Find out how rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty goes at home and in the clinic. The operation is an important, but far from the only step in the fight against a serious illness. The most crucial period of therapy begins immediately after a person is discharged from the hospital. It is at this moment that full-fledged rehabilitation should begin, since the he alth of the operated patient directly depends on his efforts. How to properly restore?
Basic concepts
This procedure involves the replacement of certain elements of the motor apparatus with the help of implants. This term became widespread after the total use of artificial joints. In this case, polymeric elasticmaterials (dacron and others).
General recommendations
Rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty at home and in the clinic implies several areas, among which the main role is played by physiotherapy along with gymnastics and medical support on demand. The purpose of rehabilitation is to quickly achieve mobility in the region of the knee joint and lower limb. In this regard, you should try to get out of bed, and, in addition, walk almost immediately after the intervention.
Most patients perform a set of physical exercises the very next day after total knee arthroplasty. The physiotherapist should explain to the patient the methodology for implementing a special course by weeks. To prevent the occurrence of thrombosis (the formation of blood clots in the vessels) and reduce swelling of the limbs, special measures are used (compression stockings are put on, elastic bandages are applied, anticoagulants are prescribed).
Within a month after knee arthroplasty, doctors recommend restoring movement in the ankle and foot. This is required to improve the process of blood supply to the muscles and ensures the prevention of blood clots and swelling. After surgery, the prevention of congestive manifestations in the lungs consists in deep breathing, and doctors also recommend coughing more often. Due to this, the output of bronchopulmonary secretion is normalized, as a result of which it is not in the lungsaccumulates. Here are the basic rules that patients must follow after surgery:
- Perform regular light exercise to maintain adequate strength and mobility of the new joint.
- Avoid injury and falls. If the patient receives a fracture after the arthroplasty procedure, then this may provoke an additional surgical operation.
- Always tell your dentist if you have a knee replacement. Prophylactic antibiotics should be taken before appropriate treatment and other surgeries.
- Required annual visits to an orthopedic surgeon for examination and examination.
In more than ninety percent of cases, with strict adherence to the recommendations of the attending doctor, recovery after knee arthroplasty is quick, without any complications. This is achievable only if the patient is personally interested in a speedy recovery, and in this regard, conscientiously fulfills all medical prescriptions. How long does rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty surgery take? Its duration must be at least three months. More on this below.
There are no fundamental differences between the process of recovery after joint replacement and similar manipulations on other areas of the motor apparatus. Only the specifics of a feasible set of exercises may differ.
Rehabilitation under CHI after knee arthroplasty
Typically, postoperative recovery of patients in the hospitalbegins with isometric exercises some time after the operation, they involve the tension of the thigh muscles, provided there is no movement of the leg. Such gymnastics should be done several times a day in the first month after arthroplasty. The knee joint must be developed. For example, specialists require patients to move the foot in different directions in order to strengthen the vulnerable area.
What else does physical rehabilitation involve after knee arthroplasty? Walking with dosed loads on the operated limb with the use of additional support (crutches, arena) begins from the third day. The stitches are removed on the tenth day. An extract is made ten to twelve days after arthroplasty. Restrictions in physical activity on the operated limb are observed for six to eight weeks; during this period, the mandatory use of additional support is required. Next, let's talk about the rehabilitation of patients outside the hospital room.
We'll talk more about rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty at home.
Free home recovery
For various reasons, most hospitals that carry out such operations do not have the ability to carry out full recovery activities. And here rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty at home comes to the aid of patients, which is quite feasible and notrequires financial expenses.
Thus, with great success, you can return to the previous shape after the operation without leaving home. This option is suitable for absolutely all patients, but, as practice shows, it is more often used by persons aged twenty to fifty years. Effective recovery within the walls of your own home can also be carried out by older people, but this is only advisable if relatives or a well-trained instructor can deal with them. There are three important conditions for free rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty:
- First of all, this is regularity, since it is not the number of exercises that is very important, but how systematic and systematic they are.
- Don't forget about moderation. The fact is that all gymnastics should be done at an average rhythm, without trying to bring yourself to exhaustion.
- Patience will also be required, as a noticeable positive result will not appear immediately.
To complete a full-fledged rehabilitation course after knee arthroplasty at home, the patient needs good reasons, because often in such conditions it is impossible to fully perform most exercises, in addition, there are much more all kinds of dangers for the operated person at home than in an equipped hospital.
Reasons why home recovery should be done
Let's give arguments for the implementation of suchrecovery course after knee arthroplasty:
- If there is an appropriate specialist in the family.
- Assuming the well-being and he alth of the convalescent who needs little to no further help.
- Conversely, the patient's condition is too complicated, which is characterized by prolonged poor he alth and there is a constant need for help that he can only get at home.
To realize the idea of recovery in such conditions, it will be necessary to bring the patient's housing into a condition in which the risk of injury will be minimal. The main condition is the ability to freely move around the house. It is necessary to prevent the impact of the operated joint on a hard surface and any sharp corners. In the event that such furniture and other items cannot be completely removed, then they should be made soft and shock-absorbing pads should be fixed.
Housing Optimization
Doctors recommend the following measures to ensure that native walls meet the needs of the operated person:
- It is always required to maintain order, each item must be within the reach of the patient, he must not make dangerous movements to take or get something.
- In a private house, the patient should be on the first floor so that he can use the courtyard space.
- All places accessible to a recovering person must be properly lit, the floor cannot be slippery, and rugs must be allremove or securely fasten.
- It is required to equip a seat for the patient, it is best to provide him with a chair with armrests.
- The bathroom should be furnished with benches. It is desirable to put the seat in the bathing tank itself. It is also useful to make reliable handrails so that the patient has support while standing up. It is important to build similar devices in the toilet.
CPM treatment
It should be borne in mind that during the period of the development of the disease, in addition to the destruction of the articular elements, there is also a change in the functions of the surrounding muscles. In parallel with the development of contractures, their strength characteristics also decrease due to the convergence of attachment points. In this case, CPM-treatment will serve as a good helper, the essence of which is the development of the joint using a special device, due to which active contraction of the periarticular tissues is not required.
Such rehabilitation gives the patient the opportunity to quickly get back on his feet without pain and discomfort. Such therapy is carried out at home using a device called "Artromot", it can be rented.
Therapeutic exercise in combination with mechanical therapy (CPM-treatment), electromyostimulation and massage are the main methods of the recovery period. A comprehensive program, selected by a good specialist, will certainly allow you to return to your usual lifestyle and lost range of motion. Now let's talk about the gymnastic effect on the diseased limb during physical rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty.
What exercises are shown?
Simple gymnastic movements can be performed independently:
- It is necessary to bend and unbend the ankle joint, starting with five repetitions. After a while, the amount is adjusted to twenty times.
- Alternately tighten the thigh muscles, trying to keep the muscle tissue in good shape for up to five seconds.
- Maximum strain the muscles of the buttocks and try to keep them in this position for up to five seconds.
- Raise straight legs, but no more than forty-five degrees. With discomfort during this exercise, help the limbs with your hands. But in the future they try to raise their legs on their own, without hands, and then hold them in this state for about five seconds. Rehabilitation exercises after knee replacement surgery should be performed very carefully.
- It is necessary to unbend and bend the knee joint. A good help in performing this exercise is the articulated apparatus, as well as a special simulator.
- Take the straight leg to the side, and then a little up, try to keep it at the top point.
- The straight lower limb is retracted with a delay without joint flexion.
The above gymnastic complex is considered the simplest, so it can be done effortlessly at home immediately after discharge. After a while, it is worth adding back walking elements to them along with squats and an exercise bike.
Water exercise and usestairs
Gymnastic exercises in water have proved to be excellent, allowing you to increase the range of motion, they train muscles without overloading. But such exercises during rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty are allowed to start only after complete healing of the wound and in the absence of a threat of infection.
An important step is learning to walk up the stairs. Such exercises begin only fourteen days after the operation, when the person manages to stand confidently on his feet. The first attempts are required to be carried out only if there is an assistant who is able to support on occasion. First, the convalescent is taught to climb up, and then, on the contrary, down the stairs:
- The he althy leg is transferred to the higher step.
- Leave support in the form of a crutch or cane at the same level with the operated limb.
- As soon as a person manages to lean on a he althy leg, they transfer the second (sick) to the step.
The descent tactics are somewhat different. It is necessary to rearrange the crutches after the he althy limb, and after that the second one. In most cases, the descent is much more difficult for patients, in connection with this, they move on to such training much later. If you experience any symptoms of complications in the form of prosthesis rejection, dislocations, infection or inflammation, you should definitely stop any training and consult a doctor.
Regardless of the time that has passed since arthroplasty and the general condition of the knee joint,patients are prohibited from jumping, doing aerobics, running or skiing. It is also strictly forbidden to lift any weights. Among other things, you can not give a strong load on the sore leg.
Features of therapeutic exercises
Daily during rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty, exercises need to be complicated, and the load must increase. At the initial stage, painful sensations will not allow loading the leg, in connection with this, massage is not used during this period, and medications are prescribed to patients for pain relief. Therefore, knee development should only be done after medication has been used.
Since rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty at home is carried out without the participation of a doctor, the patient must independently control all his sensations. To reduce pain, an orthosis or bandage is used to limit the load. In the presence of severe pain that interferes with the implementation of the required complex, a compress or massage is prescribed. The latter on the thigh and lower leg area should be carried out by a specialized specialist, or at home. At the initial stage of recovery, it is forbidden to perform an intensive impact on the operated limb. In addition to the fact that convalescents themselves must control the amount of load on the sore leg, they are also obliged to adjust the complexity of the exercises performed.
You can do any exercise only until a slightsoreness. They need to be repeated until the movements are fully mastered and cease to provoke discomfort. Further, the load on the operated limb should be increased and gymnastics should be made more difficult by expanding the range of motion.
If there are specific problems associated with the performance of gymnastics, for example, the limb began to bend poorly, it is not possible to climb stairs, it must be borne in mind that it is impossible to perform the recommended gymnastic elements through force. In this case, you need to contact the doctor to find out the factors of the problem or clarify the correct execution technique.
How long should rehabilitation last? In fact, caring for the joint in the form of exercise is a lifelong commitment. You can not immediately forget about the prosthesis forever after the end of the recovery period. Useful Reminders:
- Six months after the operation, a follow-up examination of the operated knee is required by the surgeon.
- Annual doctor visit.
- Remedial exercises should be done daily for several years.
Possible Complications
In most situations, rehabilitation after arthroplasty in the area of the knee joint goes quite smoothly and without any complications. Of course, a big role is played by how well the operation was carried out. Insufficiently experienced surgeons, difficulties in the individual structure of the joint, just like the presenceconcomitant serious diseases are factors that can lead to complications. Here are some of them:
- Inflammatory process in the bones closest to the knee joint.
- Complication of an infectious nature.
- Embolism and thrombosis.
- Injury to vascular and nerve bundles.
Such complications occur in about one in a hundred patients during the first seven days after surgery. Directly during recovery, complications can be observed that will be associated with the use of painkillers and their side effects. For these reasons, they should be used in courses, the duration of which should not exceed one week, it is not recommended to use medicines every day, but to take breaks of two days and strictly under the supervision of a doctor.
In the event that during the performance of recovery gymnastic exercises a person feels severe pain in the knee and feels that it is losing its usual performance, then you need to inform the doctor as soon as possible. It is also important to do this when the patient accidentally, through his own negligence or as a result of a fall hits the operated joint.
Using crutches after knee replacement
You can start using them after the operation only with the permission of the doctor. During movement, it is allowed to lean slightly on the operated limb. A large share of the load should still fall on crutches.
The recovery process after surgery cantake several months. This directly depends on age, and, in addition, on the state of he alth and the degree of damage to the joint before surgery. Throughout the entire time, the load and the duration of walking should be gradually increased. When moving a diseased limb, it is slightly required to bend at the knee.
Walking is best several times a day, but no more than thirty minutes at a time. It is advisable to be especially careful when climbing stairs. It is not recommended to climb more than one flight of stairs at a time in the first couple of months.
Helpful tips
It is worth highlighting some general advice given by doctors:
- You can not sit for more than twenty minutes in one position.
- When sitting, the pelvis should be above the knees.
- When putting on and putting on shoes, you should use outside help.
- No heavy lifting.
- Great care must be taken when bending, rotating and crossing the legs.
- Sleep on your back so you don't bend your operated leg while sleeping.
Usually walk with crutches for no more than three months. Then you can switch to a cane, which is used for another three to five months.
Many people wonder how long the rehabilitation period after knee arthroplasty lasts? Let's look into this issue in more detail.
Timing
Regardless of how severe the underlying disease turned out to be, due to whichsurgery was performed, the operation, as a rule, is tolerated with a positive result by more than ninety percent of patients. What is the recovery time after knee arthroplasty?
As already noted, this period cannot take less than 3 months. Six months later, there is usually an absolute restoration of joint performance, so people can return to their previous way of life.
It is worth recalling that after the completion of restorative measures, patients should regularly, once a year, have a preventive examination by a trauma specialist to check if there is any wear on the prosthesis, in which case another operation may be necessary.
Reviews
According to reviews, after knee arthroplasty, rehabilitation usually takes from six to twelve months. During this time, subject to a successful operation and an adequate motor regime, according to patients, the previous functions are almost completely restored.
Reviews about rehabilitation after knee arthroplasty emphasize that it is very important to strictly follow all the recommendations of the operating surgeon. People also advise, in addition to home treatment, to engage in physiotherapy exercises, mechanotherapy, electromyostimulation, and observation in sanatorium conditions will not be superfluous.
Thus, the process of replacing affected elements with artificial ones today is a procedure that helps people return to normal life again, and rehabilitation at home, asshows practice, is no worse than stationary observation and also gives good results.
