i'm glad to hear you're under the care of a physician who is watching this carefully. any joint replacement carries a risk of infection. it sounds like your doctor has things under control. in general an elevated sed rate indicates inflammation somewhere within the body. an elevated sed rate alone would not be enough to say your prosthetic knee is infected. cloudy bloody drainage does not necessarily indicate infection. presumably your doctor will culture the drainage (which can take several days or even weeks) to see if any bacteria "grow out. " if there are bacteria in the drainage the culture will identify the strain so your doctor can treat the infection. i think instead of worrying or "being concerned " you should be proactive about monitoring your symptoms. get a thermometer and take your temperature every day at the same time (not when you first wake up in the morning). you can expect some variation but if you start running a fever over 101f then it's time to call your doctor. if you don't get a same-day call back call again before the office closes. also be alert for other symptoms of infection such as loss of appetite feeling weak and general malaise (feeling like you are getting the flu for example). if these symptoms develop call your doctor. i hope your knee problem turns out to be something very simple. wishing you well!
i have had a knee replaced twice and revised once in 17 months. my sed rate is 50. should i be worried about infection. i have alos been expering pain. when i got my knee drained today the doc said it looked like there was blood in it and described it as cloudy. should i be concerned?