Another PT visit, more pain. But most importantly, continued progress. I’m now at 135 degrees flexion, up from the 131 on Friday, which was up from 130 degrees last Monday. Apparently I haven’t hit the flexion wall yet. Yay me! 135 is at the bottom range of what’s considered “full ROM.” I don’t know if I’ll ever regain 100% flexion, but even if I don’t, those last 10 degrees shouldn’t prevent me from functioning normally. And who knows, maybe I'll eventually reach 145.
My extension, however, is a bit lacking. Full extension refers to the ability to keep the leg in a completely straight line in mid-air from a seated position. I’m 4 degrees short of full extension. Basically, my knee bends a tiny bit. That’s not terrible, but I should be at full extension by now. I believe I just need to improve my quad strength to reach full extension, but I’m not positive. I meet with my surgeon next Monday, and this is something we’ll cover.
The knee generally feels ok. Still no pains, though my knee gets tired if I remain standing for extended periods of time, get up and down repeatedly, or walk long distances (ie, 1 mile or so). The knee continues to “crack” or “pop” whenever my knee extends between 45 – 90 degrees, though not from 0 - 45. It doesn’t hurt, but the noise suggests there might be some overgrowth or undergrowth at the implant site. It’s still too early to tell. The cells, after all, continue to mature (harden) for 12-18 months. The back of my knee also seems to make a slight popping sound, like a pinkie knuckle cracking, each time my leg goes from completely straight to slightly bent. It doesn’t hurt, and I suspect (and hope) it’s just scar tissue breaking up. That also might be why I can’t reach full extension. Again, that’s another topic I’ll cover with the surgeon. Keep your fingers crossed...
Showing posts with label popping. Show all posts
Showing posts with label popping. Show all posts
Monday, April 13, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
13 1/2 Week Update
This week was full of mixed blessings. Work was exceptionally busy, thus hampering my at-home rehab (and, more importantly, my blogging). I didn’t make it to the gym, rode the exercise bike the bare minimum, and generally neglected my assortment of leg lifts and squats at home. Despite my inattentiveness, however, I made significant progress this week at PT. Shocking, huh?
At Monday’s session, my flexion improved slightly to 126 degrees. I also increased the number of reps for heel touches and single-leg squats. And I did them without the brace for the first time. Even better, my knee didn’t ache afterwards. I also began using Judy’s antiquated stair stepper, basically pumping away but never letting my knee bend further than 30 degrees. (That’s generally the point when the patella begins to bear weight, which I’m trying to minimize). This machine is straight out of a Suzanne Summers infomercial.
On Friday, I reached a new milestone – 130 degrees! Crossed a new threshold. Full flexion ranges from 135-150; it depends on your size and generally flexibility. My good knee can bend 145 degrees. I’ll gladly accept 140. Interestingly, I reached 130 without much assistance from Judy. Usually, she contorts my leg repeatedly, reducing me to tears, before she takes her measurement. This time, my knee “popped” during an abduction movement – from a seated position with my legs straight, I push outward and pull inward against Judy’s pressure. It sounded like somebody’s knuckle cracked. Although this loud sound freaked the bejesus outta Judy, it was only some excess scar tissue breaking apart. It didn’t hurt, and actually provided some relief. Somehow my knee was ready for Cirque du Soleil. Ok, that’s exaggerating things a bit, but you get the idea. Judy was surprised to see how much flexion my knee improved after the popping. Man, 130! And with no tears!
Reaching this target, of course, means karmas gonna demand some sort of setback. That’s how life works, right? Hopefully I won't get kicked by some angry 7-year old this weekend.
Finally, as my regular blog readers realized, this was the longest gap between posts – 8 days. My bad. That’s what happens when work gets in the way. Hopefully this was just an aberration. Another observation: it’s much harder now that it was 3 months ago to write funny material. Back in January when I was pissing in a urinal bottle? And pooping on a raised toilet seat? Like Frank Caliendo says, funny. Very funny. But increasing the number of reps on heel touches? Um, not so much. I never thought I'd be disappointed to leave behind a series of personal humiliations. To counter-balance the lack of embarrassing moments now I’m ambulatory again, I’ll try to weave in random, funny stuff from my world, even if it’s not directly related to my rehab. Hopefully it works. Definitely let me know.
At Monday’s session, my flexion improved slightly to 126 degrees. I also increased the number of reps for heel touches and single-leg squats. And I did them without the brace for the first time. Even better, my knee didn’t ache afterwards. I also began using Judy’s antiquated stair stepper, basically pumping away but never letting my knee bend further than 30 degrees. (That’s generally the point when the patella begins to bear weight, which I’m trying to minimize). This machine is straight out of a Suzanne Summers infomercial.
On Friday, I reached a new milestone – 130 degrees! Crossed a new threshold. Full flexion ranges from 135-150; it depends on your size and generally flexibility. My good knee can bend 145 degrees. I’ll gladly accept 140. Interestingly, I reached 130 without much assistance from Judy. Usually, she contorts my leg repeatedly, reducing me to tears, before she takes her measurement. This time, my knee “popped” during an abduction movement – from a seated position with my legs straight, I push outward and pull inward against Judy’s pressure. It sounded like somebody’s knuckle cracked. Although this loud sound freaked the bejesus outta Judy, it was only some excess scar tissue breaking apart. It didn’t hurt, and actually provided some relief. Somehow my knee was ready for Cirque du Soleil. Ok, that’s exaggerating things a bit, but you get the idea. Judy was surprised to see how much flexion my knee improved after the popping. Man, 130! And with no tears!
Reaching this target, of course, means karmas gonna demand some sort of setback. That’s how life works, right? Hopefully I won't get kicked by some angry 7-year old this weekend.
Finally, as my regular blog readers realized, this was the longest gap between posts – 8 days. My bad. That’s what happens when work gets in the way. Hopefully this was just an aberration. Another observation: it’s much harder now that it was 3 months ago to write funny material. Back in January when I was pissing in a urinal bottle? And pooping on a raised toilet seat? Like Frank Caliendo says, funny. Very funny. But increasing the number of reps on heel touches? Um, not so much. I never thought I'd be disappointed to leave behind a series of personal humiliations. To counter-balance the lack of embarrassing moments now I’m ambulatory again, I’ll try to weave in random, funny stuff from my world, even if it’s not directly related to my rehab. Hopefully it works. Definitely let me know.
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