Unicompartmental knee replacement - 6 days post op

Hi Sandra, this forum has proved very useful to me and has helped a lot with worries.

Sleep is a major problem to all of us. I am 9 weeks tomorrow and last night I slept for 5 hours....longest since tkr and I got back over agian quit quickly. I have only been sleeping 2-3 hrs then wake when I move which causes discomfort/pain and getting back over takes an age. I have only recently been able to sleep on my side again an only for a little while,

At your stage you should be taking it very easy, exercises a couple times a day, on;y walking a little, building it up, ice, elevating and taking pain meds regularly. As for crutches kepp using them till physio tells you. I went down to 1 at 2 1/2 weeks in house but still both oustside, none in house when i knew i could but still use 1 walking any distance outside. My knee still swells as day goes on and gets uncomfortable. in morning it is stiff and takes a wee while to "wake up"

Take it easy and don't overdo it!!  S x

 

Sleep any way you can ......rest is a very important part of healing. You aren't going to hurt the joint as the prosthesis is solid.

Excercise frequency varies to the individual. I never felt comfortable trying them over 2 times a day. Others have said their therapists tried to make them excercise 3-4 times a day and found it to be too exhausting.

I can't advise you on the crutches as I always used a walker till I went to a cane but the main thing is be careful of not trying to carry too big of loads. When you get tired you are more prone to make mistakes and drop things. This is especially true if you are taking pain meds.

This is a process and its different for everyone. Certain principles do apply to everyone. Pain meds, take them on schedule....don't wait for the pain to kick in and then try to catch up. Excercise reguarly and ice after each time you do. Ice any time the knee feels swollen or warm. Rest every time you have a chance. Hydrate.....drink plenty of water. A hydrated body heals much faster than a dehydrated one. Don't try to do too much to fast. Knee replacement surgery is the greatest teacher of patience that you will ever be part of........don't get discouraged just stay with the program. Avoid listening to unbelievable success stories of miraculous healing. Someone always has a friend of a friend that was running marathons and skydiving in 6 weeks. Its all garbage.....someone's imagination running wild. You are YOU and don't let others try and scare you into believing something else. I've been through 11 leg/knee surgeries and 5 complete rehabs....everyone has been different. Treat any and all drainage with respect. Don't put any type oils, creams or lotions on your incision Until it's completely healed and the scabs have fallen off. After that I always used Vit E oil and massage it in well as it has a tendency to heal everything to the bone.

Stay with this forum as there will be someone who has experienced every concern you are wondering about. They will not only offer you advice but will treat you like a friend.

Good luck

Sleep any way you can ......rest is a very important part of healing. You aren't going to hurt the joint as the prosthesis is solid.

Excercise frequency varies to the individual. I never felt comfortable trying them over 2 times a day. Others have said their therapists tried to make them excercise 3-4 times a day and found it to be too exhausting.

I can't advise you on the crutches as I always used a walker till I went to a cane but the main thing is be careful of not trying to carry too big of loads. When you get tired you are more prone to make mistakes and drop things. This is especially true if you are taking pain meds.

This is a process and its different for everyone. Certain principles do apply to everyone. Pain meds, take them on schedule....don't wait for the pain to kick in and then try to catch up. Excercise reguarly and ice after each time you do. Ice any time the knee feels swollen or warm. Rest every time you have a chance. Hydrate.....drink plenty of water. A hydrated body heals much faster than a dehydrated one. Don't try to do too much to fast. Knee replacement surgery is the greatest teacher of patience that you will ever be part of........don't get discouraged just stay with the program. Avoid listening to unbelievable success stories of miraculous healing. Someone always has a friend of a friend that was running marathons and skydiving in 6 weeks. Its all garbage.....someone's imagination running wild. You are YOU and don't let others try and scare you into believing something else. I've been through 11 leg/knee surgeries and 5 complete rehabs....everyone has been different. Treat any and all drainage with respect. Don't put any type oils, creams or lotions on your incision Until it's completely healed and the scabs have fallen off. After that I always used Vit E oil and massage it in well as it has a tendency to heal everything to the bone.

Stay with this forum as there will be someone who has experienced every concern you are wondering about. They will not only offer you advice but will treat you like a friend.

Good luck

Listen to the advise from the poster 'Oldfatguy'...he's been 'through the mill', so to speak and knows whereof he speaks. He gives the best advise!!! Hang in there, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. You are only 6 days post op, so it is very early in your recovery. This whole knee stuff can/will take up to a year to get back to normal. I found the first 3 months to be the worst...but everyone is different. Slow and steady wins the race. This isn't a race but a sort of crawl, with each day getting you one day closer to total recovery. Good luck and carry on!!!

Hi Sandra,

Most of what you describe seems all so familiar to me. I had my Unicompartmental done (right knee, partial knee replacement, medial compartment) on 6 Nov 2015. Firstly, can I say, old fat guy has to be one of several "knee op gurus" on here, sue isobel too and there are a few other ladies too - all have excellent wisdom to offer.

So for now I'll just make my own comments. Sounds pretty normal to me at day 6 . There are several problems with this type of surgery, one AND the main one is the patient is never taught what the experience will be like, so one has no means of measuring progress. I am in Cornwall, UK and all I got was (apart from my equipment) a booklet explaining my exercises although in the end I found this to be inadequate and I ditched it in favour of PT exercises illustrated by video on Youtube. I stayed on crutches for some 7/8 weeks until my first Consultants review. I too can't sleep on my back. Actually I'm a weirdo and can only sleep on my front, but, obviously with the knee pressing on the bed that was too painful. So I managed to doze sleeping on my side, left side mainly and keeping a small square cushion between my knees, just slightly above the knee cap was a big help. My exercise as instructed by my booklet was 4 times a day, THAT IS - EVERY EXERCISE 4 TIMES A DAY - YES ! .... EVERY EXERCISE. That became my life ... I devoted myself to it ... it became my life! Lol!

Initially I was stupid and took my pain relief as a pill in the pocket, Only took it when I began exercise - NO! I have a heart arrythmia and am on Warfarin for life so I am very limited as to what pain relief I can take .... it is CoCodomol 30/500 (prescription grade). I soon found that to deal with the pain generated by the exercises I had to take it exactly as described on the bit of paper in the packet. When I did that life became easier and so did the exercises. In some parts the PT's insist that you (as the patient) push your exercises right into the pain. I didn't, don't believe in that, simply because the pain is the bodys way of letting you know something is wrong - that its in a state of dis - ease. I did however push to the point of pain and then back off. So, next time I gently pushed a little further into pain, and after that a little further and further and further. All over time and this was a concentrated approach for the first 7/8 weeks until I saw my Consultant again which was on 29 Dec 2015.

Hope this helps - may the force be with you.

John

Welcome to the club of pain, stiffness and swelling. Before you left hospital did you not have a visit from the physio.  They should have told you what you are capable of doing, how long for crutches and if necesary how long with a cane. You yourself will know what you are capable of.  You are only a week out, so apart from walking and resting and sleeping and icing and keeping your stitches dry, you should be doing not a lot. You have had your bones broken in 2 places, at the very least you are looking at 6 weeks of recovery. You will need to take your meds regularly, not when you feel like it, same for sleeping.  You are not expected to be in pain as this will impact on how you approach rehab.  You can lay any which way you deem comfortable.  Everyone is different. Some sail through recovery, some struggle a little and some have a hell of a time.  So dont start comparing notes about where you are at any particular stage with anyone else, otherwise you will feel more down as time goes by.  You also need a lot of patience with yourself and your ability to do certains tasks.  There will be times when for no reason you just cannot even get out of bed.  If you can, try dangling your leg over the side of the bed, dont just drop it, control it.  You must fight this otherwise you wil just become depressed with yourself,  crying for no reason is also normal. All the emotions that will occur are normal, you are not losing your mind, but you do have to deal with it. Get your friends and family on your side and get them to help out more than normal as YOU have to heal, without the added stress of everyday life. Concentrate on getting your knee back to working order, for a while you will be under your surgeon, only to make sure your joint is working ok, then its physio all the way and yyour doctor will be your only point of contact.  He/she will have all the notes. Sometimes if you are lucky, you should be able to talk with the surgeons secretary (she will have taken all his notes, observations etc, so she can read back to you anything he has written, will take messages and even call you back.)