lateral release recovery

[abbyf08]

I recently had a LR procedure, initially I thought I was simply getting arthroscopic surgery to remove the arthiritis I have acquired. I have a severe knee tilt (my current Dr. told me it was the worst case he has seen).  In the following days after my surgery I had been fine and up and walking fine. However the next few days I was in extreme pain and it was impossible to walk. I didn't even know that I had a LR, I was in so much pain. It's almost been a month and my knee is still swollen. Is this common for LR patients? Is it worth it? My knees prior to surgery were terrible, probably due to my history in sports and being very active, and I am only 23. I can only imagine if I am in this much pain what is in store for me years from now. If ANYONE can give me some sort of insight or advice about this I would greatly apprciate it. I dont know what to do since I need surgery on my other knee but don't know if I want to go through this again. So please someone help me!!

[doublemom]

Sorry to hear that you're in that much pain.  So... your surgeon did a lateral release without your permission or discussing the possibility with you before surgery, and then didn't tell you about it after the surgery?  IMO, that's not okay, and if you do decide to have your other knee worked on at some point in the future, I'd try to find a different surgeon who will be up front with you both before and after surgery.

I haven't had that procedure done myself, so I can't really say how recovery goes, but there are many others on this forum who can help you get through the recovery.  It's a wonderful forum and I'm sure someone will help you out with ideas and what to expect for recovery.

Hang in there!!!

Andi

[TwoBadKneesUSA]

Hey there,

A LR can swell tremendously.  Elevate and ice as often as you can.  I also woke up to find out I had a LR done during a scope.  Thankfully?, I've had two before so had some idea what to expect.  I think you posted on Mike's thread about this, did you see the description of the LR I gave him?  Basically the kneecap is kind of flapping in the breeze so to speak with a soft tissue area that needs to heal.  I think the soft tissue stuff hurts more than anything else.

A month is not all that long after a LR.  Ice and elevation are your best friends right now.  As often as possible.  For the first few days home I put ice on the knee for 20 mins once an hour, unless I was asleep, and kept it elevated above the heart.  Makes it a pain to do anything but read or watch TV (I also played my PSP).

I will tell you that many docs and PTs think a scope release is no big deal, but it is.  It is still a major surgery even if they did not have to open the knee to do it.  I had a PT tell me he thought it was harder to rehab than an ACL recon.  It is frusterating for sure.  It is normal for swelling to be present for a long time afterward too.  Even once you get rid of the swelling, the knee will swell with activity for a long time to come, don't let it scare you.  If you think the swelling is excessive, talk to your OS.  My knee was the size of a grapefruit at my post op check and I was suprized when the OS said how little swelling there was.  I thought he was nuts, looked like alot to me.

As for doing the other knee, give this one a good six months and see where you are.  That's when the soft tissue stuff should be healed up.  It's not an easy surgery by any means.  You will have good days and bad days for bit longer.  Be diligent in the PT, get the quads strong.

If you are having a down day, post and we can "talk" about it.  Check the link in my signature, it goes to my post op diary.  It may help you out.

Take care and ice, ice, ice.

Milly

[runner86]

Hi
I had a lateral release and the surgeon told me that in order to do it you need to cut a major blood vessel.  You have to be very careful with this immediately after the operation as it can cause major bleeding into the joint.  If this happens then your knee swells up enormously and it takes ages to go down as your body has to get rid of all that blood in the joint.  It sounds like this may have happened to you.  However, it does go eventually but it is very painful.
Hope this helps.
Suzanne

[kimiftn]

Hello,
 I also had a lateral release, and it does swell tremendously. I think the swelling is the worst part of having a lateral release, but I was warned beforehand by my OS. I didn't have too much of a problem with pain or weight bearing, but PT was slowed down a lot due to swelling. And the other posts are right, it takes forever for the swelling to go down. My PT told me that if I could, I needed to have my leg straight up in the air, thats how much he wanted me to elevate my leg. As others have already said, you also have to be religious with icing. I did the whole RICE thing again. I was told by my OS to put my knee brace back on which provided a lot of compression, and that is what helped mine go down the best. My PT also said to ace wrap from my ankle to my thigh, wrapping tightest at the ankle and gradually wrapping looser up to the thigh. He said the graduated compression would help encourage the fluide to come back up out of the extremity. It took mine months to stop swelling a lot with activity. Actually I am now a little over a year out and mine still swells a little with major activity. It takes a while, so just hang in there. Hope the info will be helpful and hope you feel better soon.

Kimi

[hockey_moo]

Hey abby

Sorry to hear about your experiences.  You situation sounds similar to mine in that your knees have taken a beating from sports and being active.  I am 27 now and had a LR/Quadplasty done when I was 25.  I just had another scope in November.

Prior to the LR, my kneecap would always stay on the outside of my knee and when I bent my knee, it would pop back to place.  The constant wear and tear of this has caused me to have arthritis which is why I finally saw a proper OS and he suggested the LR.  Since that surgery, my kneecap tracks much better than it did before so it's helped on that front.  Also, either because of the surgery or I'm more careful, I haven't had any dislocations since.  I am, however, due for a Fulkerson's osteotomy in April.  During my last scope, my surgeon saw that some some of the microfractures they did during my LR surgery has helped develop some "cartilage" (scar tissue) so that's helped.  The tracking was also much better so that's a plus.

After my LR, I was in an immobilizer brace for 6 weeks.  Then PT to help me build up my quad muscle.  I definitely don't regret getting the LR.  It's the first step to see if it can help you before going for a bigger surgery if needed.  I think it helps a lot of people with maltracking issues.

Ice, PT, and rest.... get back to sports when you feel ready.  The first time I tried running after the LR was scary since I didn't know what to expect.  Just give it time to heal up before you decide anything about your other knee.

[SarahMN]

I am 12 weeks post LR.  I have a post in the General section.  I was in about the shape you are at 4 weeks.  I have been told it takes 6 months to a year to heal, but the swelling went down around 2 weeks ago (10 weeks post).  It comes back with walking or showers, or PT.

It has been a horrific recovery for me because I think something went wrong.  I got "better" and then my kneecap slid medially while walking about 7 weeks post.  A retired OS neighbor said that meant it was a failed LR.  If you read my posts, I have seen a few more OS, but nothing definitive for advice.  I am planning to see Dr. Steadman in Vail, far from MN, in March because I don't know what else to do.  I need my other knee fixed as well. 

I would definitely see if this one works before you have another one.  If you are not happy with the results, see another OS.  Or see one anyway, just to be sure about what was done.  In my state, I cannot get advice or my insurance co cannot or will not pay another OS for seeing you for 90 days post the first surgery date.  You can always ask them to review your other knee, or that's what I did, to try and get some advice.

From the posts I have read, a long recovery is typical in LR.  Ice helps a lot and elevation.  I even put my leg straight up in bed, and can see the swelling go down.  My PT suggested that.  Hang in there. 

I will add you to my prayers.  Any knee ortho work seems to have a whopper of a recovery period, and the first few months seem the worst, from what I have read here.