Broken Patella Recovery

[Greta]

Debinmd - sadly my surgery is not going to be this week after all - the reason why is explained a few posts back. But I will hold your good wishes with me for when it does happen - it is so good to have such support from people who a short time ago were unknown to me. I feel I have a little circle of knee friends wishing me well - and of course I want the best for all of you too.

I finish the antibiotics tomorrow, then have to take a 'sample' down to my GP on Wednesday. Then it's fingers crossed that the infection - that I was totally unaware of - has cleared up and I can be given a new op date.

I hope all your PT pays off  - it is all very timeconsuming

greta
 

[debinmd]

Yikes an infection.  Is it in the knee?  When things are bad everything just seems to get worse.  I don't know about you but I'm fed up with the whole thing.  I want to be myself again.  I hope that the antibiotics work.  Deb

[Greta]

Dear Deb - no my knee looks good - all healed well and apart from the swelling where this bit of bone has escaped and the little lump in the centre which presumably is the end of a pin I'm happy with it except it won't bend! It is a urinary tract infection (UTI) for which I've had no symptoms and haven't felt ill, so was very surprised to be told I had one. Obviously they can't risk opening up my knee with an infection in my body so I just have to hope that it has cleared up.

Yes I agree it is time we all had a life again. My life changed drastically on 1 August when I had this accident - who would have thought such a little fall could do so much harm! But all I can keep telling myself is that it will get better. I have 'lost' over 6 months of normal life, but it is just one of those things and to be honst could be a lot worse. I am so lucky to have such family support. I am (was) a very active person with several jobs on the go and was always dashing here there and everywhere. I'm also a musician and played in several orchestras so haven't done any of that either. But maybe I needed to slow down a bit - but not quite for so long! I think I am very fortunate in that I seem to have unlimited patience. I am able to do my work (I'm an administrator working from home- thank goodness for the Internet) and my employers have just bought me a super duper new laptop although managing all my papers is difficult as getting up and down takes ages. I'm able to function. I'm in the throes of organising a course at Easter then there is a Summer School to organize plus lots of training weekends and so on. The house is a bit of a mess with all my boxfiles and papers having spilt out of my office into the living room which is now my office as I sit on the sofa with elevated leg and laptop on a table beside me. Can't have it on my lap as too painful!

I hope you can see that you are getting better - compare how you are now to just after you 'did' your knee and you will see how far you have gone

all the best to you - Greta

 
 

[laverite]

Just checking in here.

Any word on a new date, Greta? 

I'm continuing my PT.  Have some good days when I make progress and some bad ones when everything seizes up and shuts down again.  But my PT says there's no reason I shouldn't return to the gym.  Can't use any lower body machines but I can use the pool there. 

I broadened my outings to include some non-grocery, recreational shopping today.  Got a little wobbly after a bit of walking.  Not so much fun in the broad open spaces of a mall when the knee buckles and there's nothing to grab but some innocent unsuspecting shopper.     But it's time to resume a life.  I've been stranded by this since New Year's and I'm starting to get too comfortable just staying at home all day.  I'm a hermit by nature and I don't want to let myself cross some critical line where it becomes a need rather than a choice so I'm planning a longer trip up to a store that has fantastic cooking gear and a favorite restaurant.  Or maybe I'll make it a museum trip as one of the locals has a show on Native American basketry I'd love to see.  Might just carry one crutch with me for those open spaces. 

Hoping to hear that you're making progress too, deb and jackie, and that you've got a date when you'll get back on track, Greta.   

[Greta]

No date yet - I've got to wait for the all-clear first
Greta

[grandmalinda]

Hi, I have been reading some of your posts and see that you are ahead of me, both in your injury and your healing, but I am wondering how things are going for you. Y our posts mention that you are older, and I am wondering what age you are talking about. I broke my kneecap on 9/14/10, had surgery 9/18/10 . I am 58 yrs old, but have a pretty busy lifestyle , I work at a pretty physical job, and am helping to rais e my grandsons, ages 5 and 6. I am still experiencing a considerable amount of pain. the "rubberband" feeling,,muscle lackness,,and am considering getting the hardware removed as soon as I am alllowed. Do you think this will help with the pain and lack of strength that I am experiencing? My email is nwlady70@yahoo.com. Any advice that you can give me will be greatly appreciated.

[Greta]

Hello grandmalinda ~ I am replying here rather than a personal email as I want to share my experiences but if you want to know any more, please ask me.

I had the op to have the hardware removed last Wednesday and came home Friday.

I still cannot believe how good and "normal" my knee feels. I still have a long way to go in increasing my flexion and getting my knee strength back but what I hadn't realised was that I had been in constant pain - not just when I moved it but all the time - which I had come to accept as being normal. I think it was Lostpirate who described it as being the difference between night and day and that is so right. I never stopped thinking about my knee but now I do

My metalwork was definitely causing the problem and the OS said it was "very protruding"  It had done its job as the patella had stuck together (9 1/2 months) but because of the severity of my break - too many pieces to count they said - a lot of extra wire had been put in to gather up all the pieces. I gather it had been glued as well

I was in quite a bit of pain when I came round after the op but that was mainly because they were having great difficulty in finding a vein to hold the cannula they needed to use to give me morphine (my veins are very fine and not at all prominent). Once this was sorted that was it, and I was then just on simple painkillers paracetamol and diclofenac - unlike the first op when I was on morphine for several days. I went on a CPM machine for 4 hours on Weds evening set at 0 to 50 and was on it all day Thursday -5 to 73 (ish - I've forgotten now). By Friday my ROM was just about 90; considering pre-op the best I could do was about 40 that is really something. I have been told to go easy on the pt until my post op appt which will be next week  but already it it is wonderful to sit in a normal chair foot on ground and not stretched out.

I realised that I used to have to prepare myself for the pain when getting out of bed - not any more. The tightness has gone - my knee is no longer swollen and when the nurse changed the dressing  on Friday she remarked how similar my 2 knees looked in size and shape - now that is a first!
They did an MUA while I was 'under' and got my flexion up to 110. I'm not there now of course but am sure it will come

We do not know that all is well - underneath is probably very rough which could cause problems but as it is now it is such an improvement I am so thankful. After my post-op consultation, I will find out what further physio I will need, but I am very tempted to hire a CPM machine as it just did all the work for me.

If it is recommended that you have the metalwork removed – don’t hesitate!

Oh and I was 70 in January

[oyoung]

Hi all:

I've been lurking a bit, very glad  to have found this site about a day or 2 after my accident.  I've learned a lot  so far from reading and really appreciate everyone's help and insight.

I have most of my info on the accident in my signature, but some extra background.  1st off, yes it was New Year's eve, no I was not even drunk!  In terms of my physical health background, I'm grateful for having discovered dance at 20 which I've kept up most of my life.  Before the accident, I was taking dance classes 3x/week.  I take modern dance with a wonderful teacher here in Chicago, named Molly Shanahan.  She has her own company, Mad Shak.  I'm not a professional, but do it b/c it feels so wonderful and has kept me in shape and very much healthy both physically and mentally.  My first thought after my accident and reaching down to feel my knee cap split in 2 was "will I dance again?"    I've been afraid to ask the dr. but many of the posts here give me much hope.

So, I have some questions .  I am assuming ORIF basically means the surgery; if so I'll put that in my signature?  It was outpatient surgery that lasted about 90 min.  I had a 2-piece displaced lateral patella fracture which the dr. put back together with a screw (or maybe more--still getting up to speed on the questions and will be requesting the medical record) what was a relatively clean break.  He used sutures rather than the metal wires to do the butterfly around the patella.   At the first post-op visit he said there was quite a bit of soft-tissue damage, by which I think he means the retinaculum on either side were detached which he repaired. 

I'm absolutely grateful that I have been relatively pain fee.  I was given a vicoden prescription after the accident (There was a week between accident/surgery) and fairly quickly moved to 1 pill at night w/ a slight restart right after surgery.  I go for many days w/o any pills at all. 

I've been steadfast as far as elevating the knee.  I wish the ER had been clearer about the definition of elevation, b/c at first I wasn't clear on what that meant.  My husband understood "keep knee elevated" as my lying flat.   The dr. clarified 4 days after the accident, saying the knee should be elevated (i.e. above the heart) while I lay flat 22-23/24 hrs.  So, I have a question (which I'll hopefully get clarification on from the doc): once I start PT, how much do I reduce the number of hours of elevation.  I get that it's all about reducing swelling, but I also worry that I'm losing muscle tone.  I think it'd be great to have concrete guidelines like 23/24 hours elevation for x days; ??/24 hrs elevation one start PT, etc.  But, I know every one's different.  I assume, too, that PT will increase the likelihood of pain and swelling. 

My doc has also said no weight bearing.  I've read some people are doing some and again I guess that depends. 

The doc gave me a foam wedge w/ a nice channel in it which makes my knee feel very secure for sleeping.  I've been lucky about sleep as well.  Not a back sleeper, generally, but let's just say it was my only option.  I'm also lucky in that my attitude has in general been very good.  Absolutely, one day at a time (though today, I did have a little cry over the fact that I've missed 9 dance classes.  But, my dance teacher assures me there are many ways to dance!  I've been able to keep busy; in fact I'm quite enjoying the time off from work.  As the days go by, I feel much less vulnerable.  At first I kept jerking awake feeling like I was falling.   

I'm sure once I post this, I'll think of more.  Thanks for listening!

OYoung