Total Knee Replacement (TKR) - Case History

Trip into Oxford really tested the new knee today (7 months since it was done) and I can tell you that the muscles don't like it, they hurt like I can't describe and that's with taking the heavy duty meds as well.

Getting cramp in the leg which I never suffered with before, only that leg with theTKR so wonder why, anybody got any theories, or a cure for cramp?

Cramps in the calf muscle are common after knee replacement surgery.There are exercises to stretch and release the buttock and thigh muscles and prevent leg spasms. Light massage is helpful. In cases of severe cramp, an icepack applied for a few minutes may help the muscle to relax. A muscle cramp is an uncontrollable and painful spasm of a muscle. The exact cause of cramp is unknown but risk factors may include poor physical condition, mineral and electrolyte imbalances and tight, inflexible muscles.

I know how people who haven't had knee replacment surgery prevent leg cramps.They usually only get a cramp in one leg.

I pay to belong to a  forum called cureality.com .The cardiologist who owns the website recommends magnesium tablets to prevent leg cramps.He prefers 1200mg (total weight of magnesium+malate) two or three times a day.I buy Source Naturals Magnesium Malate from iherb.com (360 tablets 1250 mg.) I take one tablet in the morning and two at night.

Members of the cureality forum have had good success with magnesium in preventing cramps in the calf muscles. You can read more about magnesium at gotmag.org   .

If the cramps are in the feet, they use potassium tablets as long as they are not on any medications where they are aren't allowed to take potassium tablets Too much potassium is dangerous.

Ron,as the painful cramps were in the leg with TKR, the problem is probably caused by the tightness in the leg muscles.

Thanks Ken, I will speak with my GP re both magnesium and potassium. That said we eat our share of bananas, which are apparently high in potassium.

I will also take a look at the websites you refer to, thanks again!

Eight months on and the fluid on the left leg is still of concern, although it is not collecting around the ankle at the moment. The cramp has got worse, the right leg/knee is suffering more as it takes the weight of the left leg.

Can't decide if the additional activity is helping or not, but one thing for sure is that I ache from head to foot 24/7 and really don't know what I  would do without MST/Oramorph and other painkillers.

My weight has remained pretty stable at 19 stones 6 pounds. Dercums remains an horrendous problem, with second metatarsal overload making things worse. Feels like I am constantly walking on a stone and is very painful when I get up after a period of inactivity so how can you win?

I think the only benefit from the TKR so far is that my knee joint now allows me to straighten my leg, but it hasn't taken the pain away.

Did a bit in the garden today and the TKR (left leg) let me down three times. The muscles just don't like my instructions and is so painful when 'it' whatever 'it' is, happens and really painful as the leg all but folds.

Still can't recommend it to anybody unless their GP/Hospital Staff say it's absolutely necessary.

Some people have had better luck than Ron. An old man told me he had both knees replaced when he was in his late seventies and everything went smoothly. He recommends total knee replacements.I admire Ron for the way he deals with the pain life throws at him and hope the painkillers don't wreck his liver.

I've had severe pain from a dislocated knee with a torn medial ligament, passing kidney stones, sprained ankles and worst of all, a stent from my bladder to a kidney for seven days before an operation to remove a kidney stone.

Ron, first time I started having problems with my leg leg was when Iwas 17 years old...I could barely walk up the stairway in high school to take my classes. The doctor told me then that my weight had gotten heavy enough, if was pinching an nerve/or artery....I weight lots lots more now then I did back then. But I have had all along reoccuring problems with leg cramps. Sometimes I woke up to roll out of bed with the calf in my leg in one bulging knot...and you right..get one that bad an you can't walk for about half an day. I found out then that drinking 10 glasses of water everyday..all but washes the minerals out of my body. So I  do indeed take potassium and magnesium more so then just with the daily vitamins....and I do this ..throughout the day....not just once an day at an certain time. I haven't walked to much the last couple of weeks because my knee from the recent diet had it hurting and hard to walk for me...though most of the pain from that is now gone. Tylenol for "pain....and Bayer asprin for "circulation" of blood in your system.  You should not be having this pain this far down the months after your surgery. Go back and have it checked out...I knew an lady that they didn't do the surgery right on her...and was in horrible pain.Maybe things aren't set in alignment properly...you just never know. But any kind of pain is an sign there's something not correct.  I would also have your arteries checked for any blood clots...arteries going closed maybe. It can take months to have an artery go shut in your heart...and for some reason the first place it's noticable is in the circulation down in your legs. Do this now and they can remedy things before you ever have to have heart surgery if that's the case...with medications. My sister in-law's brother -in-law was telling me that he had already had 8 different heart stents implanted in him, and what killed him was prostrate cancer...not the stents. they are an fairly everyday surgery these days for people.  Things like taking meds/drinking water/even excerise...should be done throughout the day for maxium benefit. It's not how hard you excerise...it's how long you do it. Did you know that sitting in an chair and breathing deeply in an out does about the same thing that walking can do....cause what walking does is it keeps your breathing routine at an pace...the air you take in oxygen is the healing element to excerise.  Same thing with being put on oxygen to breathe. Its routine breathing in an out and deeply. I first got my taste of this taking "natural birthing" classes...to have my son. As far as your osthopo..how ever you spell it...my last remedy for it is "accuputure" the pain out of the area.... permanently. Then you won' t feel an thing nor destroy your liver taking meds. One good before and after photograph should given them an idea whenever you go in after ward as to the condition in the region in general...so they can note any changes going on. Don't forget Dr. Christopher Wilde and tissue culture also...they can grow replacement organs, replacement arteries and veins and replacement spinal tissue repiar now. Its take them time though to regrow the tissue culture to be implanted off your own body...it takes about an year for that..Harvard Medical School does it, but there's an hospital in London does it also for kidney transplants. Get ahold of him and see who he can refer you to also. It is revolutionizing the medical field and saving lives that before didn't have much of an chance. He's retired now,but he has an web site..My heart.com. You can also read about him on coasttocoastam.com....under past guests...with perhaps more links. 

Thanks Shirley. I think my problems are also related to the muscles down the leg that weren't being asked to do what they are today, simply because it was impossible to do with a 'bent' leg. The knee joint just wouldn't straighten because of the athritis in it. Apart from that it was totally worn out according to the Consultants.

Ten months on and the knee works, but the muscle cramps remain. With the dibilitating Dercums that I suffer it's a job to work out what is going on throughout my body and without the heavy duty medication I would go nowhere and do nothing.

A lot has changed for me as a result, but hey there are a lot of people a lot worse off and that's the way that I look at it, so keep taking the tablets eh?

Your post made interesting reading again, keep them coming Shirley.

Might as well, I sure didn't get my lab tests back so far and was hoping to have them for today's Dr. Appt. Everyone has coats on sale this morning...so bought my son and dress coat...actually two of them, but on sale they were an third the price of an ski jacket.

Yes, I gave up walking those five miles everyday recently and it makes an big big difference in the pain I was feeling...all gone now. I went ot raking leaves instead, I have like an barrier "wall of leaves" out front, but shoot, they are good insulators for my plants.  Our recycle bin is already full also. I was kidding my nieghbor about throwing in some dirt and fertilizers and selling it for organic top soil..$12.99 an 30 pound bag....LOL.