TKR TKR Week 5 - weight bearing pain

Schmel

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Hi All
It has been 5 years since my last post. I had TKR right side Feb 1 2016. I will say this site was such a blessing to me at that time and so I find myself back again as Recently had TKR left side December 7, 2020.
My concern. This time around everything started off great, off the hop I had 100 degree bend day two. Everything was progressing well until I went off the Narcotics medications week 4. I am taking strength Tylenol, 3 times per day Now when I do my exercises I FEEL it. Most days tolerable and i get through but the last few days there has been a change. Leg is very restless, cannot find a comfortable position to rest and the weight bearing exercises and movements are painful. My surgeon did not cement my knee as I am considered young for TKR under 60. I sleep on my side and I have concerns. Did i twist it or dislocate the knee? Do i have a infection forming? Why the change all of a sudden and not the usual visible improvements I am use to seeing. I see my surgeon follow up the end of January.
thank you
 
Hello @Schmel and welcome back, although I'm sorry you've had to come to us with a problem.

I've moved your post from the Social Room and put it in the Knee Surgery Recovery Area, which is more suitable for it.

Please keep all your questions and updates for this knee on this thread. We won't miss your new question as, between us, the staff read all new posts each day.
If you need an urgent response to a question, tag a member of staff.
Tagging other members and answering tags

If you prefer a different thread title, just post what you want and we'll get it changed for you.

Here are the instructions on finding your thread, How can I find my threads and posts?

A helpful hint - Many members have found it useful to bookmark their thread so they don't lose it.

Best wishes,
Celle
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Everything was progressing well until I went off the Narcotics medications week 4. I am taking strength Tylenol, 3 times per day Now when I do my exercises I FEEL it. Most days tolerable and i get through but the last few days there has been a change. Leg is very restless, cannot find a comfortable position to rest and the weight bearing exercises and movements are painful.
It sounds to me as if your exercises are too ambitious for your new knee at this stage of its recovery.
There's no need at all to do them 3 times a day. Once is more than enough, because doing all your everyday activities is also exercise.

I suggest you stop most of the exercises for now and, instead, spend more time resting, icing and elevating your knee, so it can calm down again.
There are articles about icing and elevating in our recovery guidelines, below:
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. Try to 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.
 
Hi, and welcome back to the forum. I agree with Celle that you may be doing a bit much for this stage of your recovery. Try scaling back the activity and exercise for a while and increase the icing and elevation. You may also be under medicated. That can cause the "restless leg" feeling that you are experiencing. Talk with your surgeon. You might be able to use a prescription medication such as Tramadol or Gabapentin. Or you could change your schedule for Extra Strength Tylenol so you are taking 1000mg every 6 hours through the day and night. The maximum for any 24 hour period is 4,000mg, so be sure you count in any other over-the-counter medications like cold and sinus meds you might be taking.
 
Hi, hope you feel better soon. My knee ltkr was 12/9/20. I also have pretty good flexion and extension. The overall leg swelling has gone down but knee is still swollen. Weight bearing kills me. I can't lead with my replaced knee. I can only go up on right knee which puts strain on new hip (replaced 3 months ago also). My PT told me that knee pain should feel somewhat better by 3 months. My pain is at top of kneecap going into quad muscle. Also only only on Tylenol 1300, extended release, 2x a day. Sleeping is the worst due to zingers. All in all, I do feel progress. Just wanted to give you a comparison. Hope you feel better.
 
Everything was progressing well until I went off the Narcotics medications week 4. I am taking strength Tylenol, 3 times per day Now when I do my exercises I FEEL it. Most days tolerable and i get through but the last few days there has been a change. Leg is very restless, cannot find a comfortable position to rest and the weight bearing exercises and movements are painful. My surgeon did not cement my knee as I am considered young for TKR under 60. I sleep on my side and I have concerns. Did i twist it or dislocate the knee? Do i have a infection forming? Why the change all of a sudden and not the usual visible improvements I am use to seeing. I see my surgeon follow up the end of January.
thank you
It does seem like you have combined increased activity with less in the way of pain meds, leading to more pain. I know I wasn't ready to come off of meds at 4 weeks, though I had started spacing doses more.
The knees are generally sensitive to little "tweaks" for quite a while but even if you moved funny at some point you wouldn't have damaged anything.

(I have cementless but that didn't affect my recovery.)
 
Funny that you mention lack of pain meds. I just saw the surgeon for my 6 week appt. He was very pleased as I have full extension and flexion. He was very surprised that I had excruciating knee pain above the knee cap when I weight bear in a flexed position. I explained that going up stairs or down feel like someone is inserting a knitting needle deep into the area directly above knee at beginning of surgical incision. Getting on and off the toilet produces same excruciatingn pain. Any type of squatting, same thing. It is not incisional pain but bone pain. His response was that at this point, I should be better. I never expected that response. I honestly thought he would say you are early in the healing process and this is expected. He emphasized that my xrays were perfect so I dont know why u are having pain. I explained that I have an extremely high tolerance to pain. 3 kids above 9 pounds at birth and no meds just a little demeral. I also explained I had numerous surgeries including abdominal surgery and recovery basically a breeze. I had bilateral hip replacement on 10/20/20, walking in a week independently. The point was if i am complaining, it is a problem. His answer was maybe inflammation and take more pain meds. So, I am back on tramadol, Tylenol, aspirin and gabapentin. We will reconvene in 2 weeks to see n if that makes it better. He also did alot of manipulation by pulling, rotating and assessing side to side mobity. It didn't hurt just sounded weird and felt weird. Funny, but the next day, pain was a little better. Now just pain, not so excruciating. I am confused that at 6 weeks, he feels I should be better. Also feels that due to excellent extension and flexion no more PT.
 
Good that the xrays look good and that it feels a bit better. I wonder if there is some tendonitis going on. :scratch:
 
I remember going to the surgeon at around week 4 with excruciating pain and swelling. He looked at the x-rays of the knee and commented that he"did a great job" and he did not know what was causing the pain. I reminded him that that knee and leg were connected to a person - there was more involved than just his handiwork. He said that if I did not feel better soon, he wold have to "cut me open again. "It was also at that visit that I told him I was in so much pain I couldn't eat. I had lost 8 pounds that week. His comment was "that's not my problem." I did go for an MRI and had the knee drained. I figured out, on my own, that I had been the victim of very aggressive PT. I am now at week 15 and just starting to feel human.
 
Wow, well glad your finally feeling better.
I'm at 2 weeks right now and have 2 pain pills left, he said I don't get anymore either. Idk what I'll do, I start out patient PT tomorrow, and the pain is still at a steady 7 or so, at night a 9 or 10.
Any suggestions????
 
If your OS won't provide any more pain meds contact your primary care doctor. Your pain needs to be well enough controlled that you can walk to the bathroom, get snacks etc. without being in such pain that you don't want to do it. I needed pain meds regularly for 6 weeks and then still occasionally at night so I could sleep. Also, what activities are you doing? Are you doing any PT that might be increasing your pain @Jbash99?
 
I think you should cancel PT until you get your pain under control. Your knee is already inflamed and angry. PT will just make it more so. Walking around taking care of your needs is all the PT your knee needs to recovery nicely.
 

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