Does obesity, duration of symptoms and pre-operative knee movements amend discharge readiness and outcomes following total knee arthroplasty?

Abstract

<p><strong>Background</strong>: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) being the definite procedure in degenerative arthritis of the knee is associated with a high cost that includes the cost of implants and in-hospital length of stay (LOS). Incurring such high costs will put a burden on the patients economically, so the goal being the reduction of hospital stay yet improving the functional outcome with better patient satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Methods</strong>: The study design is a retrospective analysis of 1022 patients of primary elective TKA, performed in our institution. The targeted indicators were sex, body mass index (BMI), pre-operative knee range of movements (ROM), knee deformity and duration of symptoms were analyzed.</p><p><strong>Results:</strong> Analyzing these patients, we found the average LOS is 6.4 days, and obesity, pre-op ROM and deformity all play a role to delay the discharge readiness in the patients. Our study showed that LOS after TKA is multifactorial.</p><p><strong>Conclusions:</strong> In acute setting for readiness of discharge the preoperative knee movements, deformity and patients’ functional abilities can be used to segregate patients who may require close monitoring or intensive physiotherapy.</p>