← Return to Total Knee Replacement
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Joint Replacements | Last Active: Mar 14 10:40am | Replies (78)
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Replies to "90 degrees is better than 80 At the knee joint, most functional activities require up to..."
Well said. After a TKR, 120 degrees of flexion is considered good, and is really all that is needed for activities of daily life. A lot of that depends on the patient doing ALL the recommended therapy. It's a drag, most therapy is, but critical in the first few weeks after surgery.
In my opinion, most people who feel their TKRs weren't successful didn't do the required work. Not all, but most. Scar tissue builds quickly unless the knee is worked, and then flexion and even extension may be locked at unacceptable levels. And surgeons don't like to do a second procedure to remove scar tissue. First, it's not terribly effective and second, a patient who doesn't do required therapy the first time is unlikely to do it a second time. And scar tissue can't be stretched or massaged away.
So please, if you're getting a TKR, exercise as you can before the procedure, and even more after the surgery. The outcome can be wonderful if you do the work.