Will it ever bend?

janetg
janetg Member Posts: 6
edited 20. Jul 2010, 11:20 in Living with Arthritis archive
Hi everyone. I am new to this forum, so hope this is an appropriate question to ask. Briefly:

Had TKR to right leg on 1st April (should have noticed the date!)
Got infection, readmitted 25th April, opened up and washed out,
On IV antibiotics in hospital for 14 days.
Told by Consulant to keep leg staright for 4 weeks to aid healing
Guess what, then it wouldn't bend!
Lots of physio go it to 70 degrees
Last Thursday had MUA and they got 100 degrees

But... it still won't bend beyond 80 degrees and i am beginning to panic.
Have others had this experience?
Will it eventually get there?
My left knee is now the more painful and that needs doing. Can't straighten it now, so walking with a limp!

Help! I am getting so cheesed off with it all. Tell me all will be well!
:(
:?

Comments

  • speedalong
    speedalong Member Posts: 3,315
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Janet,

    I don't have a TKR - but have had both hips done. So there will be others better able to answer this from their own personal experience.

    However I have had trouble with one of my hips - I was no weight bearing and had to rest it for 3 months post op ... manually I can move it (with my hands) more than the muscles alone can move it. The fact that you had to keep it straight for 4 weeks wont have helped the muscles and tendons nor the fact that they opened it up to get rid of the infection - double trauma to the joint. If they managed to move it at the MUA then mechanically it is possible - but it is going to take time. Have you tried hydro - the warm water will really help the muscles and the buoyancy of the water will help your muscles to acheive more movement without realising it. You can request hydro.

    Another tip one I have heard was off an elderly patient on my ward who was on her second knee replacement and she was recommending all the knee patients bought/borrowed a skate board!! She said her first knee was stubborn to achieve bending - so when she was watching TV she would sit with her foot on the skateboard and absently mindedly move her foot backwards and forwards and bit by bit she achieved the bend ...

    Good luck, try and relax and not to worry - you know the knee can bend - now you need to teach it how to do it - if you are stressed and your muscles are tense this will be harder to do.

    Speedy

    PS have you tried a heat pack/wheatie on before practising bending to help muscles relax and a cool pack after to sooth and numb it a bit.
    I have had OA since mid twenties. It affects my hips and knees. I had a THR on the left aged 30 and now have a resurface-replacement on the right - done May 2010.
  • sharmaine
    sharmaine Member Posts: 1,638
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Janet

    sorry to hear about your trials after the TKR you had in April. I had a TKR on my right knee in February and will have the other one done later. All I can say is to keep up with the physio. If you are still experiencing any pain then go back to your GP for better pain meds. I'm getting on fine with my new knee it isn't dead straight but it is certainly 100% better than it was prior to the op. Before the TKR I was in a wheelchair and my leg was very badly bowed.

    It's a long haul getting back to normality after this operation but things will improve. My new knee is now my strongest leg and I'm so happy to be mobile again and I no longer need crutches or the wheelchair. I think there's is still more I can do to improve things and may start doing more stretches.

    Take care and all the best. You've had a hard time of it and things can only get better.

    With regards
    Sharmaine

    janetg wrote:
    Hi everyone. I am new to this forum, so hope this is an appropriate question to ask. Briefly:

    Had TKR to right leg on 1st April (should have noticed the date!)
    Got infection, readmitted 25th April, opened up and washed out,
    On IV antibiotics in hospital for 14 days.
    Told by Consulant to keep leg staright for 4 weeks to aid healing
    Guess what, then it wouldn't bend!
    Lots of physio go it to 70 degrees
    Last Thursday had MUA and they got 100 degrees

    But... it still won't bend beyond 80 degrees and i am beginning to panic.
    Have others had this experience?
    Will it eventually get there?
    My left knee is now the more painful and that needs doing. Can't straighten it now, so walking with a limp!

    Help! I am getting so cheesed off with it all. Tell me all will be well!
    :(
    :?
  • janetg
    janetg Member Posts: 6
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi both

    Thanks very much for your replies. I think I tend to forget there are other people out there who have been through the same or worse and got through it, so thanks for the reminder!

    I am on a shed load of painkillers, fentynl patch, tramadol and cocodamol and still the pain persists. But mainly in the 'good' knee now. The Dr won't look at this one until the other is bending more. Fair enough, but still hurts. I am getting fed up with the sound of my own whinging!

    Hydrotherapy sounds good. I will ask the physio tomorrow. I've heard the skateboard one too; I'll see what I can make!

    Hoping to go back to work from 1st August. I am beginning to enjoy being at home too much and besides, I am on half pay now.

    Thanks again for your support.



    janet
    Hope
  • elnafinn
    elnafinn Member Posts: 7,412
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Janet :)

    I am so sorry to read about your trials and tribulations after your TKR. Having the infection afterwards and all that entailed would of course set your recovery back somewhat. I am a little surprised that the surgeon told you not to bend the knee for 4 weeks.
    No wonder your other knee is painful, with all the extra work and strain it is under at the moment.

    Are you having weekly physio? Has the physio put you on an exercise bike with no resistance, to get the recently operated knee bending?

    I really do feel for you, after all, it was not your fault that you unfortunately got an infection. So although you had an MUA and you got a 100 degree bend this did not last too long then or was this only obtained whilst you were still under sedation?

    I am sure, with perseverance and a good physio you will get there but it will take longer because of the delay.

    I have had two TKR's in the past two years and go for my 6 month check on the second one at the end of this month.

    Keep on, keeping on,

    Luv
    Elna x
    The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.

    If you can lay down at night knowing in your heart that you made someone's day just a little bit better, you know you had a good day.
  • janetg
    janetg Member Posts: 6
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Elna

    Thanks for your support. It really is helping.

    When I woke up from the MUA I could get about 90 degrees but, probably due to the swelling, its dropped down to 80 at a push (as the physio holds it back and closes her ears to my screams!)

    I go to physio 2 - 3 times a week and they have been very encouraging but are clearly thinking its more or less as good as it gets. A hole had appeared at the side of my knee and 'badness' was oozing out when i bent it, so i think that's why he said to hold it straight. Sorry to be so graphic.

    Glad your TKR have gone well and good luck with your 6 month follow up.

    Kind regards

    Janet
  • elnafinn
    elnafinn Member Posts: 7,412
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Janet

    No worries about the graghic detail, I am very sorry that you were so unfortunate to get an infection. My mum did too so I know how horrid it all can be and how it can set you back. I am sure you use ice and elevation to try to get the swelling down, boring though that is! My physio was willing to do some acupuncture after my first knee replacement when I had the mobility but a huge amount of pain for a long time. I did not have this in the end but wondered if that may help you in some way. This particular physio was trained in it.

    You are certainly being looked after well having physio several times a week. Is it scar tissue that is not helping matters perhaps?

    Chin up and I wish you well,

    Luv
    Elna x
    The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.

    If you can lay down at night knowing in your heart that you made someone's day just a little bit better, you know you had a good day.
  • sharmaine
    sharmaine Member Posts: 1,638
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Janet

    If you can't get hold of a skateboard to help you bend then use a plastic plate (picnic plate)....it will slide easily on the carpet and you can do it watching tv. For four weeks I had real trouble lifting my operated leg so I used the belt from my bathrobe - I simply hooked it under my foot and raised my leg that way. I think I used ice packs for about 3 months (I got given one from the hospital and I bought a couple from the internet and had them on my knee, under my knee and around my ankle) and if I have a bad day I still use one!

    I bought a mini cycle machine (from A.gos) that I could use whilst in a seated position and that helped build up the strength in my knee. I then graduated to our cycling machine. It's a step by step thing and you've had problems so don't expect too much too soon. :lol:

    Take care.

    Sharmaine
    X

    janetg wrote:
    Hi everyone. I am new to this forum, so hope this is an appropriate question to ask. Briefly:

    Had TKR to right leg on 1st April (should have noticed the date!)
    Got infection, readmitted 25th April, opened up and washed out,
    On IV antibiotics in hospital for 14 days.
    Told by Consulant to keep leg staright for 4 weeks to aid healing
    Guess what, then it wouldn't bend!
    Lots of physio go it to 70 degrees
    Last Thursday had MUA and they got 100 degrees

    But... it still won't bend beyond 80 degrees and i am beginning to panic.
    Have others had this experience?
    Will it eventually get there?
    My left knee is now the more painful and that needs doing. Can't straighten it now, so walking with a limp!

    Help! I am getting so cheesed off with it all. Tell me all will be well!
    :(
    :?
  • janetg
    janetg Member Posts: 6
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    sharmaine wrote:
    Hi Janet
    Thats a good idea Sharmaine, thanks. Also the tip about the mini cycle. I can't get all the way round on the bike at physio, but its handy for pushing it to its limit. Doing it whilst watching tv might take my mind off the pain too.

    Just walked into town and back (normally takes 5 mins) for the first time since March. Knackered now, but I'm getting there!

    Its good to hear that all hope is not lost if I haven't managed 90+ yet. I'll keep at it. Thanks again for the encouragement.

    janet


    If you can't get hold of a skateboard to help you bend then use a plastic plate (picnic plate)....it will slide easily on the carpet and you can do it watching tv. For four weeks I had real trouble lifting my operated leg so I used the belt from my bathrobe - I simply hooked it under my foot and raised my leg that way. I think I used ice packs for about 3 months (I got given one from the hospital and I bought a couple from the internet and had them on my knee, under my knee and around my ankle) and if I have a bad day I still use one!

    I bought a mini cycle machine (from A.gos) that I could use whilst in a seated position and that helped build up the strength in my knee. I then graduated to our cycling machine. It's a step by step thing and you've had problems so don't expect too much too soon. :lol:

    Take care.

    Sharmaine
    X

    janetg wrote:
    Hi everyone. I am new to this forum, so hope this is an appropriate question to ask. Briefly:

    Had TKR to right leg on 1st April (should have noticed the date!)
    Got infection, readmitted 25th April, opened up and washed out,
    On IV antibiotics in hospital for 14 days.
    Told by Consulant to keep leg staright for 4 weeks to aid healing
    Guess what, then it wouldn't bend!
    Lots of physio go it to 70 degrees
    Last Thursday had MUA and they got 100 degrees

    But... it still won't bend beyond 80 degrees and i am beginning to panic.
    Have others had this experience?
    Will it eventually get there?
    My left knee is now the more painful and that needs doing. Can't straighten it now, so walking with a limp!

    Help! I am getting so cheesed off with it all. Tell me all will be well!
    :(
    :?
  • speedalong
    speedalong Member Posts: 3,315
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Well done Janet, for the doing the walk into town today.

    Marion and I have had a "conversation" about this elsewhere on the forum and it is more helpful to look how far you have come ie comparing your progress week on week than it is to look at how far you still have to go. It is a fine line between not doing a little more and overdoing it.

    Keep us posted with your progress, however slight it feels. All the little improvements will add up to one big improvement - you'll see. (And you can remind me of that when I get disheartened with my hip, too!!)

    Speedy
    I have had OA since mid twenties. It affects my hips and knees. I had a THR on the left aged 30 and now have a resurface-replacement on the right - done May 2010.
  • dreamdaisy
    dreamdaisy Member Posts: 31,520
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi janetg, I didn't have a TKR, I had an open synovectomy to remove solidified inflammation dating back five years. My knee was wrecked by a) the swelling and b) the operation. The swelling returned and I had a second one eighteen months later. It took nearly a year for me after the second op to achieve a 90 degree bend, the best I ever managed was 120, I suppose I now average about 100. It takes time, patience, lots of exercise and a mule-headed approach to it all. I wish you well. Dreamdaisy
    Have you got the despatches? No, I always walk like this. Eddie Braben
  • frogmorton
    frogmorton Member Posts: 29,902
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Oh Janet

    I havent had a TKR and reading this made my eyes water for you :(

    I do hope you get there hydro - is a very good idea - you can do so much more in water can't you?

    This sounds so awful - fentanyl is pretty lethal on it's own - you must be in so much pain.

    I would be very interested to hear your progress and wish you wlel

    Love

    Toni xxx
  • speedalong
    speedalong Member Posts: 3,315
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Janet, if you can't get or have to wait for hydro - you could try visiting a baby/teaching pool at a local swimming pool. I went to ours today - didn't realise the water would be warmer than the big pool - big bonus for relaxing the muscles!! You could then do your standing up physio exercises in the pool ... I had much better range of movement in the water than I do on land!

    Just a thought.

    Speedy
    I have had OA since mid twenties. It affects my hips and knees. I had a THR on the left aged 30 and now have a resurface-replacement on the right - done May 2010.