TKR New Year, New Knee - Jan. 3, 2017<
- Thread starter jaschembra
- Start date
It nice that you won't ever have to worry about crumbling cement like the rest of us do. It's going to be worth it once you are healed.
Kayaknlady
member
I see you at the gym almost every day. I know how hard you’re working at your recovery. You’re doing everything right to make it work. I’ve known people who couldn’t tolerate screws/ pins in fractures for whatever reason. When you see your doc, get a copy of the x rays should you want a second opinion. You have a legitimate concern and deserve some answers. Hopefully time will heal it all. You are improving. You can now tolerate exercise classes that you couldn’t a few months ago. I know you have to get this knee pain under control before you can do the other. I know a pain free knee would be the best gift . Hoping it will happen soon. You have been a great support to me
phrog
senior
@jaschembra , I agree with @SusieShoes - you are kind of my hero for keeping frustration in check. This surgery does bring up a lot of questions and the answers always seem to be that it takes time. My internist just put me on Meloxicam (I took the first one today) so I'll be interested to see if it helps with the inflammation. She says she prefers Nabumetone, but my insurance won't pay for that until I give Meloxicam a try. Does it work for you? My SED rate is elevated and she wants to get the inflammation down.
liam2015
post-grad
@jaschembra ~ i hope you can get some answers at your jan. 4th surgeon appointment as to why you still have the swelling and low level pain. maybe by then you might turn the corner like a few of us have and the swelling will start to subside. i still have some swelling also but somehow my knee feels looser and slightly improved r.o.m. in the last 2 weeks; the most improvement i've noticed in a long time.
DebM
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Very sorry you are not progressing @jaschembra! We ‘snails’ have to have the patience of a saint but at the same time you need to see some ongoing improvement, however small.
I hope your review in January yields some answers, I think at 12 months still having similar symptoms in your ‘good knee’ as your bad and reasonable swelling would warrant some investigations - for peace of mind if nothing else.
I hope your review in January yields some answers, I think at 12 months still having similar symptoms in your ‘good knee’ as your bad and reasonable swelling would warrant some investigations - for peace of mind if nothing else.
cslasor
junior member
@jaschembra, I've been away from BS for a little while and seeing your post feels very timely. My LTKR is now 15 months old and hurts really bad down the outside edge of the knee when I try to walk or stand. The 7-month-old RTKR is much, much better than the older left knee so it's not just me - it's the knee. Like you I went back to the OS and they x-rayed it and the implant is perfect so their only idea was to gently exercise it.
In all fairness, exercise might help but first having a bad right knee and now a bad right hip (getting replaced Jan 4) kept me from doing the exercising I should have. So my hope now is after the hip surgery when I can safely start exercising I'll work on both the right hip and the left knee and see if it helps. If I still can't walk without knee pain by the time I return from a planned trip to Yellowstone this September, which will be 2 years since the surgery, I'm going to contact another doctor who has a reputation for fixing "bad" knee replacements and see if he thinks he can help.
So you're definitely not alone. The one-year-to-feel-normal guideline isn't always true and it is hard to be patient. Hang in there!
In all fairness, exercise might help but first having a bad right knee and now a bad right hip (getting replaced Jan 4) kept me from doing the exercising I should have. So my hope now is after the hip surgery when I can safely start exercising I'll work on both the right hip and the left knee and see if it helps. If I still can't walk without knee pain by the time I return from a planned trip to Yellowstone this September, which will be 2 years since the surgery, I'm going to contact another doctor who has a reputation for fixing "bad" knee replacements and see if he thinks he can help.
So you're definitely not alone. The one-year-to-feel-normal guideline isn't always true and it is hard to be patient. Hang in there!
OP
OP
jaschembra
post-grad
@cslasor Thanks for your comments. Did the same OS replace your RTKR that performed the LTKR? That's great that your newest knee is doing really well. The explanation for the pain going down the outside of my knee is the IT band so I stretch it daily and it feels better after I do. I still think that full zero extension (all of the time - not just when I have it stretched out) will help me and there is still time for that.
You hang in there too!
You hang in there too!
OP
OP
jaschembra
post-grad
I’ve discovered how to be pain free on my bionic knee: Spend an hour outside when the temperature is 15 degrees! It thinks there is an ice wrap on it and I feel nothing!! Now, during this time I was feeling my natural knee due to the OA.
Be on the look out for my 1 year report next week. OS visit is Jan. 4!
Be on the look out for my 1 year report next week. OS visit is Jan. 4!
Wow, I’m jealous you feel nothing in the knee outside in cold weather! My new knee despises cold weather and feels very big, tight and almost painful outside in cold weather!
OP
OP
jaschembra
post-grad
KarriB
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My TKR isn’t terrible in cold weather. I walked yesterday in 17 degrees. But what really bothers my TKR is cold water. Swimming in cold water is very uncomfortable and didn’t bother me too much before.
OP
OP
jaschembra
post-grad
I can't believe it will be a year in 4 days!
I have my 1 year follow up with my OS on Thur. Jan. 4.
I have some of my own questions ready to ask him:
- What is causing my continual, internal inflammation?
- The warmth - is this still normal to have at 1 year?
- Could I be having an allergic reaction to the metal?
- Are there any particular pieces of equipment that I should stay away from at the gym (that are not good for knee prosthetics)
@Josephine (and others...) I have my 1 year visit next week. I know he will take x-rays. I have some questions for him (I listed them in this post above).
Are there any other tests that can or should be done when someone is still having pain at 1 year?
Inflammation pain. In November, after visiting PT to treat Patella Tendinitis and IT Band Syndrome, his comment to me was "time" That it just takes time for these issues (inflammation & pain) to dissipate.
I don't just swell after a long day... it comes on after brushing my teeth and washing my face in the morning. That is how quickly the discomfort begins. My bionic knee literally feels identical to my OA knee except minus the bone/bone pain so I'm sure it's inflammation pain. Standing and walking are painful. Probably a consistent 1-3 on the pain chart. This week, I'm trying to not take any NSAID (Meloxicam) or Tylenol just so I can get a good read for my real, non medicated, pain and so he sees/feels the inflammation. The number may be climbing!
I have my 1 year follow up with my OS on Thur. Jan. 4.
I have some of my own questions ready to ask him:
- What is causing my continual, internal inflammation?
- The warmth - is this still normal to have at 1 year?
- Could I be having an allergic reaction to the metal?
- Are there any particular pieces of equipment that I should stay away from at the gym (that are not good for knee prosthetics)
@Josephine (and others...) I have my 1 year visit next week. I know he will take x-rays. I have some questions for him (I listed them in this post above).
Are there any other tests that can or should be done when someone is still having pain at 1 year?
Inflammation pain. In November, after visiting PT to treat Patella Tendinitis and IT Band Syndrome, his comment to me was "time" That it just takes time for these issues (inflammation & pain) to dissipate.
I don't just swell after a long day... it comes on after brushing my teeth and washing my face in the morning. That is how quickly the discomfort begins. My bionic knee literally feels identical to my OA knee except minus the bone/bone pain so I'm sure it's inflammation pain. Standing and walking are painful. Probably a consistent 1-3 on the pain chart. This week, I'm trying to not take any NSAID (Meloxicam) or Tylenol just so I can get a good read for my real, non medicated, pain and so he sees/feels the inflammation. The number may be climbing!
I’m sorry you are still having such pain. And very brave to stop the medications to test out how bad it can get.
I still have a lot of discomfort. I guess it is a level of pain, but it rarely makes me think, ouch type of pain, so I call it discomfort.
To be very honest, I lost faith in my surgeon shortly after finding Bonesmart, he usually tells me to do things Bonesmart says not to.
I hope you find some answers, and if not, that in time you will heal more and be rid of the pain.
If you’re not happy with this appointment are you considering another opinion?
I still have a lot of discomfort. I guess it is a level of pain, but it rarely makes me think, ouch type of pain, so I call it discomfort.
To be very honest, I lost faith in my surgeon shortly after finding Bonesmart, he usually tells me to do things Bonesmart says not to.
I hope you find some answers, and if not, that in time you will heal more and be rid of the pain.
If you’re not happy with this appointment are you considering another opinion?
OP
OP
jaschembra
post-grad
@Jockette Thanks. yes, I would say in a couple months if I’m not feeling some improvement I will seek a second opinion. At times I feel like there is this itsy bitsy improvement but boy, it’s as slow as molasses.
I too feel it is a strong discomfort. Going to add some Boswellia supplement to my Tumeric/pepper too.
What’s tough with the OS is... they can look at the X-ray and say everything looks good (which is great news) but they can’t make you feel better. When I saw him last, he mentioned some scar tissue could be in there (which is probably true as I tend to develope scar tissue pretty much with other surgeries) and he said, it may be phantom pain - well, I know it’s not in my head! lol
I need this knee to become my dominant knee so that I am comfortable going forward with the other knee. But more importantly, I need to feel better to use my surgeon again - or seek out another. And...I will most likely get the cemented implant as I’m not sure my body likes the additional hardware of screws with this one.
I want to be like @KarriB and have the pains go away over time with additional walking!!
I too feel it is a strong discomfort. Going to add some Boswellia supplement to my Tumeric/pepper too.
What’s tough with the OS is... they can look at the X-ray and say everything looks good (which is great news) but they can’t make you feel better. When I saw him last, he mentioned some scar tissue could be in there (which is probably true as I tend to develope scar tissue pretty much with other surgeries) and he said, it may be phantom pain - well, I know it’s not in my head! lol
I need this knee to become my dominant knee so that I am comfortable going forward with the other knee. But more importantly, I need to feel better to use my surgeon again - or seek out another. And...I will most likely get the cemented implant as I’m not sure my body likes the additional hardware of screws with this one.
I want to be like @KarriB and have the pains go away over time with additional walking!!
My surgeon has always been happy with my X-rays. He takes them at every check up.
I don’t say much about my discomfort to him, since I know from Bonesmart recovery can take a year or more, even for the partial I have. And I’m afraid he’ll either tell me to do more PT, or tell me my issue is because I stopped doing PT.
At my 7 month check up I did tell him I’d had a major set back at 4 months, a weekend with a very low toilet, and he was he was surprisingly understanding that I was slowly progressing from that set back.
Before he came in the room I had explained the same thing to his personal assistant and I asked her if this was normal to still feel that much discomfort (and I knew from Bonesmart that it was, after such a setback!) and she said oh no, it’s not normal.
Sometimes I throw questions at them just to see what they say. I get the truth from Bonesmart!
I think I did some serious damage that weekend that I am still recovering from.
I don’t say much about my discomfort to him, since I know from Bonesmart recovery can take a year or more, even for the partial I have. And I’m afraid he’ll either tell me to do more PT, or tell me my issue is because I stopped doing PT.
At my 7 month check up I did tell him I’d had a major set back at 4 months, a weekend with a very low toilet, and he was he was surprisingly understanding that I was slowly progressing from that set back.
Before he came in the room I had explained the same thing to his personal assistant and I asked her if this was normal to still feel that much discomfort (and I knew from Bonesmart that it was, after such a setback!) and she said oh no, it’s not normal.
Sometimes I throw questions at them just to see what they say. I get the truth from Bonesmart! I think I did some serious damage that weekend that I am still recovering from.
KarriB
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My RTKR leg is bigger now than my natural left leg. No one knows why and no one is concerned, not my OS or ID. There’s no additional pain in my TKR, it’s just bigger and I have a big muffin lump on the inside of my right calf just below my knee. I’ve decided not to worry about how it looks, because it’s working so well! I’ve always had ugly legs anyway.
@KarriB, I love your new avatar!
My tkr leg is also still bigger by normally 1/4 to 1/2 inches. I don't worry about it either. It's working fine and my pain is less than before surgery! That's what we aim for!
@jaschembra, my ankle gives me a lot more pain walking than my tkr leg does. I guess it might be a year to heal it, too. Bummer! I bet your non-cemented knee is taking longer to grow into the implant, thus hurting longer. I don't blame you for not wanting another one of those! But, I bet when it's finished, it will be a lot more stable than our cemented ones.
My tkr leg is also still bigger by normally 1/4 to 1/2 inches. I don't worry about it either. It's working fine and my pain is less than before surgery! That's what we aim for!
@jaschembra, my ankle gives me a lot more pain walking than my tkr leg does. I guess it might be a year to heal it, too. Bummer! I bet your non-cemented knee is taking longer to grow into the implant, thus hurting longer. I don't blame you for not wanting another one of those! But, I bet when it's finished, it will be a lot more stable than our cemented ones.
phrog
senior
@Jockette - I'm so surprised (and somewhat jealous) that your OS takes X-rays at every check-up. Mine does not and I asked about it at 7 months because I was having so much difficulty with both pain and weakness. He took them at 6 weeks out and he said he will take x-rays again when it has been a year at the end of February. Your attitude of not worrying about the discomfort is so admirable. Hoping the difficulty from the toilet incident resolves itself soon!
