TKR Queasy, sick feeling

[gr82cu2]

Hi Sel, yes it gets better but takes forever it seems. My left knee is now 26 weeks post op and it is gone from that knee finally. The right one is 14 weeks behind and feels it still. There is hope so hang in there.

I still don't have my normal stamina back and I iced and elevated both knees far longer than 7 weeks. It's only been in the past few weeks that I've backed off on the icing although when I'm sitting, 90% of the time my legs are up on the recliner foot rest. With my 12 week old knee (right) the swelling is pretty much gone and doesn't seem to return now with activity and I got to feeling like I was at a point where icing was just making it stiff......and COLD! So, I rarely ice now but at 7 weeks you probably need to still do some. It's a great pain reliever and fire putter outer My right knee especially felt like it was on fire for the longest time.

Your flex is great! When you walk try and concentrate on taking full, normal strides. Heel, toe, stretch that leg behind you, heel, toe, stretch. You'll get there.

 

[Sel]

Hi everyone!
I am 10 weeks, those early weeks of pain and frustration seem so far away now, thankfully. My flex has improved to 125, my goal is to reach pre op of 140. Getting in and out of cars is still awkward, probably due to my long legs.
Couple of questions: if I have swelling it is above my knee and lateral. I occasionally have what feels like strong pressure against my knee, mid patella and lateral, any ideas why?
The heavy band of weight across my knee isn't as prevalent, but comes back with activity, although the pressure mid patella is present more often. I take Tylenol when it's really uncomfortable, and ice regularly, and always take an ice pad to bed with me.
Secondly, what is with the "clunking" sound coming from knee. No one else can "hear/feel" it but me unless their hands are on my knee. It is creepy and weird. Is this going to be a forever feeling?
Activity level has increased greatly and without the awful OA pain!!! I still need what I call my energy recharging, where my knee needs a time out.
I am so happy to be feeling optimistic about activities again that I signed up for Pickleball in the spring. Sorely missing my competitive tennis days, Pickleball fills that void without the wear and tear on my new knee.
Thanks as always for your advice!

 

[vinny]

Hi @Sel ..you learn something everyday from bonesmart ..yesterday I learned what the child's pose in yoga is and today I learned what pickleball is! I can address the clunking as I have clunked in both legs since day one 14 weeks ago except for a four day period where it disappeared only to return...it does not hurt but I agree it seems weird and my OS says that more than half of us experience it and unless it is painful not to worry as it often goes away..it is more prominent in the morning for me and I can walk for long periods without felling it and then it returns....the most common explanation I have received is that it is due to ligaments,tendons and everything else still getting tight ...I am not so sure but there is no pain..
I had tightness above the patella on the quad tendon on both legs which has gone now at week 14 and I believe it may have been where the internal sutures were knotted or perhaps the tendon when the patella was flipped back over after the button was installed.....I walk the golf course 4 times a week and by the 4 th time I need a break as my right leg(much worse before surgery) gets tired....your ROM is great and it may be hard to get much more...like you I am thrilled with the outcome(except clunking) and activity is increasing with no pain...I still ice too....Best wishes

Vinny

 

[Sel]

Vinny, you are the best! Thanks for the encouragement and advice.
First Pickleball and then I'll be back on golf course!

 

[Celle]

Couple of questions: if I have swelling it is above my knee and lateral. I occasionally have what feels like strong pressure against my knee, mid patella and lateral, any ideas why?
The heavy band of weight across my knee isn't as prevalent, but comes back with activity, although the pressure mid patella is present more often. I take Tylenol when it's really uncomfortable, and ice regularly, and always take an ice pad to bed with me.
Secondly, what is with the "clunking" sound coming from knee. No one else can "hear/feel" it but me unless their hands are on my knee. It is creepy and weird. Is this going to be a forever feeling?

The swelling can move around. I don't know why. I think it's just different parts of the knee joint. You're doing the right thing in treating it with ice - you are elevating and resting too, aren't you?

As for the clunking - it's just that your soft tissues and cartilage have been replaced by metal and plastic and they sometimes make a noise as you move. As long as you're having no pain, don't worry about it.

My right knee replacement is over three years old and it still clunks and clicks from time to time. Surprisingly, my left TKR, at only 5 months out, makes less noise.

I don't know if you will have the clunking for ever. Some people find it goes away as they recover. Others, like me, seem to be stuck with it for longer.

 

[Sel]

Celle,
I am icing A LOT still. I have to admit as my energy and stamina return, I do forget to rest until my knee demands it. I have occasional "bad" days where I seem to spend more time icing and resting, although those are becoming father apart.
That is discouraging about the clunking. I really don't enjoy it.
To make it worse my "good knee" is becoming more painful and is clicking like crazy while riding my bike!
People will hear me coming!
Thanks for the advice and helpful comments!

 

[Sel]

Rode 5 miles on this beautiful 77 degree day, loved it!
Tomorrow back to wintry mix and high 30's, so back to my trainer inside.
My question for the day is, when if ever does the stiffness go away?
I am 2 1/2 months this week and when I wake up throughout the night and in the morning, really stiff, when I first start pedaling, really stiff. My ROM is 130, so I don't think it's a case of flexion. Even though the stiffness disappears with movement, it's uncomfortable. I still ice several times a day, and take Tylenol when needed.
I'm gaining strength daily, although fatigue still creeps on me.
With all the good from my Right TKR, my left is starting to complain loudly, don't think I can go through this again anytime soon!

 

[vinny]

@Sel I am 4 months out and getting out of bed in the morning is about the only time I know I have new knees..lot of clunking some of it audible...other than that no problems...you have great ROM and as they say you will keep on getting better for upwards of a year....when my OS talked me into a bilateral one of his reasons was not everyone who does one goes back for the second...I asked him why and he said "it hurts" fortunately for me I have had very little pain since almost day one and never needed any pain meds which I have come to see is very abnormal..I do love ice though..

Vinny

 

[Celle]

The stiffness is normal too, I'm sorry to tell you. It will go away gradually, but not quickly.

I've found that I am much more aware of the noise my knees make than anyone else is. While I'm aware of it, my husband doesn't notice, even when he's quite close to me.

 

[SeptemberZen]

Reading this with interest! The stiffness is so bothersome! Most days my pain is between 1-3 except at night when it ramps up to 7-8, waking me up, so I use much less pain meds than I used to. But the stiffness is a bear. In the mornings, I have to make a point of slowly bending the knee up and down, and when I walk with the cane, I have to slow down and MAKE myself try to walk with a normal gait. At 6 weeks post-op, I assumed that this would be over soon, but.....I guess not!

 

[Celle]

I guess we all expect to recover faster than we do. Patience isn't easy when we want to get back to a normal life.
However, it really does take up to a full year before everything inside is completely recovered. The stiffness is part of that and it can persist for ages.

My latest TKR is almost 6 months old now and it still gets stiff if I sit or lie in one position for long. It wears off after I take the first few steps.
I still get a few aches from the knee as well, just to remind me that it's still recovering. However, Ill accept those as a good trade-off, as what I feel now is so much better than what I felt before the TKR.

 

[Awriterafoot]

Reading this with interest. Thanks for that time line, @Celle, and the comments on the noise. I've grown used to hearing the slight noise my left knee makes, and I don't think the other one makes as much yet because it's still swollen inside.

I like hearing the reminder of a year's healing time. My left, six months old, still gets pretty tired and achy sometimes, partly because it has had to do more work since the right one was fixed. Now that the right is getting so much better, I'm remembering--oh, yeah. BOTH knees have been done, and both are still healing.

@Sel, I had mine done five months apart and have to say the two weeks ahead of #2, I was fretting and not looking forward to the recovery, but the fixed knee was already so much stronger and less painful that I knew I would be glad to just get it done.

 

[Sel]

Hello All!
So happy to report up to 7 miles biking feeling comfortable.
Walking now that's another story. I am one week shy of 3 months (how quickly time has flown since I feel better and am more mobile). I tried a 1.5 mile very slow walk the other day, came home and iced, a little tired but no worse for wear. Upped my slow walk to 2 miles, and was miserable the rest of the evening, through the night and better part of the day. Icing and Tylenol didn't do much to relieve the heavy lateral pressure at my knee joint.
So I'm guessing I need to keep the distance low for awhile longer? Wierd since, walking in shorter burst doesn't bother me at all. Any thought?
Thanks all!

 

[Awriterafoot]

The knee is in charge. Just listen. When she says back off, do that.