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THR Ready for the blessings coming my way...

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I am two months out and still can not touch my toes. I have zero pain anywhere and am riding 7 miles walking 2-3 a day.. So I am not concerned. PT says it is still early and that will come back:) feel well all.


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I am 7 1/2 weeks and haven't tried to touch my toes! I would be terrified I'd dislocate my hip or fall over! I think I'm at the point of having to accept we all recover at our own pace. I can't walk properly yet without a crutch... I waddle rather than limp... I think it's the leg length but I am being reviewed by my OS next week and should know more...

I still experience some pain it's not too bad but I take a paracetamol to hold it at bay. I am hoping that once I can swim next week it will help build up the muscles. . So time will tell. I am hoping to feel a little more mobile though soon and hopefully you'll feel your recovery is positive. .
 
Hi All!
I hope everyone is doing well. I have been coming around from time to time checking in on my old friends and reading posts, even though I haven't posted.

I have been doing really well. Getting about and pretty unlimited in what I can do. The only thing I was still working on was stairs. I had made some progress and was very hopeful.

Something happened yesterday that has me concerned and finding myself posting here because I know you all will understand. I was at PT. I was having what should have been my last evaluation by my therapist. He was checking my strength in operated leg. I was sitting on a table with my legs dangling over the edge. He place one of his forearms across the area above my knee for support and he put the little devise that measures strength over my ankle with his other hand. He said, "Now be careful with this knee." (I've had some pain/issues with that knee and he was aware. I had an MRI on it about a year ago that showed only very mild fraying. The surgeon said it's quite normal for most people to have that level of degenerative stuff in knee and said it's not something for which they would do surgery. The thought was maybe it wasn't tracking correctly and with building strength, it would hopefully improve.) The knee had improved so much over the last month or so, I'd hardly thought about it. Anyway, he said kick toward the sky (and like I said he warned me to be careful.) I kicked upward, surprised by my own strength. Right as I did this, there was a loud popping sound in my knee. I said, "Did you hear that?" He said, "Yeah." I asked what it could be and he said probably doesn't mean anything. I didn't really notice any major pain. Maybe a slight irritation, but I'm used to that happening occasionally and honestly didn't feel alarmed. I finished my pt (worked out hard on bike and treadmill- probably shouldn't have done that.) I noticed about an hour after getting home that my knee was hurting. It got worse and worse. It was even a little swollen. I iced it on and off all last night and stayed off of it. I woke this morning and said a prayer that the pain was gone. I got up and "Oh No!" I had a major limp and it was hard to walk on. I just can't believe this. I was FINALLY getting back to normal. For the first time in years, we were going to be able to travel soon. I just can't help but think the worse. My husband says, "Just think positive. Assume this is not a permanent injury and that you'll be back to normal in a few days." It's just so frustrating. What are the odds!?

Well, I guess I thought I'd just come by and say, "hello" to everyone and give you an update. Other than this crazy knee thing, I have been doing great. So glad I had the hip replacement!
 
@younghippie , this make my blood boil! Why exactly was this "test" needed? Was this for your hip? Never heard of it! If your PT knew the knee was weak why on earth would they be even suggesting you do this?

Have you tried icing and elevation? I'm going to tag @Jamie and see if she has any ideas.
 
Hi @Jaycey Thanks for your reply. Yes, it was testing my strength in the muscles in upper thigh (which we had been working on... he was testing for progress). He has done it before and I had no problem with it. I have definitely had that sinking feeling like maybe he shouldn't have done it. Nothing worse than feeling like someone may have hurt you. I will say.... He is very careful, cautious and this hasn't happened before.
 
Hi @younghippie ! Sounds like you're doing fantastic - except for that darn knee thing! Prayers being sent your way that this was just a minor "blip" and that all will be well!
 
So pleased you are happy with your new hip but sorry that you have had this trouble with your knee since your PT....hoping that it's just a muscle popping.....I'm at a loss to understand why he needed to 'test the strength in that knee' as you were doing so well? Keep icing that knee......hope you are back to normal very soon x


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@younghippie this may not be anything like yours, but after my THR I was walking with my walker and felt a pop (don't know if I heard it), then excruciating pain down my leg, which made weight bearing painful.My pop was right behind the knee. I already had an OS appt for the next day. They x-rayed it to be rule out major problems and said it was a Baker's Cyst that ruptured- didn't cause any problems other than the pain. They gave me a cortisone shot to help with pain and it was better within a week. I was aggravated b/c I was making good progress in PT and had to slow down for a week.

I hope your answer is something simple, but I would recommend a call to the doctor to be sure. Sounds like life has really improved for you ( other than this)!
 
I certainly don't like hearing a therapist doing things like this that were not part of your treatment plan. I'm sure he thought he was helping but here you are in pain with your knee. The pop you heard and felt can be an indicator of problems and you will need to have the knee looked at if you don't see improvements in the next couple of days. Try the old standbys....rest, ice, elevation and take something for the pain on a regular basis. If it's not improving by next Tuesday morning, make an appointment to have it checked out. And, while you're at your surgeon's office be sure and let him know that this therapist was "winging it" when he gave you this test...warning or no warning, it was uncalled for.
 
Thanks everyone. I appreciate the advise and information. I think I miscommunicated what the therapist did. Every four weeks, the therapist evaluates my progress and reports it to my surgeon. This was part of that evaluation. He checks for strength, as that was part of the pt plan prescribed by my surgeon. He has me sit on the exam table with my legs hanging off the side and uses a devise that measures the pressure when you push forward against it. He places it on my ankle and has me push my leg toward each side, pull it back toward me and then kick up (I'm not actually kicking. He holds my leg, so it hardly moves. The device is held over the top of my ankle, keeping me from moving much.) I did move his hand up slightly, but there wasn't actually a huge amount of movement. However, the pressure or small amount of movement, caused a popping sound in my knee. My surgeon's office performs this same evaluation every time I visit. I think I must have described it in a way that made it sound unusual, but I don't think that it is. Does anyone know what I am describing? Have you had that evaluation performed on you? It checks for strength around your hip. My surgeon's office also checks for range of motion in addition to doing this. My pt does not check for range of motion because he is very cautious and doesn't want to push me past 90 degrees. Maybe he shouldn't have done it, but I didn't feel concerned. I am actually extremely cautious and have no problem speaking up for myself. I was really surprised that this happened. Thanks again everyone for the advise. If I don't feel better soon, I will call my doctor.
 
Hi @younghippie good to hear from you, sorry you are hurting....
this is probably unrelated, but my left knee makes a popping sound when bending called crepitus.
Could this be it?
 
Hi @MajorHeidi ! :)

I just googled crepitus. I am not sure if that is it.... but, it could be. It was a bit loud... but, there wasn't any immediate pain. I actually did a vigorous workout immediately afterward. I was surprised when I heard it, but I honestly didn't feel alarmed until later in the day when I realized I was having pain. I think hearing something and then having pain makes it worse somehow. Ha ha. I honestly don't know what happened. That knee has bothered me off and on for a few years. This is a little bit more inflamed and possibly sharper pain than I have experienced in a long time. Maybe it's just inflamed.

I am praying it subsides and I can enjoy all we had planned this fall. Thanks for replying. So good to hear from you. Can't believe it's been almost 5 months since my surgery and 6 since yours. Same thing @PuppyLove and @MsFit1 ! Can you believe we are this far out?! Seems like just yesterday we were all preparing for this!
 
Just wanted to update you guys on the knee situation. It is still bothering me, but is not as painful as it was 2 weeks ago. I went ahead and saw orthopedic surgeon about it. Long story short, at this point, it looks like I have a patella (or patellar) tracking disorder. My knee is not tracking correctly. They think the popping sound I experienced was likely my knee cap sliding over to the side (eww.) Then, my knee was further aggravated by the more intense (more intense than I have done in a while, that is) exercise that I did. I felt fine and pushed myself to do it. I thought I was supposed to be getting back to movement and normal activity, after all. The idea that it is a tracking disorder explains why I have had knee pain off and on with activity for many years now. Also, it explains why I had an MRI a year ago (for knee pain) with no signs of any considerable damage/issues. So, the doctor offered a cortizone injection and actually said that this is an issue that you have to treat with PT. I refused the injection and said I will come back for it if I don't have improvement in a few weeks. I was given pages of exercises I can do on my own or I can go back to PT if I want. I haven't decided what to do. Not sure if I should just stay away from PT. I was afraid of PT before my THR. But, then I found a place that is extremely conservative and careful. I improved a great deal with PT after THR. So, my opinion changed and I thought it was a good thing to do. I feel like I've had a major set back with this knee thing. My PT was careful with my knee and often asked if it was ok. I don't know if this is just one of those unfortunate things that happens or if I should be even more cautious with myself and slowly work on this on my own. I am trying to stay positive, but have been a little down. I had one really really great month before this happened. I was walking and doing so much. Now, I am limping again and having knee pain. It does seem to be slowly improving. So, hopefully this was just a setback. I guess I needed to deal with the knee at some point. It has bothered me since I was a teenager. I am a bit annoyed that I have been telling doctors about my knee pain for so many years and no one tried to treat me for a tracking disorder. Oh well. I will keep moving forward. I am praying that I will be healed and that this is not another surgical issue. Hopefully this will help someone who has a tracking disorder. There isn't a lot of info. out there about it. Thanks for your support, everyone! :)
 
So sorry to hear you are having problems. My knees make weird noises - I'll now have the OS check to see if it is normal. I hope the exercises work out for you and you can get to a pain free life!
 
Well, I don't have a tracking disorder, so I can't speak from direct experience. I think what I might do in your situation is go to PT a time or two, just to get started, and then do the exercises on my own for a while. If I reached a plateau with that or didn't seem to be progressing well, I'd go back and get more input. I do think a PT can help get you moving in the right direction, but I think there's a lot you can do on your own too once you get started.

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As you have confidence in your PT, it sounds reasonable to see him/her for a few visits. It is always reassuring to be in the hands of a medical professional you trust.. :(
 
@younghippie Sorry to hear about a knee tracking diagnosis, but if this is something that can be 'fixed' by
doing PT, then whew!!! I would definitely take the advice above and go to PT once/twice and get the exercises to help. That sure sounds like a reasonable approach.
Hope that makes you feel better real soon. Take care!
 
Hi All!

I had a dental emergency last night and have thought of you all, as I deal with the anxiety in my head today about infection. This is something that we all have to grapple with at some point after joint replacement. I cracked a piece of my tooth off yesterday, got an emergency appointment, met the dentist last night and he repaired it. He gave me the option of a rather large filling (that may only last for months to a year or two at the most) or a crown. He said the crown was admittedly more invasive, so the filling could be a slightly safer bet as far as joint infection concerns go. This was a bit scary to hear (usually everyone is trying to downplay any concerns about infection... he was openly discussing it and not just dismissing the idea...) So, I went for the large filling. I took 2,000 mg of amoxicillian (4 - 500 mg pills) about an hour to hour and half before the work began. He did it fairly quickly, about 20 minutes... but, I did see him wipe blood from my mouth which is unusual for dental work (for me.) So, I was getting freaked out by all of this. I had terrible anxiety last night worrying about infection and could hardly sleep. This morning my mouth is terribly sore and I am wondering if antibiotics should be continued? What is your experience? Have you had dental work within first months/year of THR? Were you given antibiotics? How much? Is just that one slug of antibiotics enough? I feel like I have a wound in my mouth, it is so sore. Just curious about others' experiences. Hope everyone is well! :)
 
Hi @younghippie - I too had to have dental work recently and it was very soon after THR, my OS told me low rate of infection among THR's and not to worry (of course, i still worry)...here's his antibiotic protocol: Clindamycin 150mgs. Take 2 tablets 1 hour before procedure Then 1 tablet 6 hours after the initial dose, for a Total of 3 tablets
 
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