Was it worth it?

Posted by irishtrish @irishtrish, Sep 16 12:54pm

Honestly considering if my TKR was worth it. I had arthritis issues beforehand, but now I'm in constant pain and may be for a year or more. Was it worth it? I honestly don't know.

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I have a question. As I said before, I am 3 months out and doing well. But in the last week or so I have had slight numbness and stiffness in both knees. No pain, just stiffness and numb. I am doing everything I should be doing and it's still hanging in there. It appears to be normal in the process. Has anyone else had this happen at the 3 month mark? And what did you do about it?

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Wow! A double knee transplant. I would be willing to do both but not at the same time. I am truly impressed.

Was it subvastus? Did she use a tourniquet?

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Profile picture for Lawanna Bean @lawanna85

I have a question. As I said before, I am 3 months out and doing well. But in the last week or so I have had slight numbness and stiffness in both knees. No pain, just stiffness and numb. I am doing everything I should be doing and it's still hanging in there. It appears to be normal in the process. Has anyone else had this happen at the 3 month mark? And what did you do about it?

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@lawanna85 I still have stiffness and numbness at 4 months out and continue to use an ice machine. I also have clicking/catching on the outer edge of the knee.

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Profile picture for irishtrish @irishtrish

@lawanna85 I still have stiffness and numbness at 4 months out and continue to use an ice machine. I also have clicking/catching on the outer edge of the knee.

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@irishtrish Thanks for commenting. Did you have a double or a single replacement? Does the ice machine help? I have been using a heating pad for the last 3 weeks or so. My PT told me at this point I should use heat on my knees, not ice. He said it was ok to use ice on my calves. I see my knee Dr. next week. I will discuss with him. I started sleeping on my side about 3 weeks ago. Everything I have read says it is ok after the first few weeks. I have not experienced any clicking yet. So many little kinks to work through. All in all I am glad I did it. But I am looking forward to the 6 month mark.

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Profile picture for steveinarizona @steveinarizona

Wow! A double knee transplant. I would be willing to do both but not at the same time. I am truly impressed.

Was it subvastus? Did she use a tourniquet?

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@steveinarizona The reason I did both at the same time is because I suspected if I had one done, I would probably not want to go through it again. However, a lot of things have to be in place to do both at once. Choose a surgeon who does only knees and hips and who has done many procedures, incuding double knee replacement. Get Physical Therapy before the surgery so you can be as strong as you need to be for this procedure. And have PT at home the first 2 weeks. Have someone who can be with you the first week if you can. Have a positive attitude, that goes a long way. Yes, it was subvastus and they did use a turniquet. I did not use an ice machine. The hospital provided 4 large ice packs and they worked extremely well for me. And remember, it's a marathon, not a sprint! But it is worth it.

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I have read your post and all the comments from everyone that has gone through the lovely experience of a TKR. LOL is it worth it? I am 6 months out and I will say yes it was worth it. Is it easy, absolutely not, and if my doctor had told me all that was involved I may not have done it. Ice machines are great, I was sent home with one and still have it, I don’t use it anymore but I do have it. Initially I was using it probably every 4 hours. I still experience stiffness after being inactive for a while or sitting for a while but it works itself out. Occasional pain, but I’m walking pretty much normal, stairs are still an issue but getting there. My knee was pretty messed up per the doctor so my experience may be slightly different. I’ve also discovered age could make a difference, I put surgery off-for about 5 years; I’m not sure I should have. Keep the faith. Yes, it hurts and the recovery can be long and tedious, but I am better than I was and able to do more.

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You might have other issues that need to be attended to which are myo-muscular. Arthritic bones should be gone with the replacement, right? Try a MFR therapist and maybe an acupuncturist. Check any progression of scar tissue that causes people problems sometimes. And make sure you’re exercising enough to fully recover. Sometimes people don’t do the exercise because of the pain. Talk to your doctor about taking a pain medicine so you can do the exercise in order to recover. Muscles deteriorate with surgery and inactivity and they must be attended to so full recovery can take place.

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Thanks for the suggestions. I did do all my PT and got to 130 rom. I'm working on strengthening the quad with 3x week at the gym. The main problem I'm having is a catching/clicking sensation in the back outer joint, which gets super painful after 5 min of walking. Lots of ice but ibuprofen is out due to kidney issues and Tylenol does nothing. Also using biofreeze and voltaren gel, but neither help.

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Profile picture for july1955 @july1955

Wow, what genie15 says might scare anyone away! I've had a good outcome, and most of us do, but it's had its ups and downs. Someone, somewhere on this forum, made the point that you should choose a specialist for this surgery -- someone who does nothing else. I agree. My surgeon only does knees and hips, and he's been doing this for years, is up on the latest technology, but isn't over-eager to be the first onboard. I looked him up online and read reviews. Nevertheless, I also agree with genie15, that a doctor will often only see what he is looking for, and I've had that experience. I was fortunate that I had no complications following my TKR. In response to irishtrish, it isn't an easy road, but if your arthritis had you going downhill and was slowly lessening your quality of life, it's worth it. Get past all the pain and stiffness, and you will start to see improvement. You will be going uphill instead of downhill, regardless of how slowly you feel you are going. At 16-months out from surgery, I finally feel like I am almost back to my pre-decline self -- NOT my pre-surgery self, but my pre-decline self! That's amazing! Surgery doesn't just halt the decline arthritis puts you in, it can set you back to start! That is worth a year of recovery.

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@july1955 are you in Los Angeles? did you go to Dr Andrew Yun?

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Profile picture for insicknessandinhealt @insicknessandinhealt

@july1955 are you in Los Angeles? did you go to Dr Andrew Yun?

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@insicknessandinhealt
I'm in Indiana.

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