I found the dos and donts from this site and was reading that I should not take any non aspirin nsaids? I am prescribed arcoxia, which is not aspirin. Why should I not take it since it’s antiinflammatory.
Also does anyone know about the 3 stages and timelines of AF? can’t find anything on the internet as to when or how long these stages last. I am 3 weeks post surgery and experiencing problems since day 7 and 9. thank you so much 🙏
I would like to continue but they charge 700 per 2 weeks and I doubt my insurance will want to cover more. It does feel tight at 90 degrees and after an hour I worked my way up slowly to 120. If after a couple of days I feel like loosing rom I will rent privately. My knee is worth it. Thank you so much.
Hi,
I wouldn't like to guess at the impacts of taking arcoxia for 16 days.
Aspirin will have the recommended dosage on the packet, but please check with your doctor first to make sure it's safe for you to take it. If you intend to take aspirin in the long term you can use a low dose that is encapsulated to protect the stomach. The usual low dose is around 80 to 100 mg/day.
I believe that CPM (continuous passive movement) is important to help prevent adhesions and contractions of tissues, but needs to be very frequent and regular. Please see the information on this website. You can also contact the European Knee Arthrofibrosis Center for advice at info@eukafcenter.ch. They do telehealth.
All the best,
Kayley
Thank you so much. This is extremely helpful. I was taking arcoxia for 16 days now and finished my medicine as administered. Could this already have a negative impact.
I will take aspirin instead now but can’t find any publicly available information and dosage. Would you be able to point me in the right direction? Or where can I find more information on this. I am young and usually healthy and this is my 3rd surgery and it seems like AF is back again I just want to catch it early enough. My knee seems not inflamed but the everything under my kneecap starts to get tight and stuck again.
I understand you can’t provide individual advice but maybe some kind of direction where I can look further. In my region no one seems to know about AF.
Hi,
To clarify, we don't provide advice to individuals, we provide information that comes from the scientific evidence.
Normal NSAIDs can be helpful in the short term, but after about 4 days the way the body responds to the medication alters at the level of gene transcription. This results in an increase in inflammation, rather than a decrease. This is called failure to proceed to COX switching, where the body's pro-(inflammation)-resolving mechanisms fail to start. It's thought that this is why long term NSAIDs (other than aspirin) cause organ fibrosis, including heart and kidney disease.
Aspirin works differently and increases the body's natural pro-resolving mechanisms, especially when taken with omega 3 fatty acids. Aspirin is used to treat organ fibrosis, so for those able to take it, it should also help treat joint fibrosis (arthrofibrosis).
There are no definite time cut-offs for the 3 stages of arthrofibrosis, but at 3 weeks you would normally be expected to be in the first stage. This stage involves high levels of inflammation and highly activated myofibroblasts, the cells that cause fibrosis. At this stage the feedbacks that create the ongoing pathology have not set in, and if you're extremely careful with how you use the affected limb and do not try to exercise it, just do regular gentle passive stretching, the inflammation should begin to settle. Somewhere between 6 months and a year the feedbacks become established.
Please be aware that you will need to be very careful with the affected limb, especially if it's a knee, for around a year regardless of recovery. It's very easy to re-activate fibrosis by over-doing it.
All the best,
Kayley