MUA What are we to do post mua ? Got no instructions except to walk

[meandmyhunny2]

Hello all. This is my first post. I had a LTKR on April 1st (yes April fool’s day )so I never received any physio at all (it’s a long story) Not at the hospital or elsewhere. I did the prescribed exercises to the best of my ability. On Friday I had an mua. My question to you all is what was the post-procedure directive….. I got none except I was told to walk. Were you discharged with crutches? What exercises were you told to do? Any advice at all? Hoping I can benefit from your experience -thanks to all who reply

 

[Roy Gardiner]

to BoneSmart

Think of MUA as going back to day 1 of TKR recovery.

Knee Recovery: The Guidelines

We are all different, as are the approaches to recovery. The key is, “Find what works for YOU.“ Your doctor(s), physiotherapist(s) and BoneSmart will offer advice and are there to help. The advice may vary, but YOU are the final judge as to the recovery approach you choose.

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​

elevate​

ice​

take your pain meds by prescription schedule (not when pain starts!)​

don't overwork.​

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

the BoneSmart view on exercise​

BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy​

5. At week 4 and after you should follow this

Activity progression for TKRs​

6. Access these pages on the website

Oral And Intravenous Pain Medications​

Wound Care In Hospital​

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.

 

[Jaycey]

Welcome to BoneSmart! Post MUA ice and elevation is your best strategy. Short walks as tolerated. As Roy says - you are basically starting the recovery process all over again. But that knee will be angry from all that handling. Ice will help decrease the swelling and allow you to increase your range of motion.

 

[sistersinhim]

All you need to do to recover is to walk around doing your daily activities. You don't need to be doing a lot of exercising, just a very few gentle stretches. Your knee is angry and will be painful and will more than likely swell.

 

[meandmyhunny2]

Thank you all for your replies and a special thank you to Roy G for that in depth reply We were scratching our heads on what to do next
We (my hubby and I ) will be going through the threads and suggested posts to read
So so appreciated !

 

[meandmyhunny2]

How do you guys do it It’s 2:30 a.m. This leg will not stop jumping (very similar feeling to rls) I am 6 days post mua 6 days with not a full night of sleep.This pain is worst than post tkr
I’m afraid of asking for more pain management,I know the surgeon hates to be asked for meds He made this quite clear so besides ice,elevate etc do you have any suggestions I am about to jump out of my skin
with pain I understand that this forum is about keeping things light and positive but I am positively going cray-cray with this
My leg feels as tight if not tighter atm Yes I have been following dr’s protocol to a t
Also,I did call his office and when I told her I can’t take naproxen she told me not to worry about it and not take it Since when do secretaries have the power to d/c meds ?
****I have been taking Tylenol 3 for years prior to this because I have “most likely Crohn’s“****This helps bind my bowels.I understand that tolerance to meds is built up but the anesthesiologist rudely pointed out that this is why I am in pain ! I wholeheartedly disagree because there is no pain like post tkr/post mua pain
Thank you for being understanding and thank you for your input
Not much of a knee warrior atm

 

[Roy Gardiner]

You'll notice that I have merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread. For several reasons, we prefer that you only have one recovery thread:

• That way, you have all your information in one place. This makes it easier to go back and review your history before providing advice.
• If you start new threads, you miss the posts and advice others have left for you in the old threads, and some information may be unnecessarily repeated
• Having only one thread will act as a diary of your progress that you can look back on.

So please post any updates, questions or concerns about your recovery here.

 

[Cjackso21]

Hello, I had a MUA many years ago. I had a lot pain while walking afterward that wouldn’t go away. The doctor said he may have injured me and so to ice and keep off of the knee as much as possible. Which of course seemed counter to what the surgery was for, to get more flexibility. But I did what he said and it eventually healed after a few weeks. Gentle stretching, staying off of the knee and ice and elevate worked for me!

 

[Jockette]

My leg feels as tight if not tighter atm Yes I have been following dr’s protocol to a t

What is the protocol? If it’s a lot of exercises, this may be why you have so much tightness, which is swelling.

 

[InkedMarie]

@meandmyhunny2 I use a heating pad on my thigh, above my knee, prior to bed. I also massage my leg and it helps re leg jumping.

Marie

 

[meandmyhunny2]

My leg feels as tight if not tighter atm Yes I have been following dr’s protocol to a t

What is the protocol? If it’s a lot of exercises, this may be why you have so much tightness, which is swelling.

Protocol as in Walk,walk and walk Push through that pain :(

 

[meandmyhunny2]

You'll notice that I have merged your newest thread with your original recovery thread. For several reasons, we prefer that you only have one recovery thread:

• That way, you have all your information in one place. This makes it easier to go back and review your history before providing advice.
• If you start new threads, you miss the posts and advice others have left for you in the old threads, and some information may be unnecessarily repeated
• Having only one thread will act as a diary of your progress that you can look back on.

So please post any updates, questions or concerns about your recovery here.

Thank you so much for doing this,and please accept my apology for not knowing how to do this
I guess posting in the middle of a sleepless,pain filled night wasn’t a good idea
Sincerely,Anne

 

[meandmyhunny2]

@meandmyhunny2 I use a heating pad on my thigh, above my knee, prior to bed. I also massage my leg and it helps re leg jumping.

Marie

Thank you ! I do have a massage roller but atm it simmers down only if I keep massaging

 

[Jaycey]

Push through that pain :(

Absolutely not! Please do not try to push through anything, It will only result in more pain and swelling. Short walks, gentle stretches, ice and elevation. If your surgeon is suggesting this aggressive approach he/she has obviously never had TKR.

 

[meandmyhunny2]

You are right, he probably never had this procedure.I’ve picked up on a few things
1.one of the first things he told me was his hatred of pain management
2.I felt like I was just another surgery for him to perform
3 He wanted to do an mua so fast I felt even more like just another procedure aka $$$$$
I’m questioning seeing someone else and should have done a better job checking credentials. I was just eager to get rid of this old knee
thank you for your reply!

 

[sistersinhim]

Push through that pain

I agree with what Jaycey said. Pushing through the pain just delays the improvement of your knee. You don't have a sports injury, you had a major, traumatic surgical procedure. Would you exercise a broken bone? Of course not. Well, you have two cut-off bones with a foreign object pounded into these bones. Every soft tissue of your knee has been disturbed by being cut, pulled apart, or out of the way to put this huge implant in the knee cavity. You continue to keep these soft tissues inflamed because of over-exercising them. Inflamed tissues produce fluid which increases your pain and swelling. The key to a better ROM is to get the swelling down. You do that by resting, icing, and elevating as much as you can. Your MUA has set your recovery back to almost the very beginning so it needs to be treated like a new replacement.

It seems that many older OSs and PTs have been trained to prescribe the kind of therapy that your surgeon has told you to do. The younger, and later trained doctors and therapists agree with the Bonesmart way of rehabbing these joint replacements and go with the gentler approach.

 

[meandmyhunny2]

I love your reply! You make me feel understood However my O.S. is young, quite young actually
After discussing my lack of progress with my hubby I think we will stop going to see him and check for alternate routes ( I had this surgery in April and still rely heavily on a wheelchair ) My knee doesn’t bend at all Feeling defeated but encouraged by your comments, suggestions, and opinions Clearly you have « been there » Thank you!

 

[Jamie]

Your surgeon may be rather young, but if he's pushing aggressive therapy, he has very old thoughts. The latest studies show that most patients do much better with a more gentle approach that does not cause extreme pain and swelling.

If you are needing a wheelchair following your MUA, your knee may have been injured during the procedure. It does happen sometimes. I support your thoughts about getting additional opinions. Your poor knee obviously needs some tender loving care in order to start healing properly. Don't be shy about asking for pain medications and a plan for pain management. If you're having significant pain, this inflammation will cause swelling. This is likely why your knee is not bending well. Please do find someone better to take a look at your knee. You should not be in this kind of pain and needing to use a wheelchair.