week 6 TKR

[bonsallss]

Hi Everyone,
I am almost at week 6 after surgery and am having problems with my leg extension. The day of surgery a pillow was placed under my knee and now I cant straighten it out. The doctor said that it was because the nurse placed the pillow under it. I am doing all the exercises and they are forcing it in therapy (OUCH). Does anyone know what else I can do to get it straight? My bend is coming along, but they are more concerned about me getting it straighten right now. Any suggestions?
Thanks Janet

 

[Jamie]

Welcome to BoneSmart!!!!!

Are you in regular therapy? Are you doing exercises to stretch your extension a little bit several times each day? The best one for me was lying on my stomach with my knee at the edge of the bed. You can put ankle weights on (and should after you do this a while). You just lie there and let gravity do it's thing on your leg for anywhere from 2-10 minutes at a time.

You can also put your heel and lower leg on a chair or something higher than your hip and put weight on your knee. This is one you can do while watching television or lying in bed.

Swelling can keep your knee from full extension (it did mine), so be sure you are still taking some type of anti-inflammant.

Is your extension bad enough to impact your daily activity? Sounds like it might be if the therapist is forcing it. This is one thing that's done. It hurts, but it can break up scar tissue, get the results you want and keep you from having a manipulation (which may be the final recommendation if you can't get there through therapy).

Janet, the main thing here is NOT a number, but it is you getting to a range of motion (flexion and extension) that is comfortable for you.

There have been many past posts about extension, so do a search and read some here on the forum.

 

[aussie]

Hi Janet,

I've been there and to be honest at 16 weeks PO TRKR I would still have a bit of extension to go. I was getting so hung up on the numbers then Jamie said, worry about having a good life and not the numbers. I have done exactly that and now I am doing everything I want to do even though I know the numbers aren't what I had expected (comparing myself to others) I know now they are right for me and my legs. However if you feel like it is holding you back then maybe you need to address it with the OS. I was still really swollen with not a lot of extension at 6 weeks, so I think you are still early days yet. Jamie's suggestion of laying on your tummy with your legs over the bed with weights on is a good one. At first you can only do it for a minute, but the time gets better and so does the extension.

Best wishes,

Chris

 

[Weezy]

Hi Janet! I'm right at 6 weeks now on my RTKR, and about 10.5 months on my LTKR.

I still have some extension to go too, a few degrees. But I'm not worried at all for a couple of reasons:

1. I didn't get my L leg straight for close to 5-6 months, and now it kind of hyperextends!

2. THIS time my surgeon is the one who told me to keep a pillow under my leg and be comfortable! Completely different from the first time! When I saw the surgeon the day after the surgery, I questioned him on why my leg was on a pillow and the foot of the bed was up. he said that in his experience, the knee was in a more natural position, the patient more comfortable, and the recovery better. I asked him about the extension and he said that everyone worried about it too much, but that all of his patients eventually got full extension--and in his opinion everyone worried too much about ROM and extension too early in the process.

So I'm not worried at all about my R leg...I've got good ROM for every day living at the moment, I keep working on my PT, and I know that because its a VERY VERY VERY long recovery process, I'll eventually get there and everything will be fine.

Hang in there!!!

Weezy

 

[Josephine]

That surgeon is pulling a fast one! How low of him to blame it on a nurse when many people suffer from this problem and it will eventually correct itself even if you need an MUA eventually. One day of a pillow under a knee will not lead to this kind of problem! The real hazard of a pillow under the knee in the first day or so is of DVT, not extension problems.