Various questions 1 wk after surgery

[YMS]

I had total hip replacement surgery 1 week ago. During the recovery period, I feel pain in the knee area and the calf muscles of the leg. I have slight blood clot below the knee - diagnosed in the hospital. My DVT INR results are 1.8 at this time, which doctors are bringing to 2-3 by adjusting Coumadin doses.

I just wanted to know if anyone has experienced this kind of pain - how long does it last?

I am able to walk with a walker and crutches without much problem; however, when I get up and lift my leg, I feel a 50 lb weight in my thigh/hip area. Is this common? How long does this pain last?

When does the pain from the hip go away?

If anyone can throw some light on the above 3 sets of questions, would really appreciate it.

Thanks,
YMS

 

[newwheels08]

I am at 7 weeks now...and remember having all kinds of transitory pains at weeks 1-2 ...especially when learning to walk and changing from walker to crutches and then to cane. Knee, upper thigh, quads....all pains were relatively short lived and fairly minor...but concerned me at the time. No blood clots (for me)...but lots of various aches and unusual pains for sure. Still get some even now...but rarely.

As far was the heavy feeling...I could not lift my left leg off the bed at first week...but it got better (and easier) with time. At seven weeks it is stronger than pre-surgery. My OS response to my concerns was that if something "bad" happens to the joint...the pain will not be subtle or transitory. Hope this helps and best wishes for your recovery.

 

[Josephine]

Good answer - not a lot for me to add except that you take it easy and remember that nothing in these ops gets better or goes away in a few days. Could be 4-8 weeks before you begin to see real improvement. Your body has a LOT of healing to do.

 

[Ginny]

YMS,

Sounds like your are on track. Be patient and focus on what you can do verses what you can't. The first 3 weeks post-op were the most challenging for me. I had aches and pains mostly at night, sleeping was hard for me. Take it easy, There's a fantastic post from Danny R. under "when can I run.." It's worth reading even if you're not a runner.

All the best!
Ginny
35yr old female/THR left hip/smith & nephew/metal on metal/ Dr. Moore @ UAB Birmingham

 

[pebitpeb]

Ciao,
I would expect that you would have some discomforts at this time, however pay attention and if you are not seeing improvements in a week or two, then I would contact your surgeon and ask her/him about your situation.

I hope your situation changes quickly and wish you the best in recovery.

pebitpeb
Paul

 

[Swright]

Aches on outside of my knees, sore chin, some calf discomfort and little response from my quads until this week which is my 3rd week.

If you limped prior to surgery remember that you didn't use many of the muscles required to walk "normally". My PT guy likens it to "waking" them up. Also, he said that when there is trauma, it is natural sometimes for the muscles not to respond. It's the bodies way of keeping them from having more damage.

The aches have slowly diminished, I even walked without my cane today, a little crooked, but I did it. Due to limping my replacement side knee wants to lock like it used to instead of being slightly bent when I take a step forward. Just one more reason to do it sooner than later, it is going to take awhile to "unlearn" the way I walked...I hope I will be able to walk "normally" again.

Patience is tough I know, but weekly your body will let you know how things are moving along, hang in there.

 

[Swright]

Sorry, I meant sore "shin" not sore "chin"....

 

[Jamie]

Sorry, I meant sore "shin" not sore "chin"....

Boy, I was wondering.....a sore CHIN was a new one for me and I was beginning to wonder if someone let you have it while you were sleeping soundly. Your correction gave me a chuckle.

Glad you're doing better.

 

[Karen]

Hi

I had a DVT after my first op in 1983, didn't occur until 6 weeks after op. I suffered with calf/behind knee pain all that time but as soon as they got the blood thinned the pain did ease quite quickly.

I have had quite a few ops and every time the leg feels like a dead weight but it does come back - I think I suddenly stop thinking about it, time is the healer be patient.

Sorry to hear you still have pain in the hip, you GP should be able to help with pain killers for you. Is it maybe you are doing too much, cos it can be frustrating sitting around - I know I tend to do too much sometimes, trouble is it doesn't warn me soon enough.

I know everyone is different but hopefully you'll be feeling better soon.

Karen

 

[Vjklander]

I had my hip Right hip replacement 5/5/8 and I swear 90% of the pain and difficulty I have had has been from my right knee. When I go the toredol it would be great for 6-8 hours. Regular pain meds didn't do much, and what little they did was only good for 1-2 hours. It seems obvious to me that my problem is due to inflammation in the knee itself. When I got home a simple ace wrap helped immensely. I also watched a couple surgeries on youtube and after seeing the way the leg was twisted and yanked to get access to the op sight, it is no wonder my knee was damaged. Add to that the shaft of the implant getting pounded down into the femur with no stabilization of the bottom of the femur so the pounding was just driving the lower end of the femur into the knee joint, good grief!!!!!!!!!! For the life of me I don't know why they don't put one of those titanium hinged sports knee braces on the knee to stabilize it. That would prevent most of the unintended damage to the knee. The brace would also make it much easier to line up the leg for access by the surgeon.

 

[Josephine]

I often think those vids are a mixed blessing! The 'pounding' of the stem into the femur is nowhere near as heavy handed as it looks and the impact is not so much on the knee joint as on the muscles that are attached to the shaft of the femur. The blows would only affect the knee if the foot was on the floor (so to speak) but since it is not, there is nothing to make the tibia, or shin bone, accept the impact. However, the manipulation of the leg, yes that would affect the joint.

But don't forget all the limping and difficult walking and physio you have been through - that plays a part as well.

Despite all that, I do hope you get better soon.

 

[Swright]

I also had knee pain for the first few weeks. I could press on the outside of my knee all the way up the outside of my thigh and feel pain. There was also pain in my knee when walking with my walker.

Within a few weeks and PT this cleared up. I was concerned that there was damage, but thank goodness my body just needed some rest and slow gentle exercise.

 

[jeaniebug]

I also had knee pain both before and after surgery. I am now 7 weeks post op and have no knee pain at all. I think I was walking "funny" --well I had quite a limp which was starting to affect my knee. It has completely cleared, which surprised me. Everyone is different though.

Also I could barely lift my leg or move it in any direction with my PT at first. It did feel like a 50 lb weight was attached. This cleared up pretty quickly and is better now than before surgery.

I was on vicodan for about 3 weeks. Then switched to Ultram for a few weeks, and then the Dr. recommended Aleve every 12 hours for the inflamation. But you should talk to your own Dr. of course. Have not needed any pain meds for the last week or 10 days. What a wonderful thing this surgery is! Good luck!

 

[Vjklander]

I am 2 weeks post op today. The knee is much better, just an occasional twinge. I'm walking without a cane except as a fashion statement. Off pain meds. Just one Celebrex per day for 2 more days. Doing all the exercises well. The lateral leg exercises in bed were the real tough ones at first, but now they are free and easy. Taking my second shower in a minute here. I did find out from my home health nurse that one of her associates had hip replacement surgery four months ago and had torn ligaments in her knee during surgery. She is still out of work. I think this knee damage issue is one that needs to be addressed better by the surgical community.

 

[Vjklander]

As a Structural Eengineer by trade, I would agree it would be worse if the foot was on the floor, but I do believe the impact on the knee is significant. Given the plethora of anecdotal evidence, I do believe the surgical community should study the issue and I'm sure some clever doctor could come up with a better way.
Vjk

I often think those vids are a mixed blessing! The 'pounding' of the stem into the femur is nowhere near as heavy handed as it looks and the impact is not so much on the knee joint as on the muscles that are attached to the shaft of the femur. The blows would only affect the knee if the foot was on the floor (so to speak) but since it is not, there is nothing to make the tibia, or shin bone, accept the impact. However, the manipulation of the leg, yes that would affect the joint.

But don't forget all the limping and difficult walking and physio you have been through - that plays a part as well.

Despite all that, I do hope you get better soon.