TKR and Foot Numbness

Posted by mav19 @mav19, Jun 25 6:34pm

I had TKR for left knee, in early January. 6 months later, my left foot is still numb, but also feels like the top of my foot is in a vice grip. Is this nerve pain, tendons pulled too tight during surgery, or something else? Any advice, info, wisdom is greatly appreciated. My surgeon, not with great believability, just keeps telling me it may take up to a year to go away. So very annoying.

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fleamama | @fleamama | Jun 26 10:41am

I believe you need another opinion. Our body has a way of speaking to us, if we listen. Praying you find some answers. The journey can be exasperating but don't let people deter you!

mav19 | @mav19 | Jun 26 11:31am

Thank you. I have a meeting w my surgeon next week and will bring it up again. Then may seek a second opinion if that’s what it takes.

Sue, Volunteer Mentor | @sueinmn | Jun 26 11:33am

@mav19 As much as I would like to tell you your surgeon is wrong, if they have checked and the knee is in position and healed, it is probably nerve pain.

If you have good range of motion and your other rehab goals are being met, now it the time for patience. What likely happened is that nerves were either damaged or inflamed during surgery - it is very common as parts are pushed, pulled & manipulated.

The good news is that nerves repair themselves!
The bad news (two parts) is:
1) The process can be very uncomfortable - pins and needles, numbness, varying pains from aching to stabbing...and these can come and go, move around and change from day to day or even minute to minute.
2) Nerves repair and regenerate VERY slowly - about 1 centimeter (less than 1/2") per month.

What can you do in the meantime?
Try to "interrupt" the signals if they are annoying - movement, stroking, massage, ice massage, heat, a bumpy therapy ball - maybe ask for a PT consult to learn some of the tricks.
If the problem is debilitating, ask the surgeon if they can prescribe something to dull the nerve pain at the times it bothers you the worst.

How did I learn this? Thirty years ago, I wrecked my ACL & MCL and had surgery to replace/repair. Nerves were damaged, either by the injury or the surgery that caused the symptoms you describe, plus loss of perception of where my foot was. So in addition to the annoyance, I was constantly tripping and or falling. The surgeon, like yours, brushed it off, saying it would eventually go away.

Coincidentally, I was being treated by a hand therapist who taught me about nerves and gave me some good reading material (remember, there was no Mayo Connect or "Dr Google" back then.) Good thing too, because 12 years later I experienced the same thing after hip replacements, and had another equally non-communicative surgeon.

What was the outcome? By one year out from the knee surgery, the numbness and tingling were gone, and after another year, my foot "remembered" where it was. After hip surgery, the pins and needles subsided after a few months. leaving me with only small numb patches on the outside of each thigh. Now, almost 20 years later, even those have nearly normal sensation - so I guess the repairs continued long after my awareness went away.

All that said, you are still in the healing phase from your TKR. No matter what you heard or hoped, this surgery is a big deal. Full recovery takes 8 months to a year or longer. Hang in there and keep doing that boring PT!