Knee kept locking up
Posted , 4 users are following.
- week 5 after my tkr and my knee still wont loosen up . My flexion is around 100 now so i am not worried that my knee wont be able to bend but minutes after after my physio walking a little my knee locks up. Does anyone had that issue. Have to be back at work in 2 weeks Should I be concerned.?
0 likes, 12 replies
Jo12jt1 triphene1974
Posted
far to early to be worrying about anything. got my right knee dine 5 months ago and it took me the best part of 2 months to be able to get enough movement. have you spoken to your physio about it. when you say licked up do you mean straight or in a bend
triphene1974 Jo12jt1
Posted
I meant straight I would be walking and suddenly I found my knee stop bending ,it just locked maybe I will get pass that , everyone says it kind of early to be worry about it.. I need to be patient... Apart from that I am doing very well , very minimal pain and starting to sleep much better. Thank you JO
CHICO_MARX triphene1974
Posted
Back to work 7 weeks post-TKR is probably not even possible. Even those that went back at 3 months have reported lots of problems with pain, swelling and sleeplessness. The minimum without complications and pain seems to be around four months. Yes, there are exceptions and everyone is different. However, I've been on here 3 1/2 years and have read over 20,000 discussions. Your chance of pulling this off is extremely unlikely. Those who have done it very quickly reported that they had very little scar tissue and regained their full ROM in less than four weeks...very, very rare. I went from -14 / +84 to -1 / +123 in 12 weeks with a lot of PT and exercising. It takes time, work and patience. You may have underestimated the impact of a TKR on your life and health. PS: We ALL did!!!!! A full recovery including rebuild your quads, glutes, core and more usually takes a full year...with people feeling close to normal in around 9 months. Here's some ROM help...
ROM at Home
Good luck...
triphene1974 CHICO_MARX
Posted
Thanks Chico,
you are right my surgeon told me that I didnt need more than six weeks I told him I got eight weeks from work he said that’s far more than I needed so I take it at six weeks to be OK nevertheless I think I am healing very quickly ,minimal pain but my concerns are that my got so stiff and locked up even after icing - It does ge tback to 90 or 100 but knee not strong Thanks for those exercises that you recommend that I will definitely do. I I think it will help. also I will be going to the physiotherapist tomorrow I will discuss that with him as well . Thanks again for you sound advice
CHICO_MARX triphene1974
Posted
Your doc is delusional...and he's not the only one. I've heard this story too many times before. It just leads to unrealistic expectations that can never come true. Then people get depressed, start blaming themselves, wonder why there's still so much pain, sleeplessness and swelling, yadda, yadda, yadda... Six weeks is pure bullpucky! At 4-6 weeks, I was still on some opioids and drooling on my pajamas with very little sleep. It's a very common tale.
I wish you good luck with this but, again, I've read too many users' personal stories about trying to go back to work before the knee is healed and you are waaaaay stronger. Walking, balance, and climbing stairs are tough enough while rehabbing the knee to then pile on work. Even those with desk jobs found it difficult. Nurses running the floors on 12 hour shifts found it impossible...same with construction workers and delivery persons. Also highly impacted are people working in jobs that required standing and walking almost the entire 8 hours. Just not possible if the knee isn't healed. Consider this carefully. Listen to your knee; it will tell you when you're ready to go back to work.
triphene1974 CHICO_MARX
Posted
For sure. I agree , one size doesn't fit all. every one heals differently. I am on no hurry , waiting patiently.
Thanks.
kathy63770 triphene1974
Posted
what type of work do you do?
triphene1974 kathy63770
Posted
Child care, caring for 2 boys 4 and 2 yrs old - big challenge., but I heal really fast very minimum pain just concerned with the tightened up . I am sure time will take care of it on its own time. I need to be more patient. So far I dont think I had a bad experience based on what I have heard from others. Thanks Kathy
CHICO_MARX triphene1974
Posted
I heal amazing fast too. Four knee scopes, two shoulder ops, hip replacement, two spine fusions and more. Always nailed the rehab in record time...thought the same would be true for the knee. I was dead wrong and paid the price. The knee is a whole different animal than other ops and recoveries you had. I truly hope you are right and be one of the rare exceptions...just don't expect it.
triphene1974 CHICO_MARX
Posted
Yes , I agree the knee is a total different ball game.. I am just taking one day at a time and see how I feel. My knee will tell me when its time. Thanks Chico
climber triphene1974
Posted
triphene1974, Unless you are exceptional the time scale of 6 weeks which has been quoted by your doc does not seem realistic particularly since you say that your knee locks up - this indicates that the knee is not at present 100%. Suggest you talk again to your surgeon (if possible ) to discuss your knee symptoms, however may i wish you the best of luck although i agree with CHICO the timescale set by the surgeon does not seem realistic, however hopefully you can prove me wrong!!!!!!
triphene1974 climber
Posted
You are right, the best way to do it is to let my knee tell me when it is ready.. Thank you.