Postoperative delirium following total joint arthroplasties in a multi-ethnic population – A prospective observational study

Postoperative delirium (POD) is a cause of poorer patient outcomes following total joint arthroplasties (TJA). However, it often goes undiagnosed. Although various risk factors have been documented, study heterogeneity leads to poor understanding within a South East Asian population. This study aims to evaluate POD within this demographic and elucidate its risk factors.

This was a single-centre prospective observational study comprising 462 patients. Inclusion criteria was patients 65–90 years old undergoing elective TJA. Exclusion criteria was patients unable to personally provide consent for TJA. Preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative data was recorded to analyse treatment pathway factors. Patients were assessed for POD twice daily for 3 days after TJA using the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM).

Mean age of the study cohort was 72 ± 5 years; 70.1% were female; and mean MMSE score preoperatively was 27.3 ± 3.3. 419 patients underwent total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and 43 patients underwent total hip arthroplasty (THA). 164 patients received general anaesthesia, and 298 patients received regional anaesthesia. Overall, 0% (0/462) of patients tested positive for POD at any postoperative timepoint. While various CAM components were met, no patients were positive for the complete requisite criteria for POD diagnosis.

We report zero incidence of POD in 462 patients who underwent elective TJA in our institution. We believe that our streamlined care process including pre-operative assessment, patient-specific anaesthesia regime as well as a strictly administered inpatient clinical care pathway with opioid-reducing strategy and early mobilization are protective factors against POD.