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TKR Sailor's Recovery Thread

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Good guess, smoking doesn't help healing. And age doesn't help much at all, I've found (!!)

I personally am a big believer in "wiring." I've seen trends in families, in my own family, that show that we are genetically programmed for certain tendencies, and I see a lot of people try to fix those issues with a change in diet and other strategies, and there's nothing wrong with that. But ultimately most of these issues persist for no apparent reason. Thus my theory that it's wired in. I'm not sure what a purple scar means other than it's typical for your stage. I think you are yearning to have the results of a year or more's healing but you're not there yet.

I'm also trying to remember if you had MUA. Sometimes when there's been adhesions, an effusion can hang around for a long time. (Mine seems permanent).

What will happen is one day when your knee is a little further along, and you've let go of some of your expectations, you'll suddenly have a knee that meets your expectations and will relax and start forgetting about knee things.

Are you sailing these days? The only boats on the water here are fishing boats (Maine lobsters). Our boat is parked in storage, and my husband just bought a 27' fiberglass sloop and sold his glassed over wooden Friendship. In May we'll start getting them ready for the season.
 
maryo52 ,
Thanks for the reply!
No, I never had an MUA. My ROM progressed from 78 on day of discharge to about 115 at 6 weeks with in-home PT. After 6 more weeks of O/P PT, it improved to 125-130, where it remains today.
The effusion is troubling, but I guess you are right. I need to have patience, and adjust my expectations.
The knee feels better this morning. Seems like less effusion, and less clunking. I took an Aleeve last night. I think it worked, but I'll have to continue to see if it's consistent.
My wife and I are debating if we want to put up the Christmas lights on the house this year. This will be the last dry weekend that we can do it, as it's supposed to turn cold & rainy next week. But I dread the thought of getting up on the roof with the knee problems. I can probably do it, but I may pay for it! We'll see...

Yes, I've been out sailing a few times in the last couple of months. We've had incredibly nice weather in Oct & Nov this year, although it is about to turn cold & rainy very soon. I was out last weekend, and conditions were perfect. 10 kt wind and 70 degrees! Full sail, and no reefing necessary. It was gorgeous!

Cheers,
Roger
 
Hi there SFBaySailor I think some candles in the window, a nice wreath on the door and a little greenery on the step would be fine. Don't push it.
Wanda
 
Hi, Wanda & Maryo,
Well, the Christmas lights are now up and the house is lit! I know, I should have heeded Wanda's advice. But it's a done deal now! It wasn't too bad to do, we only do 2 straight strands (red & white) across the front of the house. No pain while I was doing it, and hopefully, I won't pay later to the ODIC. At least right now, there are no problems!
I feel like I've accomplished a little goal, and it was fun to do. My wife & I have always enjoyed putting up the lights and the tree. So I'm officially in the Christmas spirit now :) No more whining for a while!

Roger
 
[Bonesmart.org] Sailor's Recovery Thread
Hope you and yours have had a wonderful Christmas holiday with lots of family fellowship and sharing of gifts and lots of good food to eat.


I’ll be looking for you at the BoneSmart annual New Year’s Party. It’s been a very eventful year for most of us---and will be a very eventful year coming up for others of us looking forward to surgery in the new year.


Remember to bring food and drink to share---and pictures are always appreciated and loads of fun to share.


SEE YOU AT THE PARTY!!!!!
[Bonesmart.org] Sailor's Recovery Thread
bottomshollow
 
I felt like I had extra swelling in my knee and I did visit a person experienced in lymphatic massage. I'll be honest, she brought out this "wrap" that looked like foam rubber with a muslin outer surface and told me to put it on every night. To say I was skeptical would be a gross understatement!! But, I did put it on---and I was absolutely shocked!! I wore it faithfully when at rest for a month and the swelling went down substantially. I still can't really believe it!!

Sometimes when i am skiing, I get some swelling on the inside of my knee. I now wear a light knee brace when skiing and that seems to have helped a lot. I also use unscented Aspercream on the knee.

Finally, if the effusion does not go away, it is time for some professional help--get your OS to chime in with his opinion.
 
@skigirl
Thanks. My OS has discharged me until my 1 year mark. How long do you think I should wait until seeing him? I am now at 8 months post TKR, and there is still the effusion. The TKR knee is also considerably warmer than the other. I measured a 10 degree difference with an infrared thermometer. Also, the clunking sound has gotten much worse, and the knee feels generally looser than before. I'm thinking there may be a possible misalignment.

Roger
 
Hey sailor. Just up the 101 from you. Im pre op till February 10. Than ill be on the otherside. Havent been able to read your whole thread today im in a rush. Off to sqauw valley. I have never been in snow in my life. Occasional frost doesnt count. Your thread started very positive with great ROM than you had a aggressive OPT. Causing muscle pain. Skipped a couple of pages than talk of mua , effusion? Loosining and clanking sounds. Thats terriable. Can u fill me in on what happened ? Best of luck. I skipped putting lights up this year. It will be my goal for next Christmas.
 
@icep707
Thanks for the reply. Yes, I'm in the South Bay. Sonoma is beautiful, I love going up there.

Yes, I had overly aggressive PT at the end, and it caused a mild case of tendonitis in the quad area. But I am over that now, and I don't think it's related to my recent issues. Basically, the knee doesn't seem to be healing properly. It is still very warm, it has increased effusion, and it feels looser. I also have increased pain all around the knee, and in the tibia bone. The pain is not in the soft tissues. It is in the bone. The "clunking" has increased in frequency and intensity. Several people have commented that I am now limping. I had stopped limping at about 3 months after TKR. I am now at 8 months.
I never had an MUA. My ROM has always been good.

If you read the middle part of my thread, you will see that I've had some serious dental issues, as well. I just had 11 upper teeth pulled 1 month ago. Prior to that, all through my TKR recovery, the teeth were constantly infected, and leaking bacteria into my bloodstream. The situation is the same with the lowers, and they will have to be extracted soon. This is why I am concerned about the possibility of septic loosening of the knee prosthesis due to late onset infection.

I am an idiot. I should have had my teeth fixed BEFORE the TKR. That was such a no-brainer, I don't see how I could have overlooked it. Apparently, I didn't educate myself enough about the risks.

I have an OS appointment tomorrow. Based on his diagnosis, I may seek a second opinion from a revision specialist.

Good luck on your upcoming TKR, and keep us posted.

Roger
 
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Well Roger ! Thats too bad. Hope tomorrow brings better news . Is a revision a good option to you ? Would u rather wait to see if it fixes itself or you believe it not set right . Im really sad to even think of that. My head is literally shaking in disbelief. you got to stay positive, even in the sunny bay area I get a little fatigue in winter time. a little depression ! I suppose. Believe it or not I have read quite a few dissapointing post surgery threads. Believe me there tragic stories out there. Well Roger im gonna follow your progress and pull for you. Is your OS being helpful and supportive along with his staff? Best of luck. Ivan
 
Roger, I think you are doing the right thing by seeing your OS right now. If you don't get answers from him, then I think it would be good to find a revision specialist. Increasing clunking and pain are symptoms that must be explored.

The link between dental infection and tkr has not been firmly established, but you have a difficult situation there. I am sorry that things have not worked out well. Bonnie @RunA42K has just had a revision after symptoms like yours. Kelly
 
Oh no, Roger! I am so sorry to hear you are having issues with your TKR. Please let us know what your OS tells you. Good luck tomorrow!
 
All,
Thanks for the well wishes. I'll let you know what my OS says tomorrow. But I have a strong suspicion that he will say things are "normal".

@skigirl , thanks. I read Bonnie's thread. Yes, our symptoms are somewhat similar, except I haven't noticed any decrease in ROM (yet). In fact, I just measured it at 125. Her problem ended up being a sloppy implant, which caused scar tissue to grow. Interesting, since mine feels very loose, and the medial area does feel like it is bruised and is painful.

Roger
 
Roger. My girlfriend works for a dentist here in santa rosa and told her your story. She was surprised that a dentist would perform that type of work considering you had a tkr within one year. I told her that maybe the dentist didnt know ! Now im sleeping in the dog house ! lol. Anyways my heart goes out to you. Best of luck
 
skigirl said:
Roger, I think you are doing the right thing by seeing your OS right now. If you don't get answers from him, then I think it would be good to find a revision specialist. Increasing clunking and pain are symptoms that must be explored.
Click to expand...
I agree---I believe that you are taking the right steps at the right time.

Please keep us updated as to what your OS says. We will be looking forward to reading what the results are.
 
Ivan,
My OS recommended that I wait until at least 6 months post TKR before I had the extractions, which I did. But, after that, I had little choice in the matter because I developed a serious infection in several of the teeth. They had to go.
My OS put me on antibiotics for 1 week after the extractions, in addition to the pre-dose of 2000 mg of antibiotics, which is typically the only measure taken.
It's my fault for doing this butt-backwards :sad:

Roger
 
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