i AM A 58 MALE WHO HAS HAD BOTH KNEES REPLACED ON 2-27-02. SINCE THE DAY AFTER SURGERY I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO STRAIGHTED OUT MY LEFT LEG AND HAVE BEEN IN EXCURSEATING PAIN. NOW I AM IN MY 7TH WEEK AND MY LEFT LEG STILL HAS NOT STRAIGHT OUT. MY RIGHT LEG IS ON A PAIN LEVEL OF 5 WHICH IS OKAY. I HAVE JUST STARTED USING A WALKER. FEELING I AM GOING NOW WHERE FAST. IS THIS NORMAL FOR THE PROBLEMS IM HAVING WITH MY LEFT LEG?? AFTER 7 WEEKS NOW BOTH LEGS ARE LIKE BALLONS. TOTALLY FLUSTRATED NEED SOME FEED BACK THANKS

-- ALAN MC GILL (MSPRISCG@AOL.COM), April 11, 2002

Answers

Every person recovers at a different rate. It is not unusual to have swelling even six months following a knee replacement. You can have your therapist work with you on accomplishing full extension. You still can show improvement up to one year. It is not possible to give you any further advice without a clinical evaluation such as physical exam and x-ray evaluation.

-- Dotsie Czajkowski RNFA (Hkhanuj@jhmi.edu), April 12, 2002.

Everyone heals and progresses at their own rate. You can still gain motion and your pain can still improve over time. Talk to your therapist in regard to exercises to improve your motion. It is not possibe unfortunately to give further advice without examining your knee and having an x-ray evaluation as well.

-- Dotsie Czajkowski RNFA (hkhanuj1@jhmi.edu), April 23, 2002.

I had knee replacement 12-30-02. Knee is doing terrible because i was refused therapy by a work comp company. will have to have another surgery because knee hyperextends all the time. pain is on a 9 level all the time.

-- OD Landrum (Fatboy5405@aol.com), April 03, 2003.

Ten months ago I had my right knee replaced. It was in pain and did not seem to be healing correctly. My surgeon said the quadriceps was not strong enough yet so keep going to physical therapy. I did that and returned to him. I told him it wasn't right. He repeated to keep going to physical therapy. Finally, ten months after surgery, he said it was wrong because the ligament had stretched. I got his X-rays and took them for a second opinion from a doctor who I heard specializes in fixing joint replacements that go wrong. Best I can understand, the knee replacement was put in as though my knees go straight ahead when they bend. The knee cap stayed there. But I am naturally wide hipped so my knees tend to look knock-kneed. So my muscles returned to their normal position and pulled my bones inward. The knee cap is sitting out to the right of my knee, nowhere near the groove it is supposed to ride in. The tipping of the knee inward left a big gap between the shin bone and thigh bone on the outside of my leg. It needs a different kind of prosthesis for the natural engineering of my knee. So when something hurts and you know it isn't right, beleive your body and yourself. Go to another doctor, one who does research on joint replacements or fixes them. Second opinions are always acceptable. We have lived in our body for a long time and know what isn't okay even when other people are telling us we don't know. My surgeon even had X-rays showing the knee cap setting off by itself and didn't tell me. If I saw the X-ray I didn't know how to figure out what it was showing me. So ask somebody who doesn't have an axe to grind. If you're anywhere near Denver, write me at bibean@amisp.net.

-- Iola Bean (bibean@amisp.net), May 29, 2003.

FYI, Find out what type of implant your doctor used. I had both knees done in 99 and a piece broke in my right knee. If your implants are Encore implants, there is a class action suit. The number to call is 1-800 351-8588. Ask for attorney Don Ledgard. Good Luck to you.

-- Chris (chrisloom@comcast.net), September 22, 2003.

my uncle had his knee replaced about 1 year ago...everything was fine for the first couple of months and then his PT over extended his knee and since, it has been very painfull, swollen and stiff. He is going to a doctor (second opinion) tommorrow for a follow-up to his initial "second opinion" appointment. however, the second doctor did not find anything unusual in the exray or cat scan. he typically is a very active person and to be in so much pain and not to be mobile is killing him. He is 78 years old. Do you have any idea why he continues to have problems? Or what else he can do?

-- roberta dillan (dillan@comcast.net), October 27, 2003.

I answered above, but my E-mail address has changed. Since I wrote I have had my misaligned knee implant, which was done a year and a half ago, replaced one month ago. This time the knee implant is in correct alignment. It is still in recuperation, but this time it feels like I am getting someplace. I read in the Denver Post recently that misalignment is a big problem of knee replacement but the industry is working on new technology which will make it more likely that the knee will be aligned correctly. I am very unhappy that the surgeon who did the work the first time did not tell me the truth, but implied that if I just did physical therapy more intensively all would be well. I find later that he had an X-ray showing my kneecap on the side of my leg and neglected to mention that to me. Only when I went to another orthopedic surgeon did I find out the truth. If you remain in pain, the joint seems to be pulling in a different direction from where your leg muscles pull, and you know it just isn't right, my advice is to go to more than one other surgeon (I went to four, including the professor of orthopedics at the Medical School) so you know what is wrong.

Iola Bean bibean@mho.net

-- Iola Bean (bibean@mho.com), December 19, 2003.