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Poor range of motion after TKR and manipulation: What to do?
I had a TKR 3months ago and had manual manipulation 4 days ago. My ROM was great while on the nerve block but as soon as that wore off my ROM went from 110 to 70 degrees. I do have a lot of pain in the quadricep and the muscle are very tight. I am taking a muscle relaxer with no relief. I am thinking of going for a second opinion. I had a comformis knee replacement and I am going to PT 5 days a week without much success . Does anyone have any recommendations or have had the same problem.
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@mia28 I am not a doc nor a PT person but I can provide the answer my DOC provided me. Basically, u r lifting the foot, sneaker, ankle and tibia when using the leg extension weight machine (photo from the internet is attached). Let's assume u r starting at 90 deg when your leg is hanging down, and 0 degrees when it is fully up, straight & extended. It is that last 10 degrees which tends to pull the top of the tibia downward into the capsule. That's what the DOC said to avoid, the last 10 degrees. Also, slow is better than fast. By the end of 10 reps, the leg should be tired so I switch to the other leg while the first one rests. Total, 3 reps. If u do both legs together, one may compensate for the other. After my latest TKR last month, I purposely allowed the non TKR leg to assist the TKR leg. Gradually, as the TKR heals, the non TKR will be used less.
Also, in this manner, by never resting, I raise my heart rate and keep it raised.
Also, I'm experimenting with Lidocaine and Capsaicin right now to see which one mitigates the nerve pain better.
Hope this helps. In the USMC, they told us PAIN IS GOOD. Hahaha, don't believe it.
Thanks very much for your reply. I do both legs or both legs up and one leg down. I always go slow as I was an avid weight lifter for many years and was always told to do slower movements and pay attention to form.
@mia28 I like your ideas. I went to a Functionsl doctor who is working on my right leg because it is weak and putting stress in my left TKR. 🙃 she is helping me to walk differently. Electro magnetic therapy is helping the mist and next up is cold Lazer therapy. Any more ideas I'm open to suggestions. Last resort is ozone therapy
@burdie
Which demonstrates the error in focusing on the implant used (Conformis, BTW, is an excellent implant), the surgical method, etc. These are all important but can be useless or even dangerous in the hands of a poor surgeon and can be wonderful in the hands of a great surgeon.
My suggestion would be to start your search first for the surgeon, then narrow the list with the other requirements. I have seen many reports of folks happy with their "Nano knees" and others who are not.