Three months out from Tkr
Posted , 6 users are following.
I am 12 wks out from TKR. still stiff and sore. is that common? when I say stiff I don't mean bending is bad. I have good flexion just stiff when doing anything. I know recovery takes a year but here lately I feel as if it's getting worse. my surgeon told me at 6 weeks to cut exercises down to 1x a day every other day. Really exercise makes it stiffer. what are others thoughts on this? I feel like right under the incision is the worst. the implant pops and makes thudding noises too. not out loud just feeling inside. I walk good and do steps well...just don't feel good inside.
0 likes, 8 replies
CHICO_MARX ellen09443
Edited
You are totally normal. Stiffness will decrease imperceptibly over time....usually to 12 months although some may linger to 18 months. THEN...you have to keep the knee active or the stiffness will return, even years down the road.
The same thing applies to all the sounds (clunking, popping, etc.) as they too will resolve over time. I'm 4 years post--op and have been on this Forum for all that time reading over 30,000 posts. A year-long recovery is very typical with a few beating that and another group taking longer. It's all individual with no way of knowing how any individual person will fare in advance.
The one thing you never do is compare your situation to that of anyone else. Yes, we can see trends and suggest that you are "typical" but statistics apply to populations and never to any single individual. Your job is to recover from this most brutal of surgeries. Time, work and patience are your tools. Focus on improving your life and not on how others are doing. Expectations and comparisons will absolutely mess with your head. There are no timetables...the knee will be better when it's better...period. Just do the work!!!
If you have your ROM back, it's time to start the mandatory muscle rebuild which will make you walk correctly, restore your balance and enable you to do stairs alternately like you used to. This will take months to accomplish as you start slowly to build endurance and then shift to strength work...
Muscle Rebuild
This takes time and determination...so dig deep. Start slowly as the knee CANNOT be pushed to recovery. It will just swell and laugh at you. Click my name, Discussions and then View ALL for about 30 posts on a variety of topics. Hope they help.
"Never give up! Never surrender!" - Tim Allen, Galaxy Quest
ellen09443 CHICO_MARX
Posted
I am glad I found this website bc I have 4 friends ...three have had double knee replacement and no one seems to have been this stiff tight and sore. thought something wrong with me. it just is so tight and feels like a piece of iron rubbing along incision that makes it sore. most said exercise helped theirs where in my case really doesn't. thanks for your response
kali74334 ellen09443
Posted
Hey Ellen , i am 17 months post tkr, i still have stiffness 24/7 , never goes away , my knee doesn't feel like mine , still have all the noises you describe,,, my range of motion is great,, some days my knee hurts ,,, i go back to see my orthopedic in may and i hope to get some answers,,, i can walk great, no limp, and do stairs well , i agree i don't feel good inside
ellen09443 kali74334
Posted
I will be interested in what he says......same thing...everyone is different lol
kali74334 ellen09443
Posted
You are probably right lol
john50984 ellen09443
Posted
hi i am just approaching 4 months and my knee gets stiffer the more i do , im back working as a carpenter went back at 12 weeks think it was too early , but being self employed made that desicion for me , i ve got 125 bend and nearly straight but gets stiff , at work if im on it for hours it is sore , and ive got bone on bone in other knee so struggle , even when i go out on bike do 10 miles when i stop stiff and still swells a bit , , i thought 6 weeks and it would be fixed but hearing 8 to 14 months , you have to just grin and bear it , but one thing i struggle is going downhill , it is a struggle , bit will become easier , no more flooring or skirting board for me , wait till you try to kneel on it , i forgot and just knealt playing with dog , dont try it hope it gets easier
ellen09443 john50984
Posted
if I knew at 8 months to a year it would be fine it wouldn't mess with my mind so much lol. people I work with don't get it....they think it's like replacing an interchangeable part....good as new lol. good luck to you
CHICO_MARX john50984
Posted
Kneeling? That's nerve pain and it will not totally go away...even years later (I'm 4 years post-op). Foam pad indoors...knee pads outside. Cannot kneel on any hard surface without protection.
Your ROM is great but you are pushing the knee waaaaay too hard at four months...the swelling is a sure sign of that. Also back off your 10 miles of biking for a while. Progress has to be slow and steady. If you get pain and swelling, you have to recover and start again at a lesser pace. The knee, not your desires and expectations, drives the recovery. Hey...we all had those delusional thoughts and ran into the brick wall of TKR reality.
Also, the recovery is NOT linear...there are advances, setbacks and plateaus. These are inevitable. Time, work and patience are your tools. The biking is good but you need specific strengthening exercises for your quads, glutes and core. When the muscles take over their normal duties, your motion will put less stress on the knee.
Now for your other knee... Orthopedic surgeons will use cortisone injections for inflammation and pain. When they don't work any more, the next treatment is hyaluronic acid (SynVisc) which lubricates the joint. When that doesn't work, they go right to a TKR. However, there is an FDA-approved, 15-minute procedure called COOLIEF (Cooled Radiofrequency Ablation) that deadens the nerves surrounding the joint and can last up to two years. Check the website to read more and to find a certified doc near you. When my #2 starts acting up, I will be doing COOLIEF before another TKR.