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Total knee replacement infection after 9 years.

Posted by rguribe @rguribe, Oct 2, 2019

I recently had an infection on my total knee replacement, they went in and clean the infected area. I was on 6 weeks of Vancomycin antibiotics through a PICC line, and afterwards, the doctor stated that I would have to be on a low dose of antibiotics (Doxycycline 100mg) for the rest of my life, that it was the new recommendation from the AMA. I have not been able to find that info in the AMA website and my concern is the side effects of taking antibiotics for the rest of my life. Has anybody gone thru a similar infection and is presently on antibiotic for the rest of their life? Thank you

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Debbra Williams, Alumna Mentor | @debbraw | Sep 7, 2023
In reply to @sar370 "So sorry to hear about the infection. The first TKR I was advised to take amoxicillin..." + (show)
@sar370

So sorry to hear about the infection. The first TKR I was advised to take amoxicillin for teeth cleanings the most recent TKR in Jan 2023 the new surgeon advised antibiotics no longer necessary. Does anyone have the same experience?

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In June, I changed dentists. The new dentist asked me to get information from my surgeon regarding antibiotics prior to dental procedures. When I checked, the physician's assistant sent me this information:

(We) encourage joint replacement patients to:
-Maintain good oral hygiene, including routine professional cleanings and care, both before and after joint replacement surgery
-Avoid elective dental procedures (eg, orthognathic surgery, orthodontics, implant placement) for the first 6 months following surgery
-Seek immediate evaluation and treatment for symptomatic dental conditions
-Initiate antibiotic prophylaxis prior to dental procedures for the first year following surgery
-Continue antibiotic prophylaxis prior to dental procedures indefinitely if high risk of a prosthetic joint infection (eg, hematologic malignancy, chemotherapy)

Hope this helps!

REPLY
Garygirl | @taftst1 | Sep 10, 2023
In reply to @rguribe "Hello Debbra, regarding my infection, I woke up in the morning and I went to step..." + (show)
@rguribe

Hello Debbra, regarding my infection, I woke up in the morning and I went to step down from the bed and I almost fell down from the pain. I could not walk on it, it was swollen, so I went to the ER. I had no prior symptoms. They drew some fluid from my knee and it was bloody/puss like, and the tests showed an infection. They did emergency surgery the next day. The doctor said that I was fortunate that I did not wait long to get it checked out because the infection could have spread into my bloodstream.

According to the doctor, they cleaned/scrubbed the infected areA, and then they put antibiotic pellets inside the knee before they stitched it up. Unfortunately, they had to put 41 stitches because it was too swollen for just put glue and tape. I now have a pretty nasty scar. I had to be on Vancomycin antibiotic thru a PICC line for 6 weeks which I administered myself twice a day. I lost 20 pounds because the antibiotic took my appetite away, I could barely eat once a day, nausea, dizziness and it killed my stomach, even thou it was administered intravenously.

After 4 months of physical therapy, I am getting better every day. I have to say that this recovery has taken longer and more painful.
The downside is that I have to be on antibiotics for the rest of my life. Oh well, the alternative could have been worse.

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Vanco is a killer! Next you may get cdiff. Ugh. Get that guy in tune. Infectious med will tell you kefir 2,cups a day and a banana. Vanco did nerve damage to me and know I am finding out it can cause adrenal fatigue.

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jkp | @jkp | Sep 10 10:55am

I have been going thru this devastating experience of a knee replacement infection. I had my knee replaced 3.5 years ago. In July, 2024 I woke up in the middle of the night unable to move my leg. Two days before went to see Earth, Wind and Fire with a house full of college friends. Day before one hour adoration at church and an hour with the personal trainer. Next day my world changed and 2024 became the worst summer ever. Trip to the er, withdrew knee fluid since my crp was over 100. My knee was full of infection. My doctor who I love and totally trust came in at 4 AM the next morning to debris and wash ( according to the residents six times). I cannot take pain meds, only Tylenol so I went thru an an enormous amount of pain. I live alone so went to rehab for IV infusions and limited PT. Then came home with a line and a total of six weeks of antibiotics daily. Next came the c, diff infection adding vancomycin and a night in the hospital to confirm it was c diff, hydrate to prescribe the antibiotics. Having worked in the lab I knew the smell.

It has been two months and I have not had an appetite and all I want to do is sleep. A problem since this weekend I have friends coming from Switzerland and we are traveling for three weeks. I just called my surgeon to ask for the name of another id specialist to discuss the possibility of changing the antibiotics I'm taking if they are causing the appetite and sleep issues, I'm taking Amoxcillin CLAv 124 Mg and vancomycin twice a day most likely for one year. I lead a very active life and I'm not able to participate in it. I feel I've taken so much for granted and have been really depressed over this.

Does anyone have experience with the lack of appetite and any suggestions? Everything seems to taste salty? I love a good meal and really miss the opportunity to enjoy one. I've lost a lot of weight, which I'm actually happy with however this is no way to do it. I've lost a lot of muscle and have had a hard time getting back to exercise. Living on Glucerna.

Any experience with meds. My organism is an E. coli which they believe came from a urinary tract infection. I did have my teeth cleaned a week and a half before and was told I no longer needed to take antibiotics before hand. Won't do that again. I have had UTI's with no real symptoms.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm hoping to get a second opinion from an id doc. We do have a large medical center only a few miles away.

Thanks for any suggestions.

REPLY
1 reply
marieltha | @marieltha | Sep 15 8:12am
In reply to @jkp "I have been going thru this devastating experience of a knee replacement infection. I had my..." + (show)
@jkp

I have been going thru this devastating experience of a knee replacement infection. I had my knee replaced 3.5 years ago. In July, 2024 I woke up in the middle of the night unable to move my leg. Two days before went to see Earth, Wind and Fire with a house full of college friends. Day before one hour adoration at church and an hour with the personal trainer. Next day my world changed and 2024 became the worst summer ever. Trip to the er, withdrew knee fluid since my crp was over 100. My knee was full of infection. My doctor who I love and totally trust came in at 4 AM the next morning to debris and wash ( according to the residents six times). I cannot take pain meds, only Tylenol so I went thru an an enormous amount of pain. I live alone so went to rehab for IV infusions and limited PT. Then came home with a line and a total of six weeks of antibiotics daily. Next came the c, diff infection adding vancomycin and a night in the hospital to confirm it was c diff, hydrate to prescribe the antibiotics. Having worked in the lab I knew the smell.

It has been two months and I have not had an appetite and all I want to do is sleep. A problem since this weekend I have friends coming from Switzerland and we are traveling for three weeks. I just called my surgeon to ask for the name of another id specialist to discuss the possibility of changing the antibiotics I'm taking if they are causing the appetite and sleep issues, I'm taking Amoxcillin CLAv 124 Mg and vancomycin twice a day most likely for one year. I lead a very active life and I'm not able to participate in it. I feel I've taken so much for granted and have been really depressed over this.

Does anyone have experience with the lack of appetite and any suggestions? Everything seems to taste salty? I love a good meal and really miss the opportunity to enjoy one. I've lost a lot of weight, which I'm actually happy with however this is no way to do it. I've lost a lot of muscle and have had a hard time getting back to exercise. Living on Glucerna.

Any experience with meds. My organism is an E. coli which they believe came from a urinary tract infection. I did have my teeth cleaned a week and a half before and was told I no longer needed to take antibiotics before hand. Won't do that again. I have had UTI's with no real symptoms.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm hoping to get a second opinion from an id doc. We do have a large medical center only a few miles away.

Thanks for any suggestions.

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My OS (Partial Knee Replacements: 2 lateral and 1 medial) recommended antibiotics before all dental, dermatological, etc, for the rest of my life. Two AMOX 500 an hour before the appt/procedure and two of the same 6 hours after. He also recommended that I not allow my dermatologist anymore to spray/freeze any "suspicious spots" on my legs; the last time she did this, it took months for the place to heal. I had to take antibiotics for about a week until the site closed. He said that if the derm truly suspects a cancerous spot or a fast-growing pre-cancer, then that can be dealt with differently, but I/joint replacement patients need to avoid any risk of introducing infection.

REPLY
belview | @belview | Oct 11 11:04am
In reply to @rguribe "I am researching taking antibiotics for the rest of my life, but I have found/gotten mixed..." + (show)
@rguribe

I am researching taking antibiotics for the rest of my life, but I have found/gotten mixed responses from doctors/websites. I am making an appointment with Mayo clinic to discuss this further. Unfortunately, I have taken great amount of antibiotics for past illnesses thru the years and so it is of great concern.

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My replacement knee got an infection, Klebsiella Pneumoniae in 2024. The Doctor put me on Sulfamethoxazole TMD-DS for the rest of my life! I’m also wondering how this will affect my body. So far it has worked! Wondering if I should go thru the surgery?

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