Damage from Iovera Nerve block prior to TKR

My surgery was July 2024, had IOVERA 2 weeks prior. Fast forward to present-I have awful zinger nerve pain from mid thigh to mid calf but mostly lateral side of knee and now having them under my knee cap also everyday, all day. I am still numb from mid thigh to mid calf. Biggest regret was getting the IOVERA and am beginning to feel this won’t ever resolve.

Personally I am beginning to realize we are Guinea Pigs

The company will not reply or utter a word when I message them

Zingers and pain if and when you touch it
And you can jump to the ceiling

Mine are also random and stop me in my tracks without warning all day every day…

I hear you
I would scream out loud and scare the heck out of my husband

Your comments saddened me beyond belief. Once upon a time, as a kid, I had orthos who were a little less empathetic than I liked. I knew later, as an adult, what kind of behavior I would not put up with and carefully researched where I went for ortho help. I’ve had two TKRs and after the first one and a disappointing reaction I wasn’t expecting from my surgeon, I cancelled my second TKR with him after telling him why. He was good but not quite there for me. I found a human being ortho thru further research and interviewed him explaining that I was already approved but needed to know we would be a good fit. Suffice it to say I am now knee pain free and he also replaced my shoulder and oversaw two hip replacements which were performed by another surgeon in his practice.
I insisted. I am lucky maybe but I think you have to say “I won’t put up with this baloney” and express your concerns to the ortho doctor directly. If you don’t want to see the NP or PA and want to see the surgeon, ask before whether that is a problem. Also interview some; READ the reviews posted about particular doctors; ASK them and interview until you find a fit with competent skills and a good record. Ask other doctors who they would recommend and NEVER stay with a surgeon “just because.”

Did you have the knee replacement? If so, how are you sure that it's the Iovera and not the surgery itself causing the zingers? Did they start before the surgery? I'm only asking since the TKR groups on FB do have many who didn't have Iovera but have/had zingers and nerve damage from the surgery itself. Also, did you have 5 injections with Iovera or 3? Some surgeons (you have to be either a surgeon; anesthesiologist; pain doctor to give the injections) (except some surgeons allow the PA to do it, not sure I would let them) only do the genicular nerves with Iovera and not the peripheral...if you had 5 injections, it would be both..I'm only asking because I want to be sure before I get the injections before my TKR by asking so many questions..my problem is that pain medication won't work effectively for me, so I'm kind of only at the mercy of the Iovera to work to get the surgery!

I had the Iovera but not the surgery, I cancelled for other reasons but can't imagine having the pain from the surgery and also the pain from the Iovera. I had 1 procedure that involved 3 injections, if I'm understanding your question correctly. It was done by a doctor and I believe Iovera was all he did. I don't think everyone has the problems I had so it's a chance you have to be willing to take but I did, and still have occasionally, the zingers from the Iovera. They aren't that bad and kind of welcome because that tells me that the nerves are healing. But the pain from the Iovera was intense, very sensitive spots where nothing could touch it without the pain, and I still have slight numbness after 9 months. I would not have it again and might not have the TKR either. Taking too many chances for poor outcome. I too am concerned about pain medication.

So sorry to hear this. I know that there are more people that have had success with Iovera than those that have had problems, but it still worries me and is the reason I've resisted to have the TKR! I am petrified to have the surgery without a long lasting nerve block (they cut the bone for goodness sake!) and the only thing to help with that type of pain (I am resistant to pain medication) is something that numbs the area for at least 4 or 5 days like they used to do when my husband had it done in 2021...money always becomes a factor when something suddenly stops being used...it's so frustrating!

One thing I forgot to mention is that the Iovera didn't numb the areas it should have so I would talk to the doctor about that. My knee was not numbed at all and where I was having the pain was not numbed. The outside of my thigh and down my shin was numbed, I don't think it would have helped with the surgery at all. My pain is in the kneecap and the inside of my knee (not sure of the technical term) and the Iovera was useless for the pain. But, if you know a lot of people that it helped, I guess you just have to weigh the odds. I too am terrified of the surgery but I was very active and really want my quality of life back. I sure wish you a good experience if/when you decide to have it and I hope you are a successful Iovera eperience too.

This is such excellent advice!
I did try to do this with 3 other doctors, and ended up getting labeled in their notes as "extremely anxious." Never move from one doc to another in the same corporation because they talk among themselves and have already written you off if you raise questions or call them out for mistreatment, which I did. This may happen to older women more than men cause these specialists are mostly male and totally arrogant toward women. One of them told me he didn't think I should know what the procedure involved. I insisted and he answered questions; but then he got even in the procedure. Every reassurance he had given me in the earlier appointment was a lie. He hurt me repeatedly and never stopped even though I was yelling in pain. I tried to move to get away from him and discovered he had paralyzed me with some drug. From now on I will have a witness present with power of attorney for health care who can call a halt to a bad procedure if needed because I wasn't able to talk in the bad one.