Stiffness and swelling
Posted , 10 users are following.
It has been 5 months since my tkr and I am still experiencing daily stiffness and swelling. Can anyone tell me if the stiffness finally goes away on its own? I still am having horrible swelling every day making exercises to improve my knee flexion almost impossible. I can only bend it just so much and then the swelling takes over. I can do 10 minutes 3 times a day on my recumbent bike but every time I try to increase the time my leg starts to ache big time. Does anyone still have just 100 degree flexion after a lengthy time? Can I live this way forever? I don't think it will ever bend any further.
0 likes, 52 replies
Kaysknee jeanne_06699
Posted
I am only 7 weeks post op TKR and have terrible swelling, aching and stiffness. Everybody tells me it takes time and it will improve. I'm nowhere near as far post op as you but I do wonder if my knee will ever bend properly again. I'm having hydrotherapy and in the pool can achieve 110' I'm told but not on dry land. Glad I found this site last night at least reading other people's problems makes me feel normal. At the moment I'm wishing I never had the op! Good luck Jeanne xx
mary12001 jeanne_06699
Posted
Hooray
I thought you were going to say five weeks or something.
I had TKR on 13 th February this year and I also suffer from stiffness and swelling.
Somedays I think the surgeon has crippled me.
I think I was better with the osteoarthritis - at least I could manage that with creams and stuff. Now not only do I have difficulty walking but I feel totally washed out.
This operation has knocked me for six. I really didn't expect that.
moandrieu mary12001
Posted
It does that to us, doesn't it Mary. I'm here to tell you that it's all worth it. At nearly 22 months post op, I can say I would do it again. Maybe I was at a worse place then you when I finally had my surgery, but I couldn't continue at that place. The deterioration keeps happening, so the creams and other stuff don't work the same. At least I have most of my life back. I can walk places I'd never have been able to prior to the surgery (I had both knees replaced at the same time) and I can stand without needing to sit down to relieve the pain.
I do still have slight stiffness, but I usually only notice it when I go down the stairs after having sat for a while. And while one knee is text book perfect, the other still swells a touch when I've walked over 7,000 steps. Apparently the knee cap isn't in great shape and will eventually need replaced. But all of this I can live with.
-Mo
marilyn22260 moandrieu
Posted
When you say you will need a replacement of your kneecap, I don't understand why a TKR does not include a patella (kneecap) since it is part of the knee? Could you explain that to me. I think I told you I have the entire report of my surgery and prothesis. I can't read it without getting sick to my stomach. When I read the part about the tournaket that is placed for 45 minutes, I nearly fainted.
Thanks...Marilyn
marilyn22260 mary12001
Posted
Hi Mary....I have all of your issues and sometimes I wonder..."what have I done?" I had a TKR because I fell and tore my meniscus and when they did an MRI they saw moderate to severe arthritis bone on bone. I did have pain before the surgery, but I never had any problems with arthritis and I am 73 years old. I pray everyday as I am doing the painful exercises and PT, that I will walk like a normal person again. Walking was my favorite thing to do ... 2-3 miles 3 days a week. I'm walking okay but if I walk too much, I have such swelling and tightness that I don't understand why the doctor wants me to walk a mile a day....Very confusing. I haven't slept through the night in 8 weeks. Just the past few nights I slept for 3 hours straight. The first three weeks, I didn't think I was going to ever make it. The medication affected my stomach, my knee locked on the 10th day with such severe pain, I was nauseaus.
I could go on and on, but you will find answers on this site.
We are all very brave and will conquor this...some may take longer than others but we will all get there.
Healing thoughts to you...Marilyn
moandrieu marilyn22260
Posted
Marilyn, that's a great question. Originally, the surgeon in India told me I was getting new knee caps too. The surgeon I did the follow-up with said that they are starting to make it standard procedure but it was common for them to not be included in a TKR. He said people generally come back within 10 years needing new patellas, so now things are changing.
I think I'm glad I didn't get any sort of paperwork like that. So did you get a new patella with your TKR?
-Mo
marilyn22260 moandrieu
Posted
Hi Mo,
I have no idea if I received a new patella. I wrote on some of the other posts that I get so confused with the numbers and degrees with the straightening of the knee and the range of motion, that I now go by what the PTs say and how I feel . In fact I have the post op report and I was told I have to take it on the plane whenever I travel. It has the entire surgical procedure. I started reading it and got to the part about the tourniquet, I psychologically was getting pain in my knee while reading about it. im still struggling with bending but it is now 9 weeks and the PT's pushed the bend 5 times and held it for so long that I almost fainted. They said I was up to 115 andt they were very pleased, I have been sleeping a little better. I am using a soft down pillow between legs. I get a burning sensation when I cover it with a blanket or a soft sheet. All these crazy issues don't bother me anymore. I see it's a gradual healing process and someday I'll wake up feeling normal. I keep forgetting to ask the PT's about ice while exercising, but this week when my pt started me out with ice on my knee, he told me to keep the leg as straight as I can and get it as close to table as possible. I have three therapists working with me. It's a great place because each one offers different techniques. One of them said if you are sitting on a couch and want to put your legs up on the coffee table, that's very good for straightening because gravity will pull the knee down . I sit with my laptop and work that way. I tried it... Definitely woks. All I can say is that all our answers are here on this post and for that I am ever grateful. I will look at the report and if I see anything about the patella, I will let everyone know... Thanks again mo for all your support.