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Help with swelling/ stiffness after TKR
Joint Replacements | Last Active: Dec 8, 2022 | Replies (19)Comment receiving replies
Good evening @marcia2023 @ezas123 @sueinmn
Welcome to Connect where you will be in touch with lots of fellow TKR patients. I can tell by your introductory post that you are disappointed with your current post-TKR surgery situation. Everyone prepares for surgery differently and I hope you did plenty of pre-surgery exercises to ensure that the muscles supporting your knee and leg were as strong as possible.
I am wondering: how long ago did you have the cortisone injections? They can take several weeks to reach full effectiveness. I would also like to ask if you had a robotic TKR. That can ensure the best accuracy placement of new materials.
If, in fact, everything went well during pre and post-surgery exercises with your PT then it might be helpful for you to hear from two well-spoken ladies. First, @sueinmn, a fellow mentor, has written one of the best descriptions of how traumatic surgery can be to all of the affected body parts. And secondly, @ezas123 has been the recipient of MFR, myofascial release therapy, which she found helpful post-surgery. MFR was also my personal resource for my second TKR last year. In fact, my introduction to MFR was in response to post-surgery scar tissue removal after my first knee replacement.
May I ask: did you have robotic surgery? That, in itself, can ensure greater surgical accuracy.
And did you use ice and elevation religiously during recovery? Are you using it to help with the pain you are experiencing now?
May you be safe, free, and protected from inner and outer harm.
Chris
Replies to "Good evening @marcia2023 @ezas123 @sueinmn Welcome to Connect where you will be in touch with lots..."
I wish I had been told about the exercises before surgery. I read it after it was done online. 12 weeks our now and still in so much pain. Revision TKR from 5 years ago which ever heel. This time it is still worse than before so far. On my 6 week check up I find out the new part goes from almost top of leg to ankle. I was shocked when I seen X-rays. Even the lady that done X-ray could not believe it. She said doctor will explain. Told me for extra support. Still feels like rubber band is around it tight. Burns like fire and so swollen. Told doctor all that all he said was it may take 6 month to a year to heel. I am so upset. Cannot sleep at night or do my daily chores around my house that we were in the middle of remodeling and some of it I had planned on doing myself like painting. Knee doctor told me when I wake up from surgery it would feel like better than before. It did till I got home the first two weeks I didn’t think I could get though it. therapist told me they tell you how much better it will feel while in hospital that they don’t tell you it because of all the drugs they have you on though IV.
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Thank you so much Chris.
I don't know if I had robotic surgery or not. I was just made aware of that procedure recently. That being said I think probably not.
I was doing a lot of walking (which is how I injured it), so I had, and still do have a lot of strength in my legs. At my last checkup the doctor said they were very strong. He was hoping the cortisone shots administered a month ago would help, but they have not.
My initial post surgery recovery period was extremely difficult since I can't take opioid medications. But I did manage, God knows how, to do the in-home and later out-patient physical therapy. And I did well until one day on the bike I heard and felt a huge clunk followed by crippling pain. I only had that happen one other time about 3 weeks post surgery and it scared me to death. I still have a ridiculous amount of popping, clunking and a rolling sensations.
I did, and still do, all the icing and elevation. I will try to learn from sueinmn and ezas123. Not sure who these are, but will try to contact.
I have had some myofascial release on my neck and shoulder several years ago. Now, when I search online I find they are out of the area and extremely expensive for me and not covered by insurance.
May you also be safe, free, and protected from inner and outer harm. I love that you wrote that. I will focus on that. Thank you for your response.
Marcia