mobil like in my youth! I'm getting ready to try a brace meant for knee hyperextension. Anyone else have this problem? I am so sorry I had this surgery
 
I’m sorry that things have not gone well with your right knee replacement. Have you seen a different surgeon for a second opinion? If not, I suggest you consider it.

By the way, I merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread, as we prefer that members in recovery have only one thread.

This benefits you because all your information is in one place, easy to find, and maintains a nice journal for you.

This also benefits our staff, as your information is all in one place, and we often go back through your thread for previous details, so we know what you‘ve been through which helps us advise you better.

So, please keep all your posts in this thread. If you’d like a new title, let us know what you want, and we’ll change it for you. You can always bookmark this thread so you can find it easily.
 
bestcocker, if you have an abnormal gait, why not look into the One Step program? Click on the link below. This is an excellent program sponsored by BoneSmart and is, for now, free of charge.
 
I only read these and have had many surgeries, so based on that I would try to see a revision specialist who is not related to your surgeon to get another opinion. Good luck!
 

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