TKR Puffin is soaring into the sky

[Creeker13]

Oh my, Puffin... I lost track of you as work got crazy busy about the time you were having your surgery and I spent the summer coping with days on my feet and resting when I got home (sure I had time to rest ) I had to go back a few pages to catch up on your story.... Wow.... I hope you feel better soon , No one should have that many problems. It is no wonder you are feeling down. All I can say is it sounds like all is in order now and I am sending you fast healing vibes so you can move forward with no more setbacks.

 

[kneeper]

(((puffin))) Glad to hear you are home again. Sending healing wishes

 

[new knee in June]

Dear Puffin,
Hope you are doing well Good Luck on your app. On December 9, please keep us posted.
Thinking of you
Diana

 

[My way]

Hi puffin I have been thinking about you all day and wondering how things went with your appointment.
We are getting our first snowfall tomorrow! I wonder how walking is going to go????? I'm still nervous on wet slippery floors! can't imagine snow and ice. Should be interesting..........
Wanda

 

[new knee in June]

Hello@puffin,
Thinking of you & hope your appointment went well
Talk Soon,
Diana

 

[new knee in June]

puffin

 

[puffin]

Thank you so much my Bonesmartie friends for thinking about me - I have been in a lot of pain over the last week and not felt up to posting so much

I went to the hospital on Monday for my adhesion surgery follow up - of course being me nothing was straight forward and simple. I finally met the OS and found out that it had been a much more major procedure than originally planned which I knew nothing about. Instead of the "simple" keyhole 1cm/½inch snip they have cut up over half of my TKR scar as there were multiple adhesions, on multiple tissue levels going right down the the joint (would this be arthrofibrosis??). So good that I pushed for this procedure. So when they removed the waterproof dressing placed on my knee in surgery I found myself looking at around 20 staples

I had not even realized that I had staples and had not really prepared myself as I thought it would be a couple of stitches to remove - and in any case the staple removal following the TKR had not been too bad - how WRONG I was!! The staple removal was total agony The scar had scabbed a lot around the staples so to remove them the nurse had to rip through the scab - it has taken me almost 2 days to recover from this.....

The OS was please with my progress and he thinks it is better than expected (he admits not to being unsure that the level of damage would actually be repairable) He is not at all surprised about my continuing problems with walking unaided and wants me to focus on rehab for at least another 3 months to maximize the prospects of walking properly again

 

[kneeper]

Well that explains your pain level. (((puffin))) Fingers crossed for you that you get a good result. We're all pulling for you.

 

[puffin]

Oh dear - I am back in the ODIC today after trying to make a batch of chocolate chip cookies yesterday - I realized (rather too late as it happens) that the bootom oven shelf is a stretch too far for my weak quad - for a while I thought I was stuck

Ooops - I think I have become addicted to lussekatter (a Swedish saffron and raisin bun served for St. Lucia day and Christmas). They are soooo good

 

[My way]

OHHHH... they look good! Do you think you could pop over with a batch? I'll Put the kettle on now for tea.
It's amazing how we still get ourselves in the ODIC! Not so surprising for you as you are recovering from another round of surgery on your poor knee, but we don't learn.
Wanda

 

[puffin]

:iagree: Yes they are yummy.

It is amazing how tricksy the baking ODIC can be. The knee bend in itself does not look bad at first glance but it is the holding the knee bend to get the tray in/out and then to come up again - especially with a hot tray in one hand and willing the leg to straighten

 

[puffin]

Dressing came off yesterday - my scar is no longer so pretty as the OS had to cut around 60% of my TKR scar to access all of the adhesions (not the simple keyhole procedure that I was promised). The area still feels painful and bruised

The OS had to go deep into the muscle to get at all of the adhesions - I think her said something about muscle tissue and muscle fascia adhesions - Josephine does that make sense? Not always easy to follow a technical discussion in another language while the staples are being pulled out

 

[leejaa]

I do not know anyone who could follow a technical discussion even in the same language if their staples were being pulled out and had scabs on them to add to the procedure.

You are a great example of pushing for what you believe is right for you, good thing you pushed for the surgery and than they realized you had some major adhesions. At least now they are focused on making sure you rehab and get the best gait and function possible.

Best wishes for your recovery progressing better now. Take care and enjoy those lovely buns for all of us - they looked scrumptious. Lee:xmas-1:

 

[Josephine]

I think her said something about muscle tissue and muscle fascia adhesions - Josephine does that make sense?

"Muscle tissue" is the body of the muscle. "Muscle fascia" is the white, tough, shiny layer that covers the muscle. You can see this on the joint of beef below. What puzzles me is that these two tissues are designed to be adherent to one another so I am at a loss as to why he put it that way.

But many structures are designed to glide over and across one another like the examples shown in this xray around the quads.

 

[puffin]

Thanks Josephine - I think what the OS meant was that both the muscle fascia and muscle tissue was adhered to the TKR scar and the fat tissue above - and I think he also said the bone/joint. H was not expecting to go deep into the muscle fibres to release adhesions he thought it would be a simple 1 cm snip under the scar

 

[puffin]

Oh dear - I think that part of my adhesion might be back

I am finding this slow recovery really depressing now - beginning to wonder if I will ever walk again or if I am stuck like this

 

[kneeper]

 

[leejaa]

Oh puffin, I am so sorry. Did the doctor ever say what caused the adhesions and what to do after surgery to help slow down any growth. I am trying to remember who in this forum had great advice about adhesions and treatments and what to do after adhesion removal. I think it was @skigirll so I am tagging her and perhaps @rest assured might know as she has also had multiple issues so I have tagged her also.

We are here for you and have faith that eventually you will be over all this after so many years.

 

[leejaa]

I guess I will retag @skigirl and @RestAssured - since in my previous message I must have mistyped and it did not tag

 

[skigirl]

Puffin, I can so relate to a slow recovery!! When my doc cut out the adhesions which he said were extensive, he made me rest for a full three weeks. Then for an addional six weeks, I only did table exercises---leg lifts, clam shells, quad sets, sit ups, etc. I did almost no weight bearing exercises in the first eight weeks.

He cautioned me several times that anything that inflamed the knee---over doing it, exercise, standing for a long time---anything that made the knee "hot" would contribute to the regrowth of adhesions. I was terrified and so neurotic when it was all over.

I still have some adhesions---I hear them ripping when I do deep knee bends---but they do not affect the function of my knee, so i think it was all worth it---although in the middle of it, I was so bored!!!

I knitted a few hats, did lots of work in my studio and watched lots of movies.

My pt had me move the scar itself several times a day--sort of pushing it to the left and right and back and forth to make sure that no adhesions grew under the scar itself. So, you might try to mobilize you scar a little. You can see a video on You tube---what can't you find there? Let me know if I can be of any help at all to you.