United StatesI learned the hard way that my dr. assigned me to home health for 6 weeks. Home health discharged me after 2 weeks saying I was too far along in recovery and to go to an outpatient PT. They refused, saying I definitely needed their help, but Medicare has assigned Home Health so they would not get paid! Called Medicare and they affirmed it!!!! Be aware, I was left without any PT for 3 weeks. I was left guessing if I was doing things right and pushing enough--wasn't and ended up getting manipulation (and its complications)!!!!
MUA Unlucky - Medicare will not make ANY changes for any reason
- Thread starter unlucky
- Start date
Hello @unlucky - and 
Please will you tell us the full date of your knee replacement and manipulation, and which knee it is, so we can make a signature for you? Thank you.
Once that's done, I'll move your thread to the
Knee Replacement Recovery Area , since you've already had your surgery.
Don't worry about not being allowed any PT for 3 weeks. For the first month at least, you really don't need PT anyway. Some people do their entire recovery without any PT, but they do all right. They simply use their activities of daily living as their PT.
My surgeon doesn't allow any formal PT at all for the first month after a knee replacement. He says your knee needs that time, to start on its journey of healing. For that month, we rest, ice and elevate our leg, and walk around the house. The walking is our exercise and we increase it a little each week.
After that month, we just go to PT once every 2 weeks, where we are shown a few new exercises to do at home each day.
His patients all do well and achieve good ROM (Range of Motion), as I did, and he hasn't had to do a manipulation to help with ROM for the past 4 years. I think that speaks for itself.
It's not exercising that gets you your ROM - it's time. Time to recover, time for swelling and pain to settle, and time to heal. Your knee is capable of achieving good ROM right from the start. Its ROM will gradually increase as your knee heals and the internal and external swelling decrease.
Please will you tell us the full date of your knee replacement and manipulation, and which knee it is, so we can make a signature for you? Thank you.
Once that's done, I'll move your thread to theKnee Replacement Recovery Area , since you've already had your surgery.
Don't worry about not being allowed any PT for 3 weeks. For the first month at least, you really don't need PT anyway. Some people do their entire recovery without any PT, but they do all right. They simply use their activities of daily living as their PT.
My surgeon doesn't allow any formal PT at all for the first month after a knee replacement. He says your knee needs that time, to start on its journey of healing. For that month, we rest, ice and elevate our leg, and walk around the house. The walking is our exercise and we increase it a little each week.
After that month, we just go to PT once every 2 weeks, where we are shown a few new exercises to do at home each day.
His patients all do well and achieve good ROM (Range of Motion), as I did, and he hasn't had to do a manipulation to help with ROM for the past 4 years. I think that speaks for itself.
It's not exercising that gets you your ROM - it's time. Time to recover, time for swelling and pain to settle, and time to heal. Your knee is capable of achieving good ROM right from the start. Its ROM will gradually increase as your knee heals and the internal and external swelling decrease.
Here are the Recovery Guidelines and some helpful articles that we give to everyone with a new knee.
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:
3. Do what you want to do BUT
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 a 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 history before providing advice.
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 a 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 history before providing advice.
I had LTKR followed by manipulation, then ER for massive swelling from hip to toes, manipulation with arthroscopic removal of scar tissue. Knee still quite warm and ROM limited. Dr. wanted another manipulation and if that didn't work, another LTKR. Changed DR and he removed first TKR. Then a manipulation followed by a large hematoma, which ended up in the knee!! Thus manipulation with arthroscopic removal of scar tissue--followed immediately with extensive physical therapy! Now have very sore hips--think I know why! Anyone else have this kind of experience?
