Guest viewing is limited

MUA ValleyGirl Recovery

With my first knee, the current revision one, I allowed aggressive PT and had pain for months. The second one I adhered to the Bonesmart way, gentle stretches, easy exercises, no pain and made great progress! I honestly was never measured for ROM or extension. The knee was better at 3 mo than the first one at 7 mo. Live and learn! Every knee is different and I may have just been lucky with no. two but you'll have a hard time convincing me of that. Replace ment on revision will happen soon if all goes well and it will be treated as number two was treated, easy does it!
 
At home after MUA procedure. Hubby didn't even have time to go to the restroom after they took me back before OS called him to say it was over and that it went very well. OS reported getting to 130 degrees off my <70 degree leg.

By the time I was able to go to the restroom, I tested the ROM for myself and was able to match my left leg at 90 degrees while sitting. Was too swollen to try any further.

When I woke up in recovery my thigh was completely seized up. I was crying, trying desperately to get comfortable and praying to God for help. Finally my oxy, gabapentin and methacarbomal took effect and I felt relief. I had to have them take off the compression sock because my leg was swollen and the top edge was causing pain to my leg.

OS used cortisone and a numbing agent in the knee to help with pain afterwards. Unclear how long each will last. Varies by person.

Knee stings where scars or adhesions were separated..I can feel some of them. Did complete an extension to 0 degrees and have tightened thigh to cause knee cap to move. Just taking it easy otherwise ...icing, elevating, and going to restroom for movement. Was tough getting upstairs when we got home, but I did it. Though swollen, I can tell the bands that held my knee hostage are gone.

I felt bone pain on my shin earlier where I believe pressure was applied for the release. There is a place on my thigh that hurts and may be bruised where the thigh was held firm against the opposing force.

It is still just day 1, have PT tomorrow and will be careful with it. Just need to keep the knee moving and stretching.

Let me know if you have any comments or questions!

Patty
 
Day 2 post-MUA
Leg and knee are sore. Hard to walk and back using walker since the procedure. Iced today but the knee wasn't very warm actually.

Did one round of exercises that I promised PT I would do. Ouch! Ended up back in bed icing. Couple hours later I went to PT site to use their NuStep. Knee was tender so I moved gently, and slowly increased range of movement...it wasn't a huge range of motion but it did improve over time. Left after 10 mins.

Back in bed hurting and icing. Next round of meds is in 1 hour, thankfully. Tomorrow is another day on my own since it is the start of the weekend.
 
Day 5 post-MUA

Quad is still guarding and is seized in some areas. I spent a long time in bed with my leg up and massaging my thigh and knee. My quad relaxed a bit so moved to my bench, massaged leg more with foot on ground, then I did one of my simple exercises. I saw improvement in my ROM from beginning to end. Afterwards my leg cramped up again and I kept moving with walker and completed household tasks.

Will have PT tomorrow and will get guidance on guarded quad.
 
Last edited:
@ValleyGirl You have been through so much, I can only hope the worst is behind you. I have no experience with a MUA but have read about it. My TKR was July 7th, which is over 4 1/2 months ago. I look back and can see that so much of my time was taken up with worry and fear, was I ever going to stop being in pain? Was I ever going to walk normally? And here I am! I walked almost 2 miles today, and I'm not limping, and I don't have pain any more. My knee bends and straightens, and I marvel at the improvement. I still have some minor discomfort, I still get a little sore after a long walk, but I'm not even halfway through the first year of recovery. I am very grateful.
I listened to the advice of everyone on here and I stopped physical therapy when I realized it was making me feel pain and I never looked back. It's very hard to strike out on one's own and not listen to the almighty medical professional, but I persevered. Fortunately for me, my team wished me well and I went back for a couple of sessions with the PT and they were thrilled with what I had done on my own and discharged me.
BoneSmart is a wise and knowledgeable forum, you can recover without going to PT, just do the stretching and movements gently at home. The knee will recover in spite of us!
 
RTKR: Sep 16
MUA: Nov 17

Leg seizing became a big hindrance and Dr. increased my relaxant by 50% and advised PT focus on getting leg/muscles relaxed, rather than focusing on any movement. ROM at this point was less than before MUA. I don't know the exact measurement but using the measurements marked out on tape on my floor, I was bending less than before the MUA which was causing me intense fear. OS released my leg to 130° and now my ROM was far less than 70 (maybe 45 or 50?)...it was maddening.

Monday Nov 22: At PT we started with warm moist heat and then moved to massaging the thigh. I was doing the massaging since I really don't let anyone touch my thigh/knee right now due to painful hypersensitive areas. Therapist gave me Palmers cocoa butter to use during our session to aid with the massaging. Have since bought a jar myself. Then we used TENS on my thigh on a low setting that I could tolerate.

I had a place on the inside of my knee that felt like I had injured myself and gave off a feeling of being sprained, which caused me to limit how I moved my leg...almost keeping the leg straight when moving with walker. PT put KT tape on the area and it really helped..what is this magic? I Googled it to learn more.

Was advised to continue my usual exercises and to work on the muscle relaxation techniques. By the next day my thigh was more relaxed but i had to spend hours gently stroking and massaging it to be able to even consider exercises. Leg seized after exercising. Spent evening massaging, using heat pad and TENS on thigh. The muscle guarding is a result of the MUA and is my body's attempt to protect me from additional injury.

I did back down on the muscle relaxant thinking the massaging would be enough but it was not. On Nov 24 went into PT very dejected after hurting knee (no idea how) and continued poor ROM and muscle seizing. Therapist explained my muscles are reacting to the "injury" from the MUA and preventing the knee from bending. I decided to go back to the increased relaxant as prescribed and my ROM improved quite a bit by Thanksgiving. My floor measurements show 2.75" improvement and then 3.25" after exercising.

I was very relieved after being able to move the dial on my ROM finally, but so far the measurement is close to where I was at time of MUA. I have a ways to go.

Does anyone have advice on MUA recovery? How long before the swelling is gone that might affect the ROM? Should we expect to be at 90° by 2 weeks? Should we expect ROM improvement to move at the same pace as post-TKR? What is the band-like feeling across my knee;1 week and 3 days post MUA, is that already scar tissue? Need someone to talk to about all of this...feeling pretty isolated right now. ☹ looking for some hope!
 
The band around your knee is very common:
bonesmart.org

Tight Band feeling across the front of my knee

That tight band is caused by scar tissue but not the adhesions type of scar tissue. When the surgeon opens up the knee, he has to undercut the skin and superficial structures from that centre line to each side of the knee in order to get good access all round the bones. Part of the healing...
bonesmart.org bonesmart.org
 
I am so sorry that your medical team has you so stressed about your ROM. Please try to relax and give your knee time to heal. It’s been through a lot of trauma, first with the original surgery, PT, then the MUA, and more PT.

I can’t imagine spending so much time massaging my leg. I’m sure it’s tiring and adding to your stress. I’m so sorry you feel you have to do all this.

Consider taking a break, and just let your leg “be” and give it a chance to sort itself out. Rest, ice and elevate, move your knee very gently, and short walks around the house, occasionally.

We are here for you. :console2:
 
41 days since MUA

Best ROM seen is 90 degrees with PT pushing me a bit during a heel slide. OS said he thought I have CRPS and sent me over to pain doc in same practice, mentioning a lumbar block would help with ROM for 6 months.

Pain doc said he thought issue with ROM and pain I have is from the saphenous nerve which is commonly damaged with TKR. He recommended block just for that nerve to actually diagnose root cause. Then he said we could install a PNS device to heal the saphenous nerve if it was the culprit.

Showed up for saphenous nerve block and the dr. had included the femoral nerve on the order. What?? I was not prepared for a 2nd nerve block and was already freaking out about the 1st nerve block. Ultimately I only got the saphenous block, but the dr. had a very unprofessional demeanor...add that to the long list of issues with the practice that is treating me. :hissy: That doc will never be allowed to install a PNS device or do anything else to me.

Had a hard time really logging any improvements on the pain log after the block because I am on pain meds, but it did feel like my knee was less restricted. When I got home I moved my right foot back to match my left while sitting down...which is near impossible usually. I didn't try much more than that because I knew once the block wore off, my leg was not going to be happy...and it wasn't. My leg had stopped guarding 8 days prior to the block, and after the block wore off, the guarding returned. Luckily the guarding did not come back on a regular basis. I noticed the patch on the inside of my knee was a bit tender after the block wore off too.

I have decided to get a 2nd and 3rd opinion on my knee from a couple of other doctors. Do I have CRPS like the OS thought? Should I use a PNS or get a lumbar block? What causes the band feeling that I fight when doing my exercises?

Also, my PT wants me to feel okay with 90 degrees ROM since most activities do not require more that that, because he is only cautiously optimistic that I will get a better ROM than that. This is such a roller coaster for me... the depression and sadness sneaks in quite a bit these days. I will update after the 2nd and 3rd opinions come in.

Forgot to add that I ended up with blood clots in my lungs which the ER doc attributed to my idle time after the MUA along with my clotting factor issue. This has been BEYOND a tough road for me. I know things will get better, but damn... I have been kicked in the teeth too many times these last few months.

Patty
 
Last edited:
@ValleyGirl - wow you have been through the ringer. You must be one strong sister. I hope you figure the underlying issues out. Here in The States, you have to be a conscientious consumer of health and wellness care. Please get as many opinions as you need for the professionals to come to the same conclusion about what to treat and for you to be confident in the treatment.
 
Jockette said:
The band around your knee is very common:
bonesmart.org

Tight Band feeling across the front of my knee

That tight band is caused by scar tissue but not the adhesions type of scar tissue. When the surgeon opens up the knee, he has to undercut the skin and superficial structures from that centre line to each side of the knee in order to get good access all round the bones. Part of the healing...
bonesmart.org bonesmart.org
Click to expand...
Please reread this article.

Also, Stiffness/Tightness is a normal occurrence after this kind of major surgery. Your surgeon did major carpentry work and disturbed every millimeter of soft tissue in this area. You aren't tight because your muscle is underused and needs to be stretched and rehabbed. You're tight because your tissue is healing...and full healing takes a full year or more.

You are still very early in this year long recovery and you have PTs pushing your leg, and you’ve had an MUA. Your knee has been “through the mill and back again” You will see improvement as you heal. I suggest a much gentler approach to give your knee the best opportunity in which to heal.
 
ValleyGirl said:
I have been kicked in the teeth too many times these last few months.
Click to expand...
With everything we are all dealing with in these times I think we are all feeling a bit like this! Add on all your additional issues - I think you are doing very well. Hang in there! I hope you get some answers soon.
 
Jockette said:
You will see improvement as you heal. I suggest a much gentler approach to give
Click to expand...
@Jockette Thank you so much for your support. Some days with the OS and PT being so down on my progress, I get scared and worried about the future for my knee. 1. I do not want anymore procedures. 2. I want my care team to be optimistic for me, but they have history of other patients on their side which guides their outlook or perspectives...this makes me scared. But I do think of all the bonesmart feedback and experiences too! I am trying to keep my hopes up!
 
@ValleyGirl Unfortunately many care teams have a "one size fits all" approach. Over the years BoneSmart has engaged with thousands of patients who confirm this approach is just wrong.

Please don't be anxious about the future. You will continue to see improvement for many, many months. For some - improvement continues into years after their surgery!
 
ValleyGirl said:
But I do think of all the bonesmart feedback and experiences too! I am trying to keep my hopes up!
Click to expand...
Try to spend time reading other recovery threads and you’ll find you are in good company. What the medical team deems as “slow“ we here on Bonesmart call “an individual recovery, and we are all different and we can’t compare ourselves to other’s recoveries.” I know that’s really hard to believe, I had what I thought was a a very slow recovery my first year. But it’s really true. My personal opinion is that you just need a lot more time to heal. My first year was “slow” but I actually saw quite a bit of improvement throughout my second year.

I agree with Jaycey, too many medical teams have a one size fits all recovery protocol, but none of us are actually one size fits all.

You would be so much more relaxed if everyone you came in contact with said the same things we say here on Bonesmart. So, try to accept that all people are all 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.

Maybe you could consider finding another PT office that has a more updated and truly individualized approach. It doesn’t sound like the group you are with is helping you very much. It’s really ok to switch to another office.

Or, you could consider doing your own “rehab” at home, which is what I plan to do if I ever have another knee replacement. During my recovery my medical team caused me sooooo much stress. I tolerated it because I was afraid to not do what they said, and I didn’t know any better. After 4 years on Bonesmart, I now know better! Medical teams that cause us stress are not good for our recovery.

Maybe take some time off from formal PT, and just do your daily activities, and give your knee and your mind a rest, so that it can continue to heal. Other members have done this with great results.

Hang out here with us, Bonesmart has a wealth of advice, information and support.
We will offer helpful suggestions, :idea:

Cheer your accomplishments :happydance:

And send hugs when you are feeling down. :console2:

Best wishes!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Active Antimicrobial Hydrogel
Corganics CBD

Staff online

Members online

Total: 951 (members: 1, guests: 950)

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom