TKR #2..... Lessons I am learning

Greetings everyone. I am 7 weeks out. My therapist was very reassuring yesterday at the progress I’ve made. I had MFR for the first time yesterday. A very painful but extraordinarily beneficial. I dreaded going, fearful I would have a repeat of increased pain for days. I am thrilled to tell you I had quite the opposite experience. My advice, find an experienced therapist and then stick with it. Thanks all for sharing, it continues to enlighten

Good afternoon. What a great way to share. Thanks, @sueinmn for your consistently realistic assessment of the recuperative issues after surgery. We need your reminders to maintain an attitude of tolerance and patience. And @marymelba, I am so glad you are finding MFR to be helpful and not fearful. Yes, when a restriction is released there is sometimes pain. Usually, my therapist lets me know in advance and I can stop anytime it gets too much to handle.

I too experience the benefit of having less pain for days after one of my twice-a-week MFR sessions. Those sessions continue to help manage the pain and discomfort of small fiber neuropathy. Right now, they are doing double duty during my TKR #2 recovery. Even my PT at the orthopedics center will mention that I will benefit from my MFR to treat the pain that just appears when you do the necessary exercises after surgery.

Keep working on it. I am now 4 weeks out and have reached a ROM of 137. I am concentrating on balance by standing on just my surgery leg for 3 sets of 20 seconds. I am also tackling the stair routines.....I can go up one stair at a time and am waiting till next week to begin the normal downward effort.

And today.......I drove by myself to a meeting across town. Yesterday, I drove back from my PT as a sort of driver's test with Jay, my life partner. He said I passed which was important because I was driving his car. (smiles)

The only hiccup has been the rainstorm yesterday......the lower barometric pressure rang the pain bell for several hours. We sure do need the rain here so I will survive with a little extra help from my cannabis tincture.

I like to pretend that we are all holding on to eact h other for support. It feels pretty darn nice to know you are part of my recuperation and I am honored to be part of yours.

What is your biggest challenge right now?

May you all be safe and protected from inner and outer harm.
Chris

I experienced that mostly while in a car, 30 min before it was intolerable. I would pull over, stretch, elevate/ice, then be able to resume. It took 5 months, after that wasn't a problem. Keep positive.

You left out several important things a patient has to do before having a TKA! #1) Find the best surgeon you can find. I find the top ranked hospitals in orthopedic surgery, going to health.usnews.com, then find a surgeon whose training (including 'clinical fellowships') are at one of the top (4-5) hospitals in the U.S. #2) If you have a multilevel house, buy a walker for each level. #3) Have the hospital give you a cryo tank for icing your knee., #4) Do the PT exercises religiously. They're very painful, but necessary unless you want to end up with a tight knee. #5) You don't need to have general anesthesia. A femoral nerve block and a spinal block is sufficient, though you have to expect some hammering and pushing as the surgeon puts the prosthesis in place. The femoral nerve block will last about (24-48) hours. #6) Make certain the surgeon's office sends in an order to the VNA and talk to the VNA yourself to ensure they'll show up the day after the surgery. Have the VNA physicial therapist come every day for exercises post-op. They'll continue to come for PT until you can get into a car & drive. When getting into a car, pull the car seat as far back as you can before you try to get in. #7) I have a 3-level condo and have stair railings on both sides of the stairs and hand rails in the tub. #8) If you live alone and have no one to support you, put sufficient food in the freezer and drinks on hand to last about (3) weeks. #9) Keep the walker in your bedroom level right next to your bed and keep a hall light turned on all night, so that when you get up at night to go to the bathroom, you'll be safe. I've had total knee replacements in both knees & I'm 75 years old, live alone and have no support system or family.

There are a few things I forgot: #1) go to a medical supply house, hospital or some pharmacies & buy a medical chair & put it in your tub. You can sit on the chair and then swing your legs over the side of the tub, then stand up to shower Don't take a bath. Hopefully now you have hand rails in the tub. #2) The VNA nurse should show up the next morning after your TKA surgery and take the bandage off & look at your incision for signs of infection. Ask him/her to replace the dressing with a waterproof bandage so you can take a shower. #3) The day before the surgery, after you get up, wash all your sheets & pillowcases. #4) Use Hibiclens (buy it at a pharmacy) to wash your knee every day for several days before the surgery and use it liberally to wash your knee the morning of your surgery. #5) Religiously take the baby aspirin prescribed both morning and night so you won't throw a clot. #6) Before anything you do that you think might cause an infection, take the antibiotic prophylactic antibiotic regimen. The VNA PT told me of one patient she had that got an infection from a pedicure. Better yet, skip pedicures. If you get an infection, they automatically zero in on your prosthesis & then the surgeon has to open your knee back up, remove the prosthesis, drain the knee, pour antibiotic solutions into your knee & replace the prosthesis. You don't want that to happen under any circumstances.

Thank you for both of your posts. You added important information especially about the pre-surgery cleansing and the need to remove all evidence of a manicure and pedicure. The goal is to have absolutely nothing that could create an infection. As you noted......the fix for that is not something you want to happen. The other reminder item is to make sure you use antibiotics before you have any dental work done. And the advice is to let your orthopedist select the brand not your dentist. Sounds reasonable to me.

Anyone else have items to add? Please join our memory bank of good ideas.
May you all be free and protected from inner and outer harm.
Chris

Good afternoon. These are interesting posts. I have not experienced this type of pain. I am at 5 weeks today. I sometimes have some discomfort/pain after my PT at the Orthopedic Center. They tell me to talk to my MFR therapist about pain and that she can work on the restrictions that need to be released so that the pain will go away.

I did talk to the MFR therapists. In fact, I just arrived home from treatment. I drove myself from and have no pain this afternoon. She also moved any remaining fluid away from the surgery area to prevent pain buildup. I am very fortunate to have both types of professionals taking care of my recovery. It amounts to 2 hours a week of pushing the knee's performance, and two hours a week of assuring that the pain is either gone or quite tolerable.

So...let's all keep positive. And it appears that this is a good place to mention any recovery situation. We can all find answers and solutions together.

Thank you for sharing.
Chris

What is MFR?

Myofacia release

Good afternoon @rickkraleigh, MFR is Myofascial Release Therapy. We have yards and yards of a fabric like tissue called fascia that covers all of the organs and connecting materials in our bodies. When a few layers of fascia become restricted or entangled, pain is created. An "expert" MFR therapist can release the restrictions, essentially freeing your ligaments, tissue, and muscles from the restrictions.

You can learn more about MFR here on Connect at https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/myofascial-release-therapy-mfr-for-treating-compression-and-pain/

You can find additional information at http://www.myofascialrelease.com. John Barnes is the founder and worldwide teacher for this very effective treatment process.

May you be happy and healthy.
Chris