TKR Now two years post op and still recovering from nerve damage

[BJ Mac]

Keep up the good work Margaret!

 

[bottomshollow]

and you Margaret are living proof that this is true. I remember that there were times when you thought you'd never get here---but you persisted and never gave up---and you have won!!!

 

[speccybecky]

Great! You have been patient and it is paying off

 

[Celle]

Hi Margaret,
You've been so patient and you've really got a good result - a living example of the story about the tortoise and the hare. The tortoise won through sheer persistence and steady progress.

I hope that the quad leg continues to improve.

Do let us know what your OS says next time you see him!



Caryl (Celle)

 

[Campervan]

Hi Celle, we delayed it until 7 March. It should have been December but flights aren't cheap then, so we left it till the new year and then I managed to get those Jetstar flights they had a while ago for $0 to get up to Auckland and $39 back, then paid $5 to choose seats so paid $49 return. General price is $178 return.

 

[karmigirl]

Hip Hip Hooray, Margaret.
Just never give up I think things can improve for a long, long time.

 

[Campervan]

Gaining ROM has taken so much time and getting 120 yesterday felt like I'd overcome such a big hurdle that I never thought I'd get over. This has taken so much time but when I read others posts about the post op pain for the first few months I feel so blessed because I never had such heavy pain, never needed narcotics, only paracetemol and diclofenac (so basically the Bonesmart Cocktail). Yes I've had various aches and muscle tensions that have given me grief but it hasn't felt like it was mad pain like others report. I've never felt like the implant felt foreign in my body, just felt I had a normal knee recovering from surgery. And my scar is now barely visible - I could wear shorts if I wanted to and I don't think anybody would notice. If you look at my knees they both look alike.

So now just the quad lag to resolve, but you know if this is it, I'm happy as I can walk for 3 hours/5 miles around my lovely mountains and lakes.

 

[Dhare63]

Congrats Margaret! You have come so far and sound happy to hit this milestone! Keep up the good work, you are an inspiration!

Cheers,

Dawn

 

[Celle]

Hi Margaret - good thing you delayed your appointment with your OS. You'll have your new, 120degree ROM to show him now!

 

[Campervan]

Wow, and triple WOW WOW WOW - today I walked a 5 mile loop track, not a gentle walk, BUT the most massive, steep, climb uphill. Elevation gain 390 metres. Not just a walk but foot high rocks to climb up. After a little while I realised I was leading up them with my non TKR leg so made myself use my TKR and you know it was easier with that leg.

We had quite a few "catch our breath" stops as sun was blazing and temperature 25 degrees C. Then at the top we had a picnic for around 45 minutes, so a decent break before the descent which wasn't as steep but still pretty tricky. Coming down I found I was stepping out on the incline much more than previous tramps.

Took us 4 hours 10 minutes including the break. So out tramping for an hour longer than any previous walk.

 

[Dhare63]

Nicely done Margaret!! Congrats, you sound like you are a free woman and can do the things you want to do...very inspiring!!

Cheers,

Dawn

 

[Celle]

Well done, Margaret!

What a wonderful day you must have had.
You'll have so many positives to tell your OS when you see him next month.

Caryl

 

[bottomshollow]

Way to go, Margaret!!!!! You are living proof that things can still get better and better even more than a year after TKR. I know you had a great time on that hike---and were still pumped some time after it was over.

Take care and keep us posted. We love these success posts and we care.

 

[Campervan]

Sitting in os waiting room feeling very nervous as to what he's going to say about continuing quad lag and the femoral head pain i sometimes get.

 

[gami]

Hi Campervan
thankyou for sharing your journey it is so encouraging for those of us just starting out with all the good, not so good days to hear rom some-one who is out there enjoying life with their new knee.

 

[1ELISEA]

Sitting in os waiting room feeling very nervous as to what he's going to say about continuing quad lag and the femoral head pain i sometimes get.

Hoping for you that it is something minor, Campervan!

 

[Campervan]

Well my earlier post was meant to say fibula head. Just shows my nerves while sitting in waiting room. I'll post report once i can get onto a computer.

 

[skigirl]

Great news, Margaret.

 

[Campervan]

So I saw the OS yesterday and spent 40 minutes with him. I'm 15 months post op. I'd had Xrays taken before I went in to see him. He said

- excellent cement-bone interface on both components
- knee cap sitting centrally and cement on components look excellent
- leg comes up nice and straight
- quad strength good, much improved from last time seen
- no swelling which he was really pleased with
- measured ROM at 120, with me sitting on side of the bed and ankle pushed as far back under the bed as I could get it.

I told him I still had two issues - 1) quad lag and 2) fibula joint area pain. He spent a lot of time evaluating these, particularly really thorough examination and reviewing the xrays.

- the quad lag is down from 20 degrees to 15 degrees, so slowly showing improvement. He was puzzled as to why the quad lag is still there as the strength tests show the quad is now quite powerful. He said mechanically he cannot see any problem with the knee. The offset of the patella is exactly where it should be. So its back to it being femoral nerve damage and given the improvement from 20 to 15 degrees suggested continuing to wait.

- fibula/tibia joint looks good and that on examination I'm not tender over the fibula head. He mentioned possibly the pain could be arthritis in that joint but he didn't think it was. He talked about a bone scan but given the high level of radiation involved felt we should wait 3/4 months before doing this given I had walked into a pallet of stuff with my foot about 10 weeks ago. Nothing shows up on he Xray.

He said keep riding my exercycle, swimming, water walking and climbing the mountains. He was impressed with the duration and terrain I'm handling now.

 

[Titianlady]

Campervan I'm so happy you had a great post op outcome!! You certainly have come a long way. Yes, it may take a bit more time for that quad lag to ge to 100%, but given the improvement, I just know you will!!! WAY TO GO!!!!!!!