Lower back pain 22 week post TKR

Bones, joints and muscles
1

Hi All,

Well 22 weeks post TKR back to work full time now and coping better but knee swelling to be expected. Managing that the rehab exercise and even the tiredness now ( tiredness is normal in the NHS LOL !!! ) RA niggles controlled too.

However now getting a nagging lower back pain goes after a night sleep but comes on as the day goes on. I do walk a lot im my job probably 2-5 miles a day. It does not radiate down my leg and have had sacro -iliac pain years ago after a gardening strain. This is not the same and feels like a nagging  inflammed toothache.  Its not so bad on my days off when not walking as much. I am wondering if anyone else has had this problem and if its to do with tmy new gait post TKR?? Probably see a physio or Chiropracter to see if itmis an alignment  problem. My extension is still at only -9  but bend fime  but I do not limp.

Seeing my surgeon tomorrow so will mention it to him.

Happy rehab all Jan

 

2

Excuse typos too fast as usual!

3

More than likely to do with gait or the way you are standing. Everything's changed since TKR. Ask your surgeon when you see him just to be sure.

Marilyn

XX

4

It sounds unpleasant Jan - hope you can get it sorted before too long!  Let us know what the surgeon says:-)

5

Jan, I passed week 24 post-op recently. I was having lower back pain similar to yours for 6 weeks. I visited a chiropractor who diagnosed my back issue was due to my new knee leg which is now longer than my other leg. He recommended a heel lift, result, problem solved. It took about three weeks walking with the heel lift for my spine to rebalance itself. Hope this helps.

6

I think this issue is something that most people who get a knee replacement need to check on.  Before I had the first knee done that leg was shorter because the arthritis had caused it to bend outwards and it actually caused a curvature of the spine - it was only when that was picked up that it was pointed out to me that the leg was 2cm shorter than the other one!  (Strangely, when I looked at photos that had been taken during that period, I was definitely leaning to that side, when I thought I was standing straight!), so got loads of shoes raised on that foot.  After the op, that leg was slightly LONGER than the other one!  So now I'm not wearing any raisers but waiting for the next one to be done to see where leg lengths end up.  But as well as the physio measuring from the hip to see length, I was told if you stand normally in front of a mirror shoulder height can be an indication too.  I was told to raise my heel step by step, gradually rather than all in one go, so I did that before having the shoes raised at the shoe menders.

7

Thanks that makes sense I had a large valgus deformity pre op. Saw Orthopod and physio yesterday. They think it's due to being back to work and still not at 0 degree extension although massively better than pre op! They said that all is adjusting to the new gait. If no better in a month to go back to physio.

8

Thanks I will try that if no improvement. We have a good Chiropractor in our village too . I am at about -9 ( much better than pre op) extension still working on it. So my operated leg still a bit shorter than the other but no limp.