A comparative study on different postoperative drainage ways in total knee arthroplasty

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Objective To compare the clinical outcomes of different drains in total knee arthroplasty.Methods Fifty-five patients,who had accepted primary unilateral total knee arthroplasty from October 2010 to November 2012,were included in the comparative study.Based on different drainage ways,25 patients were arranged into autotransfusion drain group,18 into routine drain group,and 12 into delayed drain group.Same operative procedure and postoperative care were provided to all patients.The total amount of postoperative drainage (including intraoperative blood loss),information of allogenic blood transfusion,body temperatures of patients on postoperative 1st,3rd,7th day,pre-and post-operative hemoglobin level,and postoperative swelling,wound healing quality and range of motion were recorded and compared.Results The amount of drainage was significantly more in autotransfusion drain group (799.2±196.7ml)than those in other two groups (381.7±129.2 ml in delayed drain group and 666.1±155.0ml in routine drain group).The postoperative hemoglobin level in delayed drain group (91.50±7.92 g/L)was similar to that in autotransfusion group (91.96±9.57 g/L),while significantly higher than that in routine drain group (81.33±9.86 g/L).The highest body temperature of patients in autotransfusion drain group was higher than those in other two groups.Allogenic blood transfusion was performed in 8 patients (44.4％) in routine drain group,4 patients (16.0％) in autotransfusion drain group and 2 patients (16.7％) in delayed drain group.There were no differences between groups in swelling,wound healing quality,and range of motion.Conclusion Delayed release of drain in total knee arthroplasty could reduce blood loss,chances of allogenic blood transfusion and postoperative fever,and extra cost,which can bring more benefits to patients. Key words: Arthroplasty, replacement, knee; Drainage; Comparative study