What Causes Lack Of Motion And Swelling In Knees Post A TKR?

Posted on Sun, 22 May 2016

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sun, 22 May 2016 Answered on

Tue, 28 Jun 2016 Last reviewed on

Question : I had a total knee replacement 8 weeks ago, two weeks ago I had a manipulative surgery due to lack of motion. I still have the same lack of motion and pain as well as warmth, swelling and some redness. Why is this happening??

Answered by Dr. Shoaib Khan (48 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Here are a few of the most common factors I encounter in such cases

Detailed Answer:
Hello and welcome.

Thank you for writing to us.

I have gone through your query with diligence and would like you to know that I am here to help. Going about at least 2-3 joint replacements per week, I can tell you that this happens to at least 1 in every 30 joint replacements, due to factors like:

1. Infection of surgery site (not very common, but from your symptoms it does seem like this could have happened)

2. Poor healing (due to pre-existing conditions like diabetes, poor vascular health, etc.)

3. Rejection by the body (least common cause, but it does happen)

4. Poor surgical skills: Which can result in improper fitting, choice of implant size, etc

5. Poor quality of implant

6. Lack of adequate rehabilitation after surgery

7. Lack of post-operative care (e.g. antibiotics, anticoagulants, etc.)

and other such factors. But be patient sir/ma'am, I am sure the surgeons involved will sort things out at the earliest to provide you with complete relief.

I hope you find my response helpful. Please feel free to write back to me for any further clarifications, I am always here to help.

Best wishes.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar