TKR Soooo Confused!!

[kneeper]

I elevate and ice my knee after every workout/activity. I probably ice more now at 11+ weeks than I did during the first 4 - 6 weeks.

Yes, definitely continue to ice after exercise. For me what worked was to try a bit more each week and to constantly gauge what the knee (and surrounding tissues) were telling me. Increasing activity is good, but the knee will tell you when you've overdone. Some soreness is ok, but if you have a lot of pain and swelling for several hours -or a day-afterward (according to my PT) then do a bit less the next day. Then try again at that level in a few days. Even just doing your daily activities helps with strength.

One thing you want to avoid is exercising your way into a nasty case of tendonitis (as I know from experience with my first knee). That will put you out of action for a while and mess with all your progress. You know what your body is telling you.

 

[MAGsTKR]

Today marks the 13th week since my surgery. Should I expect to wake up with some swelling? It seems to be pretty minimal but just walking around the house and/or sitting at my PC for 30 min causes it to swell more.

It may or may not swell following exercise. For example when I walk 2 miles it does not bother me but I always ice regardless after. Also, when I eBike (flat) for 10 miles (60 min) minimal impact but I also ice. eBike on flat means very little pedal resistance . Other exercise would be typical whole body stuff (squats, pushups, bridges, leg lifts, step up, planks, etc) or Pilates. None of these exercises by themselves causes significant swelling but if I combine a couple of them in a single day then my knee complains.

 

[Jockette]

Yes, swelling can, and will, still occur at 13 weeks. Full recovery takes an average of a year, My PT told me in could see swelling for a year!

 

[jaspa]

My PT has also told me swelling good come any day no matter what the activity and can be up to one year. I ice after every time I do my exercises at home and they ice me at PT each time twice a wk.

 

[FCBayern]

Swelling is definitely normal at 13 weeks @MAGsTKR, and it's your knee telling you that whatever you did was more than it's ready for yet. You're still in the healing stage so listening to what your knee tells you about activity will allow you to do more without causing pain and swelling.

 

[MAGsTKR]

Progress update: I am 20 weeks out. Knee pain is gone but I get intermittent swelling if I do too much. I'm retired so I have plenty of time to rehab my knee. A typical exercise day is walk 2 miles in the AM and ride (flat eBike) 10 - 15 miles in the PM. My knee tolerates this level of activity without requiring ice. However, if I include standing for long periods that is hard on the knee.

Two weeks ago I restarted working out with my trainer 3 times a week. This is a whole body metabolic workout which sometimes requires icing. At this point my trainer is "babying" me intensity-wise and working around any exercise that would be problematic for a TKR. This week also I began to incorporate a 30 minute elliptical workout on the non-trainer days substituting it for the 2 mile walk. It took a while to work up to 30 minutes.

At this point I'm getting closer to my pre surgical fitness level and feeling pretty good about the whole TKR process. I was lucky in that I had no major setbacks or issues. Now I am noticing a fair amount of "clicking" of the prosthetic which my surgeon says is normal. I mostly notice it at night laying on the couch on my side. Is this normal??

Lastly, when I started this process months ago my right knee osteoarthritis was acute and I had moderate osteoarthritis in my right hip. My surgeon told me we'd do the knee first and hope for some time on the hip. Well, I think time is starting now. I had a cortisone injection is the hip a month ago and got relief. However, when I do my 2 mile walks my knee if fine but my hip bothers me. So I guess later this year I'll get the hip done. Is there any reason to push to get the hip done or wait it out? Can I mess up a post TKR knee because of a bad hip?

 

[Jaycey]

Is there any reason to push to get the hip done or wait it out?

I found waiting had an impact not only on other parts of the body trying to compensate, but also on recovery time. I had a shorter recovery after RTHR due to not waiting around and developing a major limp.

 

[FCBayern]

I had my hip replaced 10 months after the knee @MAGsTKR, and I found that my knee improved with the THR. Having all your joints moving smoothly together is fantastic!

 

[MAGsTKR]

This is basically a 6 month update (TKR 9/24/21). My knee is pretty much 90%. In the AM MWF I work out with my trainer and the other days I either walk 2 miles or do 30 minute cardio blast on the elliptical. Most PMs I get a 10+ mile bike ride in. Depending on my activity level and the sort of exercises I do, I will get some minor swelling and stiffness. This usually passes by the time I get up the next day.

Two years ago when this whole process began my knee osteoarthritis was acute and I had moderate osteoarthritis in my right hip. In discussions with my surgeon he said I might get a year or two - maybe 5 until I needed to address the hip. Now that I'm well into my TRK recovery I am finding that during my 2 mile walks my hip is hurting and I am limping. As a result I got a cortisone injection in my hip on 12/1/21.

The cortisone has worn off and my surgeon and I agreed that now is a good a time as ever to replace the hip. I have scheduled a THR for May 10, 2022. So I guess this is my last post to the knee group and I'll move over to the hip group. LOL

 

[glidefloss]

Hi @MAGsTKR , good luck with your THR! It'll be interesting to find out how it turns out in conjunction with your TKR.

All the best for a success full procedure, recovery and rehab!

 

[hawk2go]

@MAGsTKR, it sounds like your doing a makeover and you'll be doing all that activity pain free in no time. May the force be with you. See you on the hip side.