How do I tell what per cent my bend is?

My physical therapist used an instrument called a goniometer to measure the bend in my knee.

I bought Goniometre on Amazon for about £5. It's difficult to measure yourself as it needs lining up against muscles but it gives you a rough idea.

I would say to try to work on the straightening as bend is easier to improve but getting the leg as straight as possible is probably more important. Make sure you put the foot on a stool and allow gravity to do the work. Also put a rolled up towel under the ankle whilst you have your foot up. Push down with the knee.

Straightening is usually linked to muscles so make sure to stretch.

I'm 18 weeks post up and due to have further surgery in 4 weeks to cut away muscle adhesions. I'd like anyone else to avoid the complications and pain that I've had/still having.

It's not easy to judge, and until I had my goniometer I definitely overestimated, thinking that I was at about 90 when it was actually around 78.  I bought quite a long goniometer, which I think is easier to use that the small ones,and it was only about 6 pounds I think.  I still use it occasionallly, and was surpirsed to find I was at 130 a couple of days ago, when I haven't really been trying since a couple of weeks ago when it was 120.  If you are getting your leg under the chair it's probably at least 90 - 100 . .of course it depends on whether the thigh is horizontal!  That's why the goniometer gives you a good idea provided you are sure to point one end of it at your ankle, and the other straight along the thigh towards the hip joint.   Lots of us seem to have suffered with sciatica . . I think maybe we strain the wrong muscles/nerves with the exercises. 

Thanks everyone for the advice I will be going on amazon as we speak!! Spent quite a bit on there lately! I'm waiting for an adjustable band that hold gel packs in place as I'm very good at keeping mine on and around my knee!!!

Poor you having to contend with Sciatica as well as being Post op.  The hardest one for me was the bend under the chair but I had to attend the hospital each week after being 2 weeks being post op and they measure the bend.  I see the senior physio person and they give you exercises to do at home.  They measure the bend and when i was discharged it was 111.  If you can manage that chair one then it seems you are doing fine.  To straighen the knee is sit on chair and put your heel on another chair at the same height, put some ice over your knew then after 10 minutes put an over glove (with two pockets one on each end) and put a tin of beans in each pocket  and and hang the middle  over the knee, the weight of the tins will help straighen it.  Another exercise is to lie on a firm base and get someone to press each side of the knee down as firm as  you can stand it and this will straighen the knee.

Good luck

Hi Mandy yes the straightening is a real pain in the dodah !

One exercise that really helped me was sitting on the edge of a bed putting the new knee leg as straight as I could with my foot flat against the wall and massaging knee with bio oil then lying back and letting gravity take over. This took many weeks but now have a more or less straight leg

The bending was done at night in bed. I would curl good leg then try and get NKL as near to it as I could I now have a 115 bend not perfect but getting there slowly

Onwards and upwards