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5 weeks post TKR can’t bend knee..

Posted , 17 users are following.

pat86848
pat86848

I can straighten my knee no problem but can’t bend it fully. Can anyone suggest anything that would help me achieve this.Thankyou.

3 likes, 60 replies

60 Replies

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  • CHICO_MARX
    CHICO_MARX pat86848

    Posted

    https://patient.info/forums/discuss/tkr-rom-work-at-home-620053

    Concentrate on 0, 1 and 2...

    • CHICO_MARX
      CHICO_MARX pat86848

      Posted

      Think you got metal?  THIS is metal...  I'm the TSA's worst nightmare at the airport...

      Stay focused...treat yourself well.  All of this is only temporary.  Start planning your one year anniversary party!!!!

    • lorraine58772
      lorraine58772 CHICO_MARX

      Posted

      Chico, have you ever tried OmgaXL?  it’s an inflammatory pill. It’s advertised on tv by Larry King.
    • CHICO_MARX
      CHICO_MARX lorraine58772

      Posted

      Omega-XL.  It's basically fish oil containing Omega-3 fatty acids which you can buy cheap off of a shelf in any supermarket or drug store.  It's like paying $2 for generic dyphenhydramine vs $7 for Benadryl...same thing.  Why is their price so high?  Because they have to pay LARRY KING!!!  Sorry, I don't fall for those celebrity scams.

  • bubblesbb
    bubblesbb pat86848

    Posted

    Hold onto your walker and do knee bends and knee lunges--they are great for loosening up the joi also-- My therapist also has me doing the following exercise at home and I love it...First you have to purchase a green nylon therapy strap-not the elastic band type..(I found it on a).Put the loop at one end of the strap around your foot--be sure to wear socks.. lie on your stomach--grab the green strap with your hand and using your arm and hand pull on the strap which will bend your knee up towards your butt--pull it as hard as you can and hold it there for 15-20 or-30 seconds--then let your leg back down--rest for 15-20 seconds and do again--repeat as many times as you can tolerate--your thigh will be feeling the pull. Start slow-work up to  or 2 more repetitions each time--do 2 times a day.  This was the exercise that allowed me to reach to 116 degrees flexion the most--also riding a stationary bike is great for flexion too.

    Just an added note--my knee does drive me nuts sometime with random sharp pains that feel like an electric shock wave--happens while i am just resting or sitting or lying in bed?? They go away fairly quickly without doing anything. Be sure to apply ice to your knee after exercising of any kind.

    I should clarify--don't do this exercise without clearing it first with your therapist--She let me do it before 8 weeks but PT's are all different in their protocols.

    Good luck!

    • pat86848
      pat86848 bubblesbb

      Posted

      Thank you so much think I will try that.Unfortunately here in N Ireland we don’t get any physio after discharge from hospital.
    • jenny80029
      jenny80029 pat86848

      Posted

      There are lots of good videos on you tube, have a look around.

      As a very simple approach, which worked for me at least, I would emphasise that the main thing to bear in mind is to focus on the bending and straightening in the first 3 months (ish) and then work on the muscle strengthening and increasing walking distance for an additional six months after that. Obviously this varies a bit from person to person and there is overlap, but working on the range of motion (including stretching to straight, as well as working on the bend) is more important than anything else in the couple of months.

      Reducing swelling as much as possible is important. Sometimes people walk around a lot or are keen to dispense with walking aids very early on but the problem with this is that it increases pain levels and also swelling, which adversely affects how far they can bend their legs.

      Everyone is different but bear in mind that swelling, pain reduction and rest are also important as well as the exercises. Keep it moving regularly and also stretching is great as well as massaging!

      Good healing to you!

  • John5006
    John5006 pat86848

    Posted

    Hi Pat,

    I am in Cornwall, UK.

    ?In addition to doing all my exercises, and after my dressing was removed and the incision line declared free of infection, I went to my sports injury massage therapist and got her to give me intensive massage along and around the incision line to prevent scar tissue from forming.

    ?In addition, I bought a heel slide. with this you sit on a chair, like a dining table chair, put your heel into the cup of the heel slide and drag your operated leg back and try and get it under the seat of the chair. Best with carpeted floors. If you sit back in the chair you'll get limited movement, if you sit midway on the chair you increase your movement and if you sit on the edge of the chair you get even greater movement. Do this several times a day, then ice and elevate after each session.

    ?You can go to YouTube and type in the search box - Using heel slides, you'll then get a short video of what its all about.

    Try it with your non operated leg first.

    John

    • Snoozy69
      Snoozy69 John5006

      Posted

      I just use a baking tray😂 I sit in a chair against a wall, I have masking tape on the carpet and by using a goniometer I have marked out different degrees on the tape as a quick guide. Put a belt around my ankle with my foot in the tray which reduces friction and pull back and hold for 20 seconds and repeat. 

    • pat86848
      pat86848 John5006

      Posted

      Hi John thank you for your advice.I’m still old fashioned enough that my floors are carpeted lol so I will concentrate on those knee slides.I have a private physio which in a wee while I will make an appointment with.I have been holding off doing as her treatment room is up a steep flight of stairs.Over here in NI the waiting list is from 6 months to a year but as I said you aren’t offered it for knee replacement.Pat
    • jenny80029
      jenny80029 pat86848

      Posted

      It would be reassuring to see a physio in person.

      Even just once a month would be great. I found an osteopath helpful around 5 months ish for generally shaking up my operated leg! 😃😁

      You may like to go to my profile by clicking on the image next to my name. I kept a journal of my own knee replacement journey, and I have been told by several people they found it helpful to read, or skim through. There is an abridged version which is shorter as well! It has a lot of useful suggestions and information.

  • lorraine58772
    lorraine58772 pat86848

    Posted

    what is MUA? i’m week 6 and struggling every day. I still have to use my crutches, i can’t put much weight on my surgery leg. i been doing my excercises, ice. i’m thinking something wrong with my knee. when i sit on a chair with my leg down for 5 min and the pain is unbearable, it makes me cry, i barely make it to my recliner to put my leg up, pain level is a 10, have to rest it 30 min b4 i can get up again.  

    funny thing is i can take a shower for 30 min with no problems.  why i can’t sit on a chair for 5 min and not being able to bend 90 degrees yet has me very depressed. 

    • pat86848
      pat86848 lorraine58772

      Posted

      Hi Lorraine I haven’t a clue what a MUA is.I’m in UK and just assumed it was an American thing.I am virtually at same stage as you.I can sit in a chair for a while (about 30 mins) and then would get sore but not really bad pain,but when I try to walk again my leg has got very stiff.

      The problem is for me I don’t know how I’m meant to be at this stage so I don’t know what’s normal and what’s not.

    • natalie04381
      natalie04381 pat86848

      Posted

      Hi

      I'm in the UK, and my therapist wants me to have am MUA, it's manipulation under anaesthetic, where they bend it while your asleep, as everything is relaxed that way x

    • jenny80029
      jenny80029 lorraine58772

      Posted

      I used two crutches for 8 weeks most of the time. This isn't anything to worry about in itself, as far as I am aware...just use for as long as you need to.

    • lorraine58772
      lorraine58772 natalie04381

      Posted

      thank you! that is what i’ll try to get, i am set for my first PT this thursday and i’m 6 weeks out! i live in a remote area and have to travel on a small plane to see a PT.  I pray this nightmare is over now. 
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