TKR Second TKR surgery September 8

Virginia123

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Second TKR surgery September 8 right knee

I thought I would be an old hand at this but my last knee replacement was four years ago. I am having still a lot of swelling and pain and I’m getting absolutely no bend yet. I have backed off on home exercises and I’m doing very little to try not to Irritate my knee but I’m worried I am not doing enough. Today I noticed pitted edema in my shin and spent most of the day with my leg elevated and ice on it. I have been working on getting my leg flat but I feel it’s not quite there yet. Any type of pressure bending hurts. I am not going to a physical therapist. My doctor said I could do the necessary exercises at home and not worry about excessive trauma from someone else advising me. I am still walking with a walker but feel I can walk a short distance with things to hold onto without it. my dr only gave me narcotics for 5 days so have been Trying to ration them out for sleeping at night. Any comments are appreciated
 
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Hi and Welcome!

Don’t worry about your bend or lack thereof. There is plenty of time to regain it. Right now swelling is blocking your bend.
I am not going to a physical therapist. My doctor said I could do the necessary exercises at home and not worry about excessive trauma from someone else advising me.
You have a very understanding doctor. Unfortunately, some PTs do cause us excessive trauma.
my dr only gave me narcotics for 5 days so have been Trying to ration them out for sleeping at night.
Some doctors only give a small amount at a time. Call to ask about refills.

I will leave you our Recovery Guidelines. Each article is short but very informative. Following these guidelines will help you have a less painful recovery.

Check out the Ice and Elevation articles, especially.

Just keep in mind all people are different, as are the approaches to this recovery and rehab. The key is, “Find what works for you.“ Your doctors, PTs and BoneSmart are available to help, but you are the final judge as to the recovery approach you choose.

Knee Recovery: The Guidelines
1. Don’t worry: Your body will heal all by itself. Relax, let it, don't try and hurry it, don’t worry about any symptoms now, they are almost certainly temporary
2. Control discomfort:
rest
ice
take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​

3. Do what you want to do BUT
a. If it hurts, don't do it and don't allow anyone - especially a physical therapist - to do it to you​
b. If your leg swells more or gets stiffer in the 24 hours after doing it, don't do it again.​


4. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this

6. Access to these pages on the website

The Recovery articles:
The importance of managing pain after a TKR and the pain chart
Swollen and stiff knee: what causes it?
Energy drain for TKRs
Elevation is the key
Ice to control pain and swelling
Heel slides and how to do them properly
Chart representation of TKR recovery
Healing: how long does it take?

Post op blues is a reality - be prepared for it
Sleep deprivation is pretty much inevitable - but what causes it?

There are also some cautionary articles here
Myth busting: no pain, no gain
Myth busting: the "window of opportunity" in TKR
Myth busting: on getting addicted to pain meds

We try to keep the forum a positive and safe place for our members to talk about their questions or concerns and to report successes with their joint replacement surgery.

While members may create as many threads as they like in the majority of BoneSmart’s forums, we ask that each member have only One Recovery Thread. This policy makes it easier to go back and review the member’s history before providing advice, so please post any updates or questions you have right here in this thread.
 
Please tell us the date of your first TKR and we’ll add it to your signature, and which knee goes with which date. :flwrysmile:
 
Many patients find that their PCP will give them pain meds when the surgeon won't. You can try that. You need pain relief after this traumatizing surgery. Ice is also a great pain reliever. You can use that as much as you want. You can't over ice as long as you have a cloth between you knee and the ice pack.
 
Yes, please ask for a refill on your narcotics. You still need them and likely will for a few more weeks yet. I was afraid my doc wouldn't want to refill mine but he did and said it's likely I'll need them at least a couple more weeks.

It's interesting how we conveniently forget how the last knee recovery was. Mine was 11 years ago. Some things are easier this time around and others are not. Once I got past 2 weeks post-op, the exercises weren't as painful. I'd concentrate on resting, icing, elevating and healing for now.
 
Thank you very good advice. Oh my right hip replacement is bothering me and aching. I was very knock knee’d so I am wondering if straightening the leg has caused my hip to bother me more. Until my knee was replaced my hip felt pretty good.
 
Yes, I've heard others say that if their knee was crooked prior to surgery and now it's straight that everything has to now adjust to being aligned so that could be what's causing your discomfort.
 
The dr said my rom should be at 90 degrees in 14 days. Is anyone struggling with that?
Some doctors want us to regain our ROM quickly, but we are all different and our knee doesn’t care what our doctor wants. Your bend will return as you heal and your swelling goes down. You are very early in this recovery, please don’t worry about your ROM or let your doctor pressure you about it.
 
And, my ROM continued to improve in my second year post op, and even a bit more in my third. So when he talks about it, just nod, and don’t worry. :heehee:
 
I'm 3 weeks post-op and somewhere between 80-85. At 2 weeks I was only 72. It takes time and listen to Jockette and don't let the doctor or PT pressure you. You will get there, it's only a matter of time.
 
Relax! Try not to obsess about numbers. Your new knee will take lots of time to heal. Don’t put undue pressure on yourself to reach someone else’s goal. It’s your knee and you are in control. One day at a time.
 
@jaspa
Just want to let you know I moved your above post to Virginia’s thread, so we don’t take the other thread off of track with a discussion about Virginia.

I love how you are reading and learning so much about your upcoming surgery, and how supportive you are to the other members. We‘re glad you joined us! :flwrysmile:
 
Thank you for your encouragement! Heart is acting normal now So that is good. I am mainly stretching the back of my leg, elevating, icing and about a 1000 steps. I feel like I am elevating and icing 24/7 and not getting anything else much done. Did have 5 grandchildren littles over with parents and it did not wear me out! Now I am hoping for some sleep which I save hydromorphone for. When do you start getting more than 4-5 hours of sleep?Thank you Susie-qfor telling me your rom that made me feel way better! Also the advice to ice constantly is really bringing swelling down much faster than last time!
 

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