morning ladies & gents. i am now 19 days post op. i had the temp stitches out for a gape on saturday & the dressings off. my knee feels worse than ever. its on fire, harder than hard & the pain is getting worse. i have only been able to exercise once maybe twice, due to the swelling & horrific pain. any suggestions? i usually exercise through the pain, but this pain has just gone up 10 fold xxx
Sorry things aren't going well. Is the knee unusually red and hot. Are you showing any signs of running a temp, nauseated etc. Generally a staph infection in the joint will take 3-4 weeks to incubate but certainly worth making the surgeon aware of, symptom wise. Our nephew is an infectious disease doc and he tells me we all have staph in and on our bodies and no matter how good the hospital and pre-op care its always a possibility. It happened to me. I broke my leg the day after TKR (revision) and they put in an 18" plate and 8 screws. 10 months later I had the hardware removed because of irritation and the bone has healed great and the hdwe wasn't necessary. Appx. 3 weeks later.......temp shot up, unbelievable pain in the joint, nausea and redness in the upper leg. Blood tests and finally lab work on the fluid from the joint determined the infection by strain and then the fin began. It's rare but just don't let it hang on without making your docs aware of the problem. They know at a glance if you are heading the wrong direction in the healing process. It may be just a cantankerous and you will need to hit your pain meds and be a little more patient in the exercise, continue to do them but not push quit as hard and use lots of ice packs afterwards. Good luck and keep us posted
thanx so much. i am on here all the time, made lots of advice friends, but just not been on this weekend. my leg is as hard as a bullet, its not red, but boiling hot, the ice helps, but now the dressing is off, the hole in my cryocool is not long enough & rubs & digs into the scar. i am soooooooooo tired, not sleeping anymore than 2 hrs a night. i have always been a bad sleeper, but at least before my op, most of the time i got 3-4-5 hrs a night. x
Have you ever tried low level laser light therapy?
it is not available that widly on humans but some trained physics offer it
it is very effective as swelling reduction and preventing scar tissue - I intend trying when I get home as I have used it with surgery before
not heard of it before elizabeth, worth looking into though. thanx a lot x
Nanny, it being hot and hard is ok, when you uses the cryo cuff you should have something under it , like pajamas or a tea towel wrapped round . Don't put it on too tight . I put mine on before filling it and have my leg elevated at the time ..when it gets cool I empty and refill .bit it shouldn't be tight .
at nearly 11 weeks my knee us still swollen a bit and feels hot to the touch although I only get pain if. I over do it. I found naproxen helped at your stage with the pain and swelling. You must keep bending and straightening or it will totally stiffen up ..it will hurt , but you must do it . You will see an improvement soon xx
thanx pam, i was wondering if i could put something over the scar & then put the cryo cuff on, but you have answered my question, so off to the freezer, lol. thanx a lot pam. i hope you are ok & coping, i just don't seem to be at the moment. my physio is well pleased with my progress, but i feel as though i have gone backwards since seeing her last tuesday, see her again tomorrow, so better get exercising xx
At your stage, I cried at the physio , real tears and blubbing lol. I was never going to get th either knee done ,never ever lol..I did make sure though that I did those exercises . Straightening and bending can both be done in bed , just a couple of times every couple of hours . You don't need to 20 at a time every time , just a few . Try doing the sitting , put your foot on a piece of grease proof paper and slide it backwards and forwards it makes it easier...I am now doing far better than I expected at thus stage ... You will be surprised in a few weeks too xx
Just read your comment about blubbing with your physio. Wonder how many times they go through that with patients! I did exactly the same at 10 weeks post op. Felt I'd never feel like 'me' again, be able to do all the important things again with my grandchildren, be 'Mum', the centre of the family who got on and sorted everything out.
As far as 'the other knee' goes, that has been one of the most difficult things to come to terms with - having to go through all this again. I, too, said never again, regretted having the first one done - all those things. But the truth of the matter is we have no choice. No-one has this operation once, let alone twice for the fun of it.
I am planning to get the second op done next March, 2015 due to Christmas and then family commitments. You?
I am seeing surgeon in January who will X-ray both, and then make the decision . At the moment , because I suppose having the right knee done , it has taken a lot of strain off the left ...and I am not getting too much pain . I think it will be wait and see, but I have no problem with getting it done if need be ... The pain was so bad before ,I don't want that again
I think Pam gives you really good advice. It's so hard when you're in pain to do those exercises but I've come to realise that they're my friend not my enemy! I was really hurting last night but came downstairs this morning and could feel the muscles behind the knee looser. They do pay off in the end so keep at them - but get plenty of rest too. At your stage I was taking a daytime nap in bed every afternoon. Hope the pain lessens soon.
Jen x
not sure about right knee yet. as yet just aching, but that will be the strain of my left knee. i also have spinal stenosis & fibromyalgia, so they are quite bad at the moment with strain. thanx for all the info xx
Oh dear poor you, this burning sensation is apparently caused by the healing of tour knee parts. They have to cut into lots of things which then have to heal. When I had days like this I left the excersises alone and rested with the ice pads. I think you will find that you are going through the hardest part of the op.it is really difficult to cope with. I am mow 6weeks and 4days and at last am having some good days. Had less really bad days over the week in fact. Don't be afraid to leave your excersises off for a day or too if you are in so much pain after all your knee has enough to cope with at present. Things will get better as I'm finding out. I went to lunch at my sons yesterday and enjoyed a glass of wine or two.i really feel for you this has to be the hardest time. I still wish I hadn't had the op but I can't go back and ask for my old knee back, they will have binned it by now lol. Take care my friend your Spain will ease soon. Toy will in my thoughts love to you from tucks. Xxu
hiya lovely, always nice to hear from you. i am glad you had a nice day at your sons, do you the world of good. apart from the hospital i never go out, but to be fair, i never before my op. i have my car sitting on the drive.& my son or daughter never offer, lol, bit disappointed in the m both. i can not believe how selfish they both are. i have brought them up on my own, they have never wanted for anything & they do nothing for me. they are 33 &30, so mot kids. never mind. as of saturday gone i can have a shower & i am to scared to. i was prone to falling before my op, but not with my knee, with my back & the pain & now this. i have a very good wash down every day, so do not worry, i do not pong, lol. just feeling very vunerable at the minute & last few days. take care sweetie xxx
I symphasise so much about the sleeping problem the first month I hardly slept at all. At 61/2 weeks though I am sleeping better. I have just had paracetomal as pain relief and am now down to just 4per day. i take 2 when en I go to bed along with a cup of tea, and bingo things are Getting much better had a good six hours last night. Take care things will get better tucks x
I invested in a rubber mat (like we use when we bath babies) to go in the bath before I shower or have a bath.
Have a real fear of slipping and the mat works wonderfully.
Just a helpful hint!
thanx lynn, anything os worth a try. have a lovely day xx
rrrrrrrrr thanx so much tucks, your a real help. enjoy your day, hugs, julie xx
The hospital gave me a seat that sits across the bath, very handy if you can get hold of one Nanny. I fill the bath up so that my feet and lower legs are in nice hot water then switch the shower on. Hope things improve for you.
hiya lady, i hope you are well. i have not got a bath, just a shower. i had the bath taken out because i could not get in or out. i have spinal stenosis & fibromyalgia. thanx, julie x