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Archive through May 08, 2007

The TVClubHouse: General Discussions ARCHIVES: Jul. 2007 ~ Sept. 2007: Health Center (ARCHIVES): Knee pain-: Archive through May 08, 2007 users admin

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Abby7
Member

07-17-2002

Sunday, March 11, 2007 - 8:54 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Abby7 a private message Print Post    
nancy, my mom is 86. a few years ago she had a knee replacement. my mom has pretty bad arthritis, but she has never complained about the pain. she's a tiny woman, but has always been very tough when it comes to pain.

a few months before her knee replacement, the swelling and pain in the knee became too much. she got a cortisone shot. that was the first time i've ever heard my mom speak about pain. she said she cried afterwards with the nurse.

it must be horrible. hugs to you, hope you are feeling better.

Mameblanche
Member

08-24-2002

Monday, March 12, 2007 - 11:37 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
(((Nancy))) I had a cortisone shot in the knee a year and a half ago. Whoah! Man that sucker hurt more than the knee pain itself. My knee's been acting up lately, but no way am I considering another shot. It would have to be unbearable beyond the beyond, before I'd put myself through that again. And I don't remember it helping all that much either. DH is scheduled for it, has had it before, and doesn't mind it. But he has a tremendous pain threshold, unlike me.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, March 12, 2007 - 3:58 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
thank you both--it's still no better--in fact worse--the dr. was off today--but i will get in touch tomorrow an insist on the mri..

Sunshyne4u
Member

06-17-2003

Sunday, March 18, 2007 - 5:29 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sunshyne4u a private message Print Post    
darn, i should have come back here sooner.

i would have warned against the cortisone shot. the bore of the needle is rather large and if you have a problem with swelling inflammation, it gets worse with the shot.

thx for the info as per your tests and doctor visit. tell me though.....was the hip exam normal? you have no pain when you push on areas all around your hip joint?

yeah, i may be on the wrong track but after years of dealing with drs, i've found that most of them often make quick decisions and dont even look elsewhere for a reason.


i've finally found a great physio who has an incredible laser therapy machine . it really helps with pain and inflammation.

i'll suggest that you call around to physio places and see if they ahve it. i swell if physically manipulated by physios so i dont see them for a regular type appt. only the 'no hard pressures/ pulling' therapies.

it might sound strange but i've been badly hurt by two physios in my life. it took two years for one injury caused by an overzealous physio to partially heal. i've been told my ankle has permanently ligament damage now.

if what they are doing hurts, stop it and ask for a less inflammatory therapy.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, March 19, 2007 - 3:54 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
i do have pain--(i just realized that when pressing--but its on the right side--and my left knee is the problem knee!

my dr was/is on vacation--but upon his return will definitely mention it

Sunshyne4u
Member

06-17-2003

Monday, March 19, 2007 - 11:22 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sunshyne4u a private message Print Post    
the whole body is affected when the hip goes out.

Nothing wrong with ruling out Hip Arthritis so you can have a better long term prognosis and a better treatment plan. Possibly medications or supplements can slow it down.

depends if it is really osteo arthritis or just old age arthritis LOL

After years of working with doctors who mess up I dont have too much faith in the system.

well i saw my pcp today for my physical--everything looks good as far as blood-work--cholesterol etc

Blood tests you need to have done to see how bad it is. CBC, ESR, RA latex, C reactive protein. not sure if your family doctor did them already.

If your arthritis isnt showing up in the blood tests you probably dont have much to worry about right now except the pain, of course. Hopefully the specialist can explain stuff more clearly after a Ctscan or MRI.

MRI would be great to see if any nerves are affected.

Good Luck

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, March 22, 2007 - 4:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
no she (pcp) only did routine blood tests--i had full blown tests for auto immune type things back in 2000 because i had (and still do have) problems with a really dry mouth--my blood work showed 'something' in the way of auto-immune(which i already have with my thyroid disease) and that i had sjogren's disease but they could not rule in or out r.a.--might be time to run those tests again tho--

tomorrow i will call my orthopedic dr. and see if he can order the mri--and then maybe if all it shows is arthitis i'll see if i can get another referall to a specialist that deals with r.a. to see if they can figure that out :-)

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Friday, March 23, 2007 - 2:30 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
GRRRRRRR
Can i just say i hate dr.s and dr.s offices--so last week when i had called receptionist said dr. s. is on vacation will be in on 3/23--so yeah today i call "he's in his other office today--told the woman what i wanted(an mri) which the dr. said he would do if after two weeks i felt no better--she says i'll let the dr. know and he's call you back--yeah right--grrrrrrrr --i hate to be a pain so i didnt call back but i definitely will call back on monday..

Mameblanche
Member

08-24-2002

Friday, March 23, 2007 - 3:25 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
(((((((nancy))))))))

Sunshyne4u
Member

06-17-2003

Sunday, March 25, 2007 - 2:46 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sunshyne4u a private message Print Post    
BLAH! Doctors.

There is a job I never wanted to do. LOL DOCTOR! plus it would have meant another couple of years. Who can Afford that!?

Retired
Member

07-11-2001

Sunday, March 25, 2007 - 1:00 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Retired a private message Print Post    
(((Nancy))) I'm sorry you're going through so much with your doctor and the pain. Hope it all gets better soon.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Sunday, March 25, 2007 - 3:15 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
Thank You everyone--I am just so frustrated--fed up etc with this whole thing--I Just want some answers and some darn relief--I do a lot of charity walks and cannot do them :-(

Seamonkey
Moderator

09-07-2000

Sunday, March 25, 2007 - 6:05 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Seamonkey a private message Print Post    
Nancy, that is so frustrating!

Sometimes it isn't the doctors so much as the front office people. SOME doctors don't want to hear about the front office people, tho..

I was talking to my doctor about that sort of thing, how I just hate trying to call the neurologist's office because that office seems to hate to even do a simple prescription refill.. and he admitted that HE has had trouble getting through to that doctor, calling as a doctor he still gets shit from the front office. He says HE would certainly want to know if there was any problem with his staff.

My brother had to have a series of those shots in the knee when he was growing too fast and had Osgood-Schlatter's in the knees and I never witnessed it but decided way back then that I'd probably never choose to have that sort of shot.

But that's easy to say if you aren't in pain at the time, I guess.

It does sound like a new rheumatology workup and MRI would be in order though. Good luck on Monday.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Tuesday, March 27, 2007 - 2:36 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
Thanks--well i finally heard back today-mri is scheduled for next friday(/6) so hopefully i'll have either a more definiteive answer(other than the arthritis) or its 'just' arthritis--either way it bears looking into since its been 5 longggg months--I told my brother(nurse) that i'd almost prefer they find something(tear) and it not just be arthritis--i certainly can deal with r.a. if i have to but i'd rather not have to if you know what i mean.

sea--definitely not gonna get another cortozone shot any time soon!

Abby7
Member

07-17-2002

Friday, April 06, 2007 - 2:40 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Abby7 a private message Print Post    
nancy, let us know how it went. also, for the record: i spoke to my Mom about her cortisone shot/pain that i mentioned above. no,i'm wrong. she tells me now she never said that and the shot didn't hurt. she said she may have said she went to the doctor for her knee pain, but never said the shot hurt.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Friday, April 06, 2007 - 3:19 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
I survived my Mri--won't know anything specifically probably until 4/23 when i see ortho doc. the tech said the dr will have the results on monday--and can view online--but i suspect unless its something dire i won't hear til my regularly scheduled visit--it took 45 minutes its hell to sit still for so long--some of the 'sets' of pictures where 5-6.5 mintues long--ughhh--then when he was all done with the final set he said he had to take one set over again--over that was the longest set at 6.5 minutes it couldnt have been the first set which was 1.00 long lol

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, April 23, 2007 - 12:37 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
well, I saw my orthopedic dr. today. He said the mri shows an abnormaility where my pain is(duh), he said its a 50/50 shot that a anrthoscopic procedure would help it so he wants to wait 6 more weeks

UGH--he said 'do what you gotta do' and if you can't do it and you tell me its affecting what you gotta do then we will do surgery to see what is causing your pain not to go away...umm OK--let's see i've 'got to' do cancer walks which i have always done and right now there's no way in he!! i can do them...grrr six more weeks ....grrrrr

Seamonkey
Moderator

09-07-2000

Monday, April 23, 2007 - 3:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Seamonkey a private message Print Post    
Ack, Nancy! That was not so helpful.. I mean now you know something is physically there, probably causing the pain, but to just wait and see.. and what iv you decide on surgery then? I know my orthopod is pretty booked up and it took awhile for me to get in.

Good luck.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, April 23, 2007 - 3:46 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
yeh --so very not helpful, My brother says I am too laid back and this surgeon is not agressive enough medically so we're not a good fit--Like if i was more assertive i'd say hell no do something about it now--enough of this 6 week wait and see we've already waiting 3 months since i first saw you!

Sunshyne4u
Member

06-17-2003

Tuesday, April 24, 2007 - 11:04 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sunshyne4u a private message Print Post    
what KIND Of an abnormality?

That sounds way too vague.

A bone spur? a breakdown of cartilage? a ripped and scarred Ligament?

I wouldnt let that doctor do surgery if he is 'vague' on what the problem is.

I extremely dislike his comment about 50/50 success rate.

Maybe another surgeon with different techniques is in order.

Believe it or not, doctors can choose to do things they feel comfortable doing even though a Different treatment MAY be better for the patient.

Mameblanche
Member

08-24-2002

Wednesday, April 25, 2007 - 9:03 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
Nancy, I had a different problem, but a similar situation... I was in pain for 5 years with fibroids. I saw several gynos, one didn't even examine me and was ready to operate on me. I dropped him. The next one kept examining me over several apts, (with students in tow) and kept putting off even discussing surgery, when I finally nailed his ass to the wall, I said DO I need surgery or not, he said it was up to me, what did I want to do? Say what?! Dropped him too. My friend who was the maid of honour at my wedding, recommended her gyno of 30 years who'd delivered her kids, etc. He gave me a thorough examination, and a thorough explanation of my options, which were limited as I'd already tried other things, and so we agreed that a partial hysterectomy was the way to go, and we made an apt and the rest is history. Best thing I ever did. It's pretty obvious that I'm suggesting that you at least get a 2nd opinion, and if you get a good vibe from the other doctor - you might want to consider switching. And if you still aren't feeling confident, get a 3rd opinion. Even if it takes a few months, at least the time will go by constructively rather than in a holding pattern, which I for one, have no patience for. I also believe that when it comes to health, time is usually of the essence.

Good luck kiddo! hugs.

Sunshyne4u
Member

06-17-2003

Wednesday, April 25, 2007 - 10:46 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sunshyne4u a private message Print Post    
gave me a thorough examination, and a thorough explanation of my options

an excellent example of a great doctor! a range of options and you are given the pros and cons of each.

I changed my Surgeon when I was going to have a tumor removed. When I interviewed the guy he actually admitted he only did one or two of that type of surgeries a month!! He also said he was only going to do a Partial removal because he 'wasnt very good' at doing a full thyroid removal~ !

I went to someone in Vancouver that had done thyroidectomies on two of my coworkers. This man did Head and Neck surgeries exclusively. He was truly and expert making me feel very calm about my cancer removal.

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Tuesday, May 08, 2007 - 3:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
thanks--sorry i haven't gotten back here in a bit--I'm actually going to ask for a referral to another ortho dr. I don't feel confident with him and after 6 months my knee is no better--

Mameblanche
Member

08-24-2002

Tuesday, May 08, 2007 - 3:59 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
Good for you Nancy! It's YOUR body and YOUR health. And remember, keep going til you find the right medical match. Mind you, word of mouth is best. If you don't know someone's track record, it's a pig-in-a-poke. Ask around, even ask other doctors. But ya gotta watch that, cuz they recommend their buddies, regardless of track record. My mom would always ask for the 'head of the department' at the hospital. LOL. If they couldn't take her, they would recommend someone. And many times, she'd charm them so they would take her!

Nancy
Member

08-01-2000

Tuesday, May 08, 2007 - 4:53 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Nancy a private message Print Post    
my brother works as a nurse(one town over from me)--and is aware for some dr's--so he made a suggestion--I will see if i can get a referral there--if not there there's actually a woman at work who's husband is an orthopedic dr. so while she would probably recommend him--i'm going to see if anyone else at work has a recommendation