Posted , 6 users are following.
Hi All
Has anyone had patella femoral pain following a TKR? I'm 18 months post op. wondering if anyone manage to overcome this condition. cannot go up and down stairs normally, one foot at a time, also painful going from sitting to standing and visa versa. I am excercising on stationery bike and excercises to strengthen the muscles around the knee and hip.
thanks Gaynor
0 likes, 14 replies
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martha08360 gaynor85245
Posted
Yes, and nothing has been done for mine. going to Duke next month, for 3rd opinion....sigh...... Im 19 months po..... too long to be suffering like I have been.
gaynor85245 martha08360
Posted
I agree with you there way too long. My other knee needs a tkr but i'm doing prp and that has helped tremendously. I wish I'd had it is this knee alot less invasive and painless.
martha08360 gaynor85245
Posted
sorry, but what's prp?? M
gaynor85245 martha08360
Posted
Platelet replacement, where they inject your own platelets into the affected joint.
ritacharleston martha08360
Posted
Martha- my surgeon at Duke was Dr. Amendola and I feel like he did a good job on my knees. He was more "bullish" on how quickly I would be back to normal, but I think that is common with orthopedic surgeons. The aspect of my experience that I truly appreciated with Dr. Amendola was his willingness to listen to me and to believe me. He did not dismiss me when I said that the initial injury that set this whole situation into motion (the whack to my knee) was causing intermittent, excrutiating pain and spasms, and that it was not " just bone on bone OA" that I should learn to live with. I had been dismissed by a surgeon at another orthopedic facility in the area, but Dr. Amendola took me seriously and found a little piece of broken bone spur during surgery that had not shown up in the MRI. Gratefully, he fixed the immediate issue and also addressed the OA which would have likely continued to deteriorate with the risk of bone spurs breaking off and the patella getting stuck between bone spurs anytime I bumped my knees. My surgery was at the ambulatory surgical center and not the main hospital, which was good because the ambulatory facility operates more smoothly. And all of my appointments at the clinic have been on time with no waiting. Hopefully you will have a good experience when you visit Duke for your next opinion. Best wishes!
martha08360 ritacharleston
Posted
My neighbor had Dr. A as her surgeon several weeks ago. She really liked him.
GenaCam gaynor85245
Posted
Hello Gaynor, I am having problems too. Am 4 years post surgery and agrivated my knee a few weeks ago, resulting in increased anterior knee pain.
I have been seeing a chiropractor for the last few weeks and she worked on the leg extensively last week. She believes that a ligament may have been stretched giving pain below the knee at the back which has been there since my surgery. And also that the prostheses may not be inserted as straight as it should be.
She worked on my ankle which was very painful - she said that the ankle was not aligned. After this treatment, the first 24 hours were great, then the pain crept back in - the more I exercise the worse it gets. I am overseas this week and will be back next week for another appointment. She is going to try strapping my ankle to my knee in a special sideways / spiral strapping method to try to pull the knee into alignment.
My chiropractor is the first person to figure out the problems with my knee so I am hopeful.
I need to strengthen up the muscles too but there is very little tolerance for exercising. I am thinking of returning to hydrotherapy.
roberta73387 gaynor85245
Posted
i feel like I'm regressing. along with TKR i had my severely valgus leg straightened. after 3-1/2 wks my entire leg wants to turn left to find comfort position. i am trying to keep strsight but soooo painful. now what?
lynda49844 gaynor85245
Posted
I get it if I do a lot of stairs or if I sit with a bent knee for long, but I have to say it's not as bad as it was before the op. I ice still when it's bad rest the knee for a day. My physio is giving me exercises and stretches for that and the IT band, which he thinks is what is causing the problem. My surgeon says to expect it for 18 months due to the tissues adapting to the straightening of my valgus knee. I hope he's right as I'm having the other done in January.
roberta73387 lynda49844
Posted
thats a little more helpful. surgeons never tell you what you're in for. mine said to prepare for a long camping trip, truly he has a sense of humor. He told me 2 years ago I couldn't will my valgus leg to straighten itself. it was surprising how fast i went downhill in the 1-1/2 after he said i was ready for surgery. had a cortisone inj last may and things seemed to escalate after that. my acl came unattached. had a meniscectomy 9 yrs ago so my knee was gonner.now i need to must heal. wish i had a clearer picture how things will be further down the road. I'm 74 now.
gaynor85245 lynda49844
Posted
Hi Lynda
i cant go up and downstairs due to it being really sore then. One surgeon said that i need to have a button put behind my kneecap and that will sort it out. But the thought of them opening up the knee again puts me off especially as there is'nt a guarantee that it will sort the pain.
lynda49844 gaynor85245
Posted
I had a patellar button, as I had no cartilage left there. It was very sore afterwards. It did really feel as if they'd scraped away any remnants before placing the button, but now it's only if do a lot of stairs in one go.
I can understand your reluctance not to have further surgery on that knee. I wonder why they didn't do yours originally. You would assume they assessed that it wasn't required. I know there's been controversy over it not being done at the same time to avoid the need later, but some surgeons won't if they don't think it needs it at the time.
You have a difficult decision, but maybe try exercising first. Good luck!
lynda49844 roberta73387
Posted
I know what you mean Roberta. Mine's a similar story in that I had a menisectomy 18 years ago after being knocked off my bike and it was 2 years ago that I was told I needed 2 TKR's, but didn't have your problem with the ACL. I'm 70 and wonder what's ahead. If my back wasn't so bad I might wait a bit longer for the second knee, but it will have to be done eventually and I hope that having 2 legs the same length will help the back. It seems that these valgus knees are more complicated and have a longer recovery, but not much we can do about it. Best wishes to you for the rest of your recovery.
gaynor85245 lynda49844
Posted
I'm in South Africa a lot of surgeons here dont automatically put the button in.