knee that wont bend

earthspirit

i am shocked at the amount of people on this forum who appear to have really severe bone & joint damage along with all the knee hip replacements etc. i feel fortunate not to be so far down the path yet!

however, i have over 200 flaring joints with RA and my most severe pain is from the trapped nerves in my neck which have affected the brachial plexus. this has got to be the very worst pain the world. no op for this as its far too dangerous and doctors said much worse than the sciatic pains from hip problems. so i have to just live with this and the physical restrictions.

however i damaged my knee 6 months ago and this has let to the flares in hips ankles heels feet etc.

physio & hyrdrotherapy were working but then the sessions stop (NHS give you 6 to 8 wks)

i havent lost the ability to climb stairs, even though its agony but i cant walk and cant use sticks etc cos my wrists elbow shoulders hands etc all too weak.

the cartilege is all a bit crunchy and i continue to do physio at home but i just cant get my leg to straighten.

does anyone have a website that has more info on knees or do any of you have physio methods that you know are good for knees??
i could get steroid injection in knee to reduce swelling but physio advised that the swelling is actually protecting my knee from more damage and that excercising during steroid relief could make me wear away the bone etc.

not being able to walk is totally distroying any quality of life and i am determined to find a way. (i have self referred again for physio starting next week)

i can only excercise flat on bed as i cant get up from floor and i cant lie on sides due to nerve pain in shoulders.

im told that the tendons at the back of my leg have shortened and this is the reason for loss of function

are all health authorities the same with physio? you only get a block of sessions? seems really dumb that they dont keep treating you until the problem is resolved

ive had no xray on knees, no scans no mri not a lot of anything except take more drugs

my knee has been like this for 6 months and its wearing me down

oh & also going private with osteopath etc is useless as they all seem to want to press things when all i want is gentle massage which i cant do myself due to all the pain in the other joints. i aint paying for people to give me more pain and they dont seem to appreciate the sensitivity of the pain in my shoulders neck & arms

dreamdaisy

For the life of me I cannot see how swelling is protecting the knee, surely it's untreated swelling that leads to joint damage. My left knee was allowed to reach 27" in circumference, all a bove the knee cap, before I finally had an open synovectomy. Apparently I sprayed a huge amount of synovial fluid over the surgeon when he cut in - - served him right for mucking me around for a year during which it only grew like Topsy - and he had to cut out a huge amount of solidified synovial fluid. The pics are in medical text books, my one claim to fame. My knee began swelling in April 97 and the op was in Feb 2002, still without anyone realising I had some form of inflammatory arthritis, rheumatologists included. It worked so well it was repeated 18 months later. :roll: The medication has finally put an end to most of the inflammation though it still has a go at me every now and then, so that is when I take the diclofenac.

I hope you can get your immune system under better control, I hope the sulphasalzine will be strong enough to do that but don't be afraid to add in another medication if required. The untreated inflammation is not to be recommended for the long-term health of your joints - it leads to irreparable damage and possibly OA (which is a harsher pain). Right, fizzing fingers, off to re-splint. Ah, the sexy sound of ripping velcro . . . DD

earthspirit

omg your knee sounds like a story from hell!

im all spindly skinny so my knee looks like a turnip on a stick lol

its the tendons are the main issue and the swelling is nothing like yours was. they said its stopping the bone grating on itself?

i think that cooling my knee a lot before doing the physio might be a better option then it wont be so painful. when i flatten my leg it feels like the kneecap is going to blow itself out of my body. a few hours later there is far more swelling and then i cant move it at all again.

sick of this roundabout - let me offfffffffffffff

suzygirl

Earthspirit, I am unable to offer any suggestions but wanted to send you a gentle (((hug))). I am unable to walk due to nerve pain andits horrid, so I can empathise.

I hope someone offers a solution for you.

dreamdaisy

I looked as though a large cauliflower was stuffed under my skin - think cellulite but worse! I suspect that RA swelling and PsA swelling may be different in some aspects, and may cause different joint damage but to be honest I don't know. When I'm flaring and the PsA is biting despite the meds I feel as though my knees are being injected with polystyrene, it's the oddest sensation. It happens in the shower on a daily basis at a reduced level simply because I am standing for too long, so each shower is followed by a lovely sit down on the sofa with a pillow under my knees. It's trying at times. I now cook, iron and clean sitting down, and if I meet people I know in the street I no longer stop and natter unless I have the rollator and can therefore sit down. DD

stickywicket

If you have a good knee, earthspirit, it’s much easier to go downstairs backwards, one step at a time, bad leg first. It uses different muscles.

I was never able to use walking aids either. I’ve sometimes wondered if I was lucky in that it forced me to stand up straight – or fall over :roll: . I suspect it also might have helped my wrists to lock in the straight (very useful) position.

I was never told not to exercise after steroid jabs, except for the first 48 hours. I can’t get down to the floor either but there’s quite a lot one can do on the bed. Have you tried AC’s Exercise booklet? I think the thing about physio sessions is partly that they are in great demand and partly that, once we’ve been shown the exercises, it’s assumed we can get on with them on our own. If they’d kept treating me until the problem was resolved I’d have had 51 years of physio to date. It’s not practical. Have you tried swimming? That’s always recommended for arthritis.

earthspirit

now there is something inspiring! i dont need to walk down stairs backwards so never thought of a benefit. it will of course help different muscles! now i am very happy with something new to try.ive found the physio g girls far more effective help then the meds ive taken and they are almost the unsung heroes of the nhs.

i used to swim 14 miles a day in the north sea, even with ankles and knees flaring (before dx) but now i cant actually swim a stroke. i have totally lost mobility and cant get arms or legs moving enough to keep me afloat. i sort of sink in the middle.felt a real twit when i last tried lol

i have done the excercises i was given at hydrotherapy classes but found the whole ordeal of going to swimming pool on my own just too much.walking to the pool and the dressing & drying overwhelmed me to the point that i didnt have the energy to drive back home again. stuff like this makes me feel so pathetic

dreamdaisy

If you could do all that physical stuff before diagnosis, simply by ignoring the pain etc, then why not try that approach again? Most of us on here get on with life by 'ignoring' the arthritis inasmuch as we tailor things accordingly. Giving up can be an option, but of more benefit to oneself is learning to live with, work with - and on the odd occasion work through - the pain. DD