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allergic reaction to bone cement
After 1 1/2 years of pain, swelling getting worse, I was tested for allergies. I will have to have another TKR custom without the bone cement. I am devastated at no one checking for allergies as I have numerous strange food allergies. I am told I may have to wait up to 10 mos for the revision as the FDA only approves a small number of these revisions per surgeons annually. This is because it's not a money maker for the hospitals, so it's limited. Another disappointment as now the hardware is coming loose from the bones and is unstable/more painful. Please pass on my bad experience so others don't suffer. Surgeons should be asking about allergies in this era of more and more people allergic to foods/environmental substances.
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I had my left knee total replacement twice before discovering I am allergic to metal so I now have ceramic in both my left and right knees with no problem so far and I’m 3 years in!
Did you know you were allergic to bone cement before the surgery ? If not I don't understand how it would have helped for him to ask. Just curious.
My TKR was done on 06/01/2009. Just the day after my surgery my BP was 73/40, nurses were holding me up to walk with a wide leather strap around my waist to hold me up. Vomiting from the morphine drip, honestly thought I was dying. The pain was unbearable, knee was red hot, and never stopped hurting. After three years of this pain the operating orthopedic wanted to do a revision thinking I may have been allergic to the small amount of nickel in the replacement. When my primary physician got wind of this she referred me for metal and resins testing with an allergist. Usually it takes three days to show after testing, which was negative. Several days after being checked I asked my husband if the black grid made for testing was gone, he answered the black marks are gone but you have a bunch of red welts on your back. The next day I called the allergist’s office and explained. His receptionist said it was impossible, didn’t want to give me an appointment. She finally relented. As I was removing my shirt before the doctor came in, he came in and said he could see the marks from the hall. After comparing the marks to the grid, all marks were from the resins in bone cement. His only words to me were, “I don’t envy you”. It has been a complete nightmare. My orthopedic refused to see me after receiving those results. Trying to find an orthopedist knowledgeable with bone cement allergies has been downright impossible. My current orthopedic surgeon is a professor of orthopedics at a large teaching university, he’s never heard of it but has told me my replacement parts are worn out with minor loosening. He’s willing to do the surgery but said it could cause more pain for life. I am struggling with the decision to undergo a revision or just struggle with my current situation. Think there are a lot of people out there struggling with pain after surgery that could have allergies to either the bone cement or metals. Any suggestions for physicians on the east coast to help with this would be appreciated.