PKR PKR-5 weeks

Gnu

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Had PKR on 11-8-19, its been about 5 weeks now and doing really good on therapy. Started work after three weeks from the surgery. Therapist said yesterday I didn't need to go in anymore since my range of motion excellent now. They measure 141 degrees and off by 1 degree for a straight leg. Still working on that, hoping in the next week but the welling seems to prevent me from getting there. Goal is to get to 150 degrees, so I can sit down on my feet like my other leg. My main problem I am having is the frequent bathroom trips at night. Was waking me up every hour, at night, and barely go. Been to a eurologist and they have done several test. First time they found blood in the urine and prescribed antibiotics. Took those for ten days and was still having the same problem at night. They then did blood work on the prostate and the levels were normal. Doctor then prescribed tamsulosin I take in the evening and this has helped we to sleep longer. Not a fan of meds and don't want to have to take this for the rest of my life to solve this problem. Was wondering if anyone has had this problem and if it clears up on its own over time. Before the surgery I've never had these problems before. Was also wondering on how long it normally takes for swelling to go back down.
 

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:welome: Sounds like you're doing pretty well.

Look out for overdoing exercise, your ROM is brilliant for so close to surgery, no need to push just persist.

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
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​

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

5. Here is a week-by-week guide for Activity progression for TKRs
6. Access these pages on the website

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.
 
I'm not very familiar with your areas of concern however someone more knowledgable will post soon! Seems to me you're doing great on your ROM at only 5wks into you recovery. Congratulations!

Hoping for satisfactory results in your recovery soon~!
 
My main problem I am having is the frequent bathroom trips at night.
Many people have a problem with frequent urination or temporary incontinence just post op. However at 5 weeks out I doubt if this is related to your surgery. I would continue to work with your specialist to get this resolved.
Was also wondering on how long it normally takes for swelling to go back down.
Are you icing and elevating your op leg. Ice for at least 45-60 minutes several times per day. The swelling should decrease. However it is not unusual to have swelling to some degree many months post op.
 
Letting you know the progress so far at six months from surgery for the partial knee replacement. Was able to get full range of motion with my foot all the way to my back side. Took six weeks to do that. But still stretching it back there to keep my range of motion. The frequent bathroom trips eventually went away a little after six months from surgery. The urologist couldn't find anything wrong with me either after all the tests I went through. Exercising with resistance bands for the last three months to improve strength in the legs. Still have some slight stabbing pain at the top left and bottom of the knee cap. Can feel this when the knee is at 90 degrees and moving slightly forwarded. Hoping this goes away soon. Don't see any progress with the numbness area after surgery. Hoping that gets better in time. Main thing that is bothering me right now, is the crepitus under the knee cap. Started feeling about three months after surgery and it seems to get louder these past couple of months. Was wondering if this will go away in time. Or if anyone has had success with surgery to remove the crepitus. Not sure what is causing it. Didn't have it prior to the surgery.
 
Main thing that is bothering me right now, is the crepitus under the knee cap. Started feeling about three months after surgery and it seems to get louder these past couple of months. Was wondering if this will go away in time.
Do you feel pain with this crepitus, @Gnu , or is it just a noise? If it's just the noise, there's not much need to worry:
Clicking/clunking knee joint after surgery

If you do have pain with the crepitus, it would be a good idea to see your surgeon again.

Unfortunately, sometimes when you have a PKR arthritis can start to affect other compartments of your knee Which compartment of your knee was replaced?
 
Medial side of the right knee. Didn't have crepitus before the surgery. There is no pain from the crepitus but it is really loud. Does it go away in time or is there a possibility of having surgery to remove it?
 
The crepitus should go away, given time. If it doesn't, or if you start to feel pain with it, contact your surgeon.

At this stage, there is no surgery necessary, because you can't operate just to take away a noise. If it becomes painful, this may be a sign that you are developing osteoarthritis that is roughening the cartilage behind your patella and you may need to consider revision to a TKR. Hopefully, that will be a long way into the future for you.

If it's any comfort, a lot of people who have complained about the noises their knee makes have been told by members of their family that they are not nearly as aware of the noisy knee as its owner is.
 
Happy new medial PKR. I’m a big believer in asking the ortho surgeon.
I had a medial ligament sprain in the leg I have a lateral PKR in. And then had some fluid collect as the sprain slowly healed. After that, I suddenly had what seemed to me to be clicking in the front of the knee. It turned out that it was just the lateral PKR adjusting to the lack of cushioning fluid that had been there with the sprain. It gradually subsided.
I think it is @Sara61 who had clicking for a very long time after her TKR. Always good to ask. Guessing just makes me worry.
PS I have 2 lateral PKRs and am quite happy with them. I have also been told that you can have lateral and medial pkrs in the same knee; that it used to be you just replaced the partial with a total, but now the thinking is to hold on to the natural, 3 compartment structure of the knee and as much bone as long as possible. I am not an md or an os, but am of course interested in finding about as much as possible about the ever-changing medical advancements.
Good luck, @Gnu Let us know what happens. We all learn from each other.
 
Hi Gnu as @marieltha mentioned the day after surgery I notice a click, initially it really bothered me, I was convinced my surgeon had,had one glass too many at lunch and had badly aligned my knee joints but the great folk on here reassured me that knee clicking is very common, fast forward 7 months it is still present in certain movements most of the time I hardly notice it - hopefully it will disappear in the future.
If you have pain then best consult your surgeon /doctor otherwise try not to fret with time it should lessen. Xx
 

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