Numbness after TKR

I am a little more than 2 years out from tkr. I am now permanently numb on the inside of my calf from the surgery. Been told these nerves will not come back. Also have smaller numb area on lateral side of knee cap.

I figured that I am numb on the outer side of my knee but the little toe has me baffled

I have little toe and heel numb

Well that makes me feel better my Ortho dr said the toe has nothing to do with the knee but I find that hard to believe

I have been getting numbness in my heel. I am only a little over 11 weeks out from right TKR surgery. (I’ve had a total of 4 surgeries on my right knee including an osteotomy/tendon replacement/lateral release, partial knee replacement, medial imbrication and lateral release, and finally the TKR) I am also having a lot of pain in my calf, pain behind the knee and searing pain in the hip. I’ve had an injection into my L4 with little relief. They sent me for an MRI of the low back which showed mild arthritis in the L4 and L5, but no nerve impingement. I go back tomorrow morning to see the same doctor that gave me the injection. My surgeon basically told me at my 8 week follow up they things will eventually get better…see you in a year. I am baffled by the symptoms and the lack of caring from the surgeon.

Good evening @kellybaumgart, glad to see that you have joined Connect. I read your post several times so that I could hopefully separate the issues that you present. The post-surgery pain and discomfort seems to be a report that I read quite frequently. And your surgeon may have told you the absolute truth. Things will get better. There are a lot of different materials like connective tissue and muscle, ligaments, etc. They all have different requirements for healing time even up to one year.

And my second wish for you is to reconsider the comment from your surgeon......"see you in a year", My experience has been that the comment actually means...."I know you will get better......and look forward to seeing you in a year. Recently, my endocrinologist helped me get through a pretty rough time with osteoporosis. He thoroughly explored my history and then made a recommendation to save bone density. As I left he said........"see you in two years". What he meant was that the next scheduled Dexa scan would be in two years. He was letting me know that he trusted his medication recommendation and would be ready to celebrate with me after the next future scan. He even smiled as he said it. So it doesn't signify a lack of caring.

Regarding the numbness in your heel at 11 weeks. My right heel recently went from numbness to numbness with pain and it has been 18 months since the TKR. I notified my MFR (myofascial release therapist) and she has been keeping it under control for me.

I don't know how old you are .........however it does take time for everything new to settle in and quiet down.

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

Can I ask what he recommended...I have osteoarthritis in my neck, lower back which has been worse since my right TKR however I'm not sure it's related. I have been trying Voltaren gel as I can't take nsaids very well. Tylenol does help very little and I don't want to do pain meds (constipation is an issue with me). I'd love to have something for just pain arthritis that actually works.

Chris,

Thank you for your kind response. I just turned 45 years old. I completely understand that it takes time to heal from this and all surgeries. After having that many surgeries on my right knee it’s been through the wringer over the past 6 years. I also had 4 surgeries on my hip last year. I certainly have realistic expectations on pain and recovery time. I’m not saying that my surgeon doesn’t care. I was a just a little surprised that after speaking with the MA for over 10 minutes going over my continuing symptoms (I had also reported the same things at my 14 day and 6 week apt with no meaningful improvement) and progress, it surprised me that he sailed into the room said keep going to PT and see you in a year and walked out. He didn’t even mention or go over any of the things I talked about with the MA. He was in and out of the room in less than a minute. I thought I would have had at least one more follow up with him before getting to the point of “see you in a year”, but that wasn’t the case. I am hopeful that eventually I can figure out what is causing this as it’s hindering some of my physical therapy exercises and making sleep very difficult. Every time I roll over in bed or get in/out of the car I get that pain and it feels like someone is stabbing me in the back of my knee. I am hopeful that at some point it will go in the other direction since a lot of the other pain is slowly getting better. I will have to look into an MFR therapist. I am getting a massage this week as well to see if that will help with my knee, calf, and heel. Thank you so much for that suggestion! Be well and thank you again.

Kelly