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Damage from Iovera Nerve block prior to TKR
I had right TKR 18 weeks ago. Prior to surgery I had lower leg neuropathy and a neurologist could not determine why after testing (you're part of the 20% of the population that gets it for an unknown reason she said). My surgeon recommended the Iovera nerve block prior to surgery because it would help with pain after the surgery. He said that the nerve block would last for about 3 months. I had no problem when the injection was done, minimal bruising and my leg was numb. It's now been more than 3 months later and I still have numbness going all the way down the inside of my thigh to my knee and when I touched the skin it feels like someone's taking a razor blade and slicing my skin open. I'm also having problems when I bend my leg in certain ways or touch my leg in certain spots I start get sharp nerve pains down on my lower leg. I don't know if this is from the Iovera injection or not. And I have a feeling nobody's really going to tell me. Has this happened to anybody else? I already had a chronic pain condition before surgery and if I had known that I would feel the way I do now I don't think I would have had my knee replaced!
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I had the Ioverra procedure almost 4 months ago and have had excruciating nerve pain since. My doctor is very dismissive and states he has never had any complaints before and acts like I am not having any issues with my knee at all. Any one else had this experience.
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1 Reaction@ezas123
Not sure if this helps you, but prior to surgery, my doctor told me to expect right side of knee numbness that would likely never go away.
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1 Reaction@gideonsmom2026
I had a dismissive dr. also I found another that was amazing. Granted did not help me much because of my Arthrofibrosis , not much you can to for it. But helps have someone that listens and not undermine your pain and frustration when recovery hits a snag. My old dr. Would tell me I am not working hard enough, could not push through the pain .That is the dr. That put the knee that was almost 3 sizes to big lol. So listen to your gut. We are our best advocate. Good luck to you.
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1 Reaction@kathi65 try dr Solomon’s cream and balm products they’re helpful from what I hear.
@gideonsmom2026 Yes, the pain caused me to cancel my TKR but I eventually got it but did not get another Iovera treatment. I sympathize with you but are you seeing any improvement at all? I gradually got better but I think it was about 6 months
@gideonsmom2026 oh my gosh don’t name names but are you in Orlando? I took husband in with me last appt and was night & day difference! From barely syllabic (and one sentence notes on record) to spent 45 min going over everything. Iovera massive fail. Never had thigh pain. Procedure 3/2/26. IMMEDIATELY terrible nerve pain along with skin numbness.
My wife had the Iovera procedure done 3 weeks ago and is experiencing the same issues. It is painful to the touch, continuous pain, pain in the knee, weird nerve sensations. She saw the doctor today and he figured out the cause of the complications! Ultrasound revealed internal tract marks from 2 out of the 3 needle sites. For now she was prescribed Lyrica and will follow up in 6 weeks. The doctor thinks the nerves will heal but also stated he hasn't seen anything like this before. The freezing occurred throughout the whole needle and not just the tip the way it is supposed to work.
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1 Reaction@devilbiker69 ,yikes!
Going to be meeting with my surgeon on September 9th and 11th one for bilateral hips and one for bilateral knees. I'm very worried about this injection and the complications. Thank you for sharing. Do they have an idea of what could have caused it to be the whole needle and not the tip?
@missy4242 the doctor said he hasn't seen that before and took pictures to show the Iovera company.
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