Knee Replacement

Glad to hear you're not going for a BOGOF!  Believe me, one at a time is plenty.

Haven't heard of the Independent, only the Royal Berks.  I live in a small village 7 miles from High Wycombe and had my operation at The Chiltern, Great Missenden.  Knee number two there next March.

Lynn 20.1 weeks post op

my kneecap still hurts and i think it may be swollen

So sorry to hear your op been cancelled....that's awful 

When i originally asked for help and advice i did'nt expect it to be as above having been a member of the cardiac side of this site all i got was help and advice NOT the rubbish and personal attacks that have been sent between the people on this site i'm not sure that i will use this forum again as the majority has been very unhelpful.

Hi Alan, I can fully understand your feelings. I've used this site for the past 4 months and found everyone to be really helpful and friendly. Don't give up on us. It's not usually like this as you'll see if you look at other threads. Jen 

So sorry about this Alan.I have just started to ignore this thread. Without the forum I wouldn't have been able to cope as well as I have. I suggest you leave this thread and read through all the other threads that have been followed in the past.

Totally agree Carol, this forum is a great source of support to all us out here,its ok to have a bit of a laugh together but its not realy the place for other stuff no matter how strongly we feel,now let me make you all laugh,so I get to the shopping centre today to buy Xmas prezzies for the babies and I am met with?? Escaltors!! I was like a demented half wit I just stood there and looked at these stairs whizzing downwards! Everyone else backed up behind me and I could hear the mutterings but I honestly couldnt move I was frozen,then someone said " look dearie,its an esclator, it wont bite,why not try the lift" Oh I felt daft she was quite right but it was going so fast,but I launched myself on to it and ??? fell on my backside No permanent damage

 

Thanks Jennifer

Alan

Thanks Carol

Alan

Thanks Fran hope the bruise is'nt too big!

Alan

Just the ego Alan

 

You have made me smile, Fran😊 You'll have a pain in the bum tomorrow to take your mind of your knee 😊 x

The funniest thing was after he rushed to pick me up he actually said to me " what did you do that for"?  ......"oh I thought it might be fun" stupid man! He simply has to go girls! He was a one night stand 45 years ago and he is still hanging around,wouldnt you think the man would get the message

 

Ha ha 

I love it..... 

i am so glad you are also having issues with escalators!! i felt like a doddering fool when i did exactly what you did: stop and stare at them whizzing by. isn't it insane, that a TKR should have such a major impact on us? we have been doing escalators since we were kids for pete's sake!! luckily for me i didn't fall but i was hanging on to the railing for dear life, that's for sure.

I'm not shortly post-TKR but since I have had polymyalgia rheumatica I stand and consciously take a deep breath before stepping on to them. And am delighted when I get off at the end! A trip through the London Underground in the summer left me feeling decidedly exhausted. I hate lifts - but that's preferable any day.

See Britta, I had visions of being launched off the end of the bloomin thing and flying through the air As it was I ended up a heap of clothes and crutches sliding down the moving monster with himself trying to haul me up before we both got sucked out the end of it,I bet most of the onlookers thought we were a pair of elderly drunks Tried to get in the driving seat of the car this morning but that was a no go to, this TKR is taking so much longer than I anticipated  

you are funny!!  but i know what you mean, people are giving the the evil eye the whole time as i sit on the train with my leg bent / tucked in as much as possible but of course that isn't that much (about 95 degrees).  i don't need crutches anymore so there is no outward sign of me being a wee bit handicapped.  if looks could kill!!  never mind, i quite enjoy watching their reaction   

i have just got back from my physio where i was in floods of tears.  i am fed up to my back teeth and i TOTALLY agree, this whole process is so much longer than i anticipated too.  but i put my fedupness down to having had very little sleep last night.  my leg was aaaaaaching!  better day tomorrow, that's for sure.  we will get there.  all of us!

Oh dear Britta,physio is without doubt the worst day of the week for me so I can sympathise with you,I took everyones advice here last week and loaded up on analgesics and it was actually a bit less painful but oh, Britta the pain on the next two days  This forum is brilliant and I wish I had found it at the begining of my journey, and no offense to all forum users but I will be glad when I can fly solo

Evening Eileen,

i notice you have Polymyalgia too.  I have been suffering with it for over 6.5 years.  Had to finally wean myself off steroids in May of this year as my surgeon would not operate whilst I was taking them.

Had been pretty OK until six weeks ago when it started to creep up on me again.  Politely declined the offer of more high-dose steroids from my GP as I believe they have caused my osteoporosis.  They don't cure, just mask the problem.  Plus, knee number two is due next March and I wouldn't have sufficient time to wean myself off again.

Keeping my fingers crossed it will eventually burn out, but with an ESR reading of 83 in September, that's not going to be any time soon.

Lynn 20.6 weeks

No, an ESR of 83 is considerable! Can any of that be from the TKR though?

But won't it make mobilising for the next knee more difficult? I had 9 months on crutches for an achilles problem and it was hell with the PMR. I might have looked for another surgeon - we have had people who needed hip replacements on the forums who had it all from "can't touch you until you get off pred" to "all I want is you to be stable on a dose, you must be able to mobilise". In the end a dose of 10mg was fine and since the op she's been able to reduce the pred steadily and has been off altogether for about a year now. Almost as if the pain of the hip being gone helped the PMR. And of course your op will have given the PMR a good old prod in the ribs to wake up again!

No, you are quite right, it doesn't cure but it does let you "manage" the symptoms to have a reasonable quality of life. The thought of having to cope with a TKR with full-blown PMR seems grossly unfair to me - I had enough problems when I tore knee ligaments and had the knee in a super-dooper brace for 6 weeks. Then there was the achilles later - but that was rest and don't risk falling or it would have torn altogether. The crutches were torture though!

Good luck to the lot of you - escalators and all!

83 is nothing.  It was up to 140 on one occasion.  The highest reading my surgery/GP had ever encountered.

Some days are tough, others not so bad.  Having to literally roll out of bed in the morning until I get going is awful.

My surgeon is adamant he will not operate whilst I'm on Prednisolone.  and, to be honest, I will do anything to avoid taking steroids again.

10 mgs a day suited me well, but it would take me nearly a year to wean off that amount, reducing by 1 mg per month, with luck.

Have you tried using an electric blanket in bed BEFORE you get up? Some people find that lets them start to get moving and of course once you are moving it improves bit by bit.

I am still doing a set of TKR exercises before I get up which certainly helps my PMR when I have a flare.

Doctor has prescribed Naproxen to ease discomfort, but it really doesn't help. I know steroids are the answer.  When first diagnosed, I felt like a new person within two days.  However, the side-effects have been awful - osteoporosis and now pre-diabetes which might be steroid induced.

Just having this conversation on another forum. Nothing does anything for PMR pain but pred. Of course, although I KNOW osteoporosis is a risk of pred, only about half of patients get osteoporosis when on pred and in fact the chances are it would have happened anyway. Of all the people I know on pred for PMR (and it is a LOT) only a couple have developed diabetes. But one thing at a time is enough - more than one is bad luck and more than 2 is unprintable!

Hi Eileen 

just read your post about electric blanket ...my knee's been playing up all day 

I got my heat pad out and it's easing my knee already

great advice 

jean 

Wonderful stuff a bit of warmth! I have friends with PMR who feel like 2 year olds when they get to Spain! Relapse badly when they get home though ;-)

For me it never seems to make much difference - so it is always a case of suck it and see. If it doesn't work, don't bother again. If it does - keep on as long as it helps!

Think I'll be investing in one.  Can use it for knee number two and PMR.

Mine is just a heat pad not electric blanket ..but it certainly gives relief 

Can I ask your view on Alendronic Acid?

I use my heat pad behind my knee in bed every night. Helps send me off to sleep lovely 😴😴💤💤

I will be doing that tonight 

I don't like the idea of it being handed out like sweeties "just in case" with the idea of preventing bone density loss. Only 1 in 3 people people develops osteoporosis, about half of patients on pred develops osteoporosis. But under normal circumstances 2 out of 3 people WON'T develop osteoporosis. A dexascan should be done and if your bone density is low then using AA is fine - I would take it in that case. There are some people who shouldn't be put on AA: if you have a history of reflux or hiatus hernia for example great care should be used with AA. There are other bisphosphonates which are said to be less hard on the stomach - are they really? I don't know. But everyone is different and some people can take AA with no problems - and the instructions should be followed very carefully.

If you get side effects like sore stomach, upset stomach and pain then ask your doctor if you can try another. There are also other drugs you can try if you really can't tolerate AA but they are far more expensive so are kept for the patients who really do have trouble with the first choices. It's fair enough - we'd all like the fancy ones but it would make the bill 100 million pounds instead of half a million! 

but yes - used properly AA is fine. And before starting it you need to have any possible dental work sorted out and then be very careful about dental hygiene, cleaning and flossing regularly. And you need your calcium and vit D levels checked - because if either is too low then the AA won't work and a lot of people in the UK are definitely deficient in vit D!

Morning.

As a result of my last bone density scan I was prescribed AA.  I have been extremely hesitant to take it after reading several scare stories.

As I no longer take Pred, take two calcium and vit D chewable tablets each day and have a very good dairy intake every day, I am hoping this will suffice.  No doubt my next DEXA scan will prove this one way or other.

Thanks for your view, although I appreciate this discussion is more suited to another thread.

Lynn 20.6 weeks post op