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Spacer replacement 4 years after TKR

Posted by doodles418 @doodles418, Feb 8, 2023

Has anyone been told their plastic spacer is too thin and should be replaced? My knee has been having all kinds of pain, pinching and burning sensations for months now. Xray shows implants are stable, but the spacer may be too thin and gives me the unstable feeling. Surgeon suggests going in and replacing, but not a fan of surgery. Anyone have it done? Successful? Wished they didn't? Thanks for any comments.

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ouch89 | @ouch89 | Nov 29 3:57pm
In reply to @ouch89 "I had a TKR on 03-13-18 and was in pain until I had a revision on..." + (show)
Profile picture for ouch89 @ouch89

I had a TKR on 03-13-18 and was in pain until I had a revision on 12-26-23. During this almost 6 year period I complained about the feeling of a lose knee with loud clunking. The sound was so loud my wife could hear my knee while I walked across the room. Following the surgery my doctor told me I put a thicker spacer in that should take care of the clunking. The surgery went well with less pain and quicker recovery, but the clunking, although reduced, remains.
In my case answering the question "would I do it over again" is elusive, because giving up one year plus of your life in recovery for a questionable outcome is a difficult decision.

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@ouch89
This is an update on my 11-30-24 comment. The revision with the thicker spacer had little effect on pain and clunking and the recovery was much better than the original surgery. I was very optomistic during my first 4 months of physical therapy when progress began taking a down-turn. As the pain increased I continued the PT for a full year hoping for improvement. I continued seeing different Orthopedists, because they had different diagnosis, for the next 18 months. The last diagnosis was a loose implant that may explain the pain, but I won't take this to the bank. My personal experience with 3 knee replacements (one revision) is negative with more pain than pre-surgery, limited range of motion, and major reduction of quality of life.

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odess13 | @odess13 | Nov 30 10:40am

Can I ask a question is it possiable for my spacer to wear out within 7 months I think it was my doctor who perform the surgery now I have to get a new spacer put in by another doctor he referred me to because he kept telling me nuttin was wrong I have been in pain since I had my first knee replacement surgery on march 4 2025

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odess13 | @odess13 | Nov 30 10:41am

Can I do something about this meaning looking for a lawyer just asking

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