TKR Sailor's Recovery Thread

[Lauramacky]

Yep, that's what we do in the beginning of recovery. It's a balancing act. Still is for me but the scale is on the other side now lol. Keep up the positive attitude!

 

[maryo52]

I have a friend with a condition involving blisters on her palms and soles. Is that what happens to your wife? My friend's daughter has it too. This is what it is: https://www.mayoclinic.com/health/epidermolysis-bullosa/DS01015

 

[SFBaySailor]

maryo52
Thanks for the link. I'll forward the information onto my wife & her Dr.
Yes, she gets scaly patches & blisters. The condition comes and goes in cycles which are unpredictable. It's quite debilitating, and I feel really sorry for her. Some days she can hardly walk, and she has to wear gloves quite frequently, also. The docs have been treating it for quite a long time, and have yet to find a cure.
Thanks for the info, and I'll keep you posted.

Roger

 

[maryo52]

My friend had this for years and years with no diagnosis. She was a fellow EMT and had to quit. She couldn't risk using her hands and having a flare up.

 

[SFBaySailor]

maryo52
My wife took the information you gave to her Dr appointment. It seems her Dr had once considered that to be the cause, but discounted it due the fact that Epidermolysis Bullosa is usually congenital or displayed at infancy. So, just like your friend, she has no diagnosis yet. The docs have been basically throwing all the treatments at it, hoping for a positive response. The test for Nickel allergy was negative. Now they are considering a possible fungal problem. My wife had switched doctors quite a few times until she found a good dermatologist that was willing to think outside the box. So we are keeping our fingers crossed that an effective permanent treatment can be found. So far, cortisone shots help alleviate it, but only for a few weeks. Thanks again for your help. I wish there was a forum as good as BoneSmart for people with these types of afflictions.

Roger

 

[lavender]

Hi Roger Nice that you were able to enjoy a really nice night out with your wife. Something to remember and nice to have something fun to do. Hope all well with your knee Holly

 

[SFBaySailor]

lavender
Hi, Holly,
Good to hear from you.
Yes, it was great to get out into the land of the living and actually have some fun! The concert was excellent, and we both had a really fun time.
My knee is doing fine, but I have to be careful not to overdo it in PT, at work and my other activities. I think I have a good balance now between PT & activities. I had PT yesterday, and I didn't have much pain last night or today. In fact, last night was the first night in a while where I didn't feel the need to take a Vicodin before bedtime. Two Tylenol was all I needed. So I think my reduced exercise regimen is working. I do feel the muscles around the knee getting stronger.
I read your thread today about what happened at your family visit. Don't let your brother's comments get you down! You are doing well, and your knee will perhaps bend further when it heals more. You've had a very positive attitude, and I give you credit for all you've been through so far.

Cheers,
Roger

 

[lavender]

Hi Roger thanks so much for your kind encouraging post. I am happy to hear that you are doing so well and I feel very lucky to be part of a forum with such nice people. This forum along with my husband have helped me so much and I am so glad I found it. I am doing a lot of walking in the park that we love in our city this park has lots of memories and is where my husband and I got engaged. It has a large river running through it and beautiful trees and shady spots to sit under the trees and feed the geese and ducks so many of them lots of babies. This journey has seemed long but actually not quite three months feeling in my heart that I have done the best I can and feel that I have made wonderful caring friendships on this bonesmart site. I will be going back to the park today and taking our lunch and look forward to it. Thankyou Roger for your kind support and hope that you and your wife have a wonderful week. Holly

 

[Lauramacky]

Hi Roger,
How're you doing today? Just curious. I know that each week that goes by, it seems we get a tiny bit better. Wanted to see if you've noticed anything.

 

[SFBaySailor]

Lauramacky
Hi, Laura,
Thanks for checking in! Well, Sat I went to the boat & did some minor maintenance, and Sun we had a BBQ at home for one of our friend's birthday. So I spent a lot of time on my feet this weekend. Plus, I'm breaking in a new pair of tennis shoes. The result of all this is a little bit of swelling behind the knee. No great pain, just some swelling. I know I overdid it, so I need to rest and ice. That's what I'm doing tonight, and I'll work from home tomorrow. I had PT today, and they measured ROM at 125 (down from 130). That is probably due to the swelling, but I'm not too concerned. I'm sure I'll get it back.
To top it off, I didn't get much sleep last night. 2 of our 3 dachshunds have been whining incessantly at night. That's what they did on July 4th, of course, with all the fireworks. But, some yahoos in our neighborhood have been blowing off one or 2 fireworks per night since July 4th, and it's driving the dogs (and me & my wife) nuts!
I wonder, do they make benadryl for doggies???
Hope all is well with you and that your are getting along well with your exercise regimen.

Cheers,
Roger

 

[SFBaySailor]

Well, I have a new development that concerns me. Today I went to my dentist with some pain, and I found out that I'm going to need some major dental work very soon. I won't go into too much detail, only that I knew this day would come, but I thought it would be a little later than this. As I mentioned before, I have late stage periodontal disease and quite a bit of bone loss. The work will involve pulling quite a few teeth, and then putting in implants. My OS recommended waiting 6 months after surgery for dental work, but I'm afraid that this may not be able to wait that long. My dentist recommended that I speak with my OS before I have the extractions done, so he can put me on an antibiotic regimen that he feels would be appropriate. I'm at 10 weeks post-op right now, and we are looking at having this work done in the next month or so. The dentist explained that there would be a huge dump of bacteria into the bloodstream after the extractions.

I've come so far and done so well in my recovery, and I don't want to risk an infection of the knee joint anytime soon, or ever! So I'm a little scared about all this. I'm going to tag Josephine to get her comment. I know she had mentioned a report where the risk of infection due to dental work has been downgraded. But I want to do everything possible to ensure that I minimize the risk.

Roger

 

[Jamie]

I wonder, do they make benadryl for doggies???

Actually you can give "people" Benedryl to dogs. My vet has prescribed it for my dog's skin allergies that pop up now and then. It does make them sleepy (unless you use the non-drowsy kind), but that was what you were looking for, right? Talk to your vet about dosage for your puppy.....

I had a similar dental problem after my knee surgery....not quite as extensive as yours, but serious. One of my teeth developed an infected pocket at the root and the tooth was dissolving itself from within. Eeek!!! This was diagnosed when I was 6 weeks out. I had to have a root canal that was nothing short of brutal because of the pocket of infection. It did a "bacteria dump" as well. I was given a course of antibiotics for a week with a different (and stronger) antibiotic the day of the root canal. I'm now 18 weeks out and everything is just fine.

So....follow the guidance of your surgeon and dentist. Take antibiotics prior to the procedure as protection "just in case." And try not to worry. There still have been no definitive studies that can link dental work with an infection in a prosthesis.

 

[lavender]

Hi Roger I am so sorry to hear that you are having dental problems. That can be really painful. You are doing so wonderful with your knee the last thing you need is to have to deal with something else that will give you pain. Sometimes it seems that everything comes at once. Nice to hear that you had sometime with your boat I am sure that that was nice for you. Three dashunds they are really cute and bet they keep you busy but lots of fun our cats used to get really frightened whenever we had a thunderstorm our Elizabeth our female cat used to gather up the two little kittens we had and take them to our basement anytime we had a storm didn't like the noise Oscar our male cat didn't seem to mind. The firecrackers really upset them and for some reason people liked to set them off a few days before and often into the next week.You have a really good bend Roger and that is one hurdle conquered for sure. I hope all goes well for you not a nice thing to look forward to but you have handled your knee surgery so well and your positive attitude will help you with your tooth problem. My knee was pretty tender last night lots of running around and tried to do them with my cane. Today taking my walker incase. Have a great day Roger and hope that all goes well for you. Holly

 

[Josephine]

Yes, afew months ago, the AAOS and the ADS published this protocol Evidence insufficient to recommend prophylactic antibiotics for dental procedures. It may be that like your dentist, your surgeon has either not read this announcement or doesn't agree with it but the recent evidence has certainly been much in line with the notion that a "a huge dump of bacteria intothe bloodstream" is unconnected with periprosthetic infections. You might also read these articles which explains it in more detail Infection: peri-prosthetic infection - also known as late onset infection and Infection: Periprosthetic infection.

 

[SFBaySailor]

Jamie
Thanks for the reply. At yesterday's appointment, the dentist performed a deep cleaning at the gum line of the affected teeth. This was the most conservative treatment. 1 hour before the treatment, I took a 2000 mg dose of Amoxicicillin. He also has me on Penicillin now for 1 week. Today, they will call me to set up a plan for the replacement teeth.

Josephine,
Thank you, the articles are very informative. No, I don't think my dentist or OS has heard the announcement. I mentioned it to my dentist, but he kind of glossed it over.

Roger

 

[SFBaySailor]

lavender
Hi, Holly,
Yes the Dachshunds are cute. They are miniature style, and weigh about 12 lbs, if not overweight But, let me tell you about Dachshunds, they are the most stubborn, independent and self assured breed I have ever seen, and I think this is because they were originally bred to hunt badgers and other subterranean rodents. They are really big dogs in a little dog's skin So they are a bit hard to train. We have one of each coat style (smooth hair, wire hair & long hair). My wife has always had Dachshunds in her family. Actually, I was a cat person when we met, and I had one cat. The cat passed shortly before we got married, and my wife moved in with her 2 Dachshunds. So then I became a dog person

Thanks. the bend in my knee is good, but it still feels a bit stiff, especially in the morning. I wear a knee brace during the day when I am walking, and it helps with the swelling and the stiffness is not so noticeable. I'm still doing PT twice/week, and it is going fine, they are not overdoing it. I can feel the muscles getting stronger. I've been working from home 2-3 days/week, so that helps keep me off my feet a little more. Between going into the office 2 days/week, plus all my other activities, I am getting plenty of walking!

Roger

 

[Lauramacky]

Oh dear. I just noticed the recent development regarding your teeth. That really is not what you needed right now is it. I'm sorry you have to deal with this right now, but I'm hoping for the best for you! I've had that deep cleaning before but never implants. My stepdad had some implants though and it went very smoothly and he loves them now. Your knee sounds like its doing really well. I am still in awe that you are only ten weeks out and doing so well!!

Your daschunds sound so cute!! I'm a huge animal lover and I can just imagine how cute they are. Did I miss their names? Sorry if I did but I'm on my ipad and its been so sluggish I'm afraid to scroll up right now, lol.

Keep us posted!! Big hug!

 

[SFBaySailor]

Lauramacky
Thanks, Laura. Unfortunately, it looks like the teeth are something that can't wait much longer. I knew this day would come, I just didn't think it would come so soon. My timing is terrible, I should have had my teeth fixed before the knee. The extractions will be the worst part because of the huge dump of bacteria into the bloodstream. I am SO worried about infecting my new knee

The knee is doing quite well now at 10 weeks. Today, I extended the leg and I actually began to see the outline of the kneecap! The last of the swelling is starting to go down! Hooray!

Our Dachshunds are named Tazz (aka, Tazz the Spazz) who is a 13 1/2 yr old smooth hair. Then there is Dynah (aka, Dynah Low Rider) who is 9 1/2 and is Tazz's offspring, and she is a wire hair. We bred Dynah ourselves. And last, but not least, is Annie (aka, Princess Annie Oakley) who is 6 and is a beautiful long hair. They are all purebred, and Annie is a show quality specimen that we purchased from a So Cal breeder. All 3 are female, and their personalities are as different as night & day! Once I start taking long walks, I will bring Annie with me. She is the lazy one, and needs some PT

Cheers,
Roger

 

[Diesellily]

It really puzzles me why people fall for the advertising hype because ibuprofen is actually quite a mild pain killer, about 60% strength of paracetamol and with the added hazards of stomach irritation. This can can be present even though the patient is totally unaware of it. There have been innumerable cases of people having gastric bleeds because of taking quite moderate doses of NSAIDs while thinking they were okay. I kid you not - always take paracetamol rather than ibuprofen

This has just confirmed something for me. I was prescribed Ibuprofen after my MUA and by the second day I had uncontrollable diarrhoea. I put it down to the anaesthesia and went on 6 days before it twigged it could be the tablets. I went back to original painkillers and voila! No more problems

 

[SFBaySailor]

This has just confirmed something for me. I was prescribed Ibuprofen after my MUA and by the second day I had uncontrollable diarrhoea. I put it down to the anaesthesia and went on 6 days before it twigged it could be the tablets. I went back to original painkillers and voila! No more problems

Funny, I was having the same issue after taking > 1500 mg of Tylenol per day. Now, I am back on Ibuprofen.