Range of Motion Correlates with Patient Perception of TKA Outcome

Despite the clinical success of total knee arthroplasty, little information can be found in the literature about the relationship between certain postoperative physical findings and the outcome. Specifically, is the range of motion related to patient perception of outcome? We performed a cohort prospective study on 48 patients assessed by patient-oriented evaluations (Short Form 36 Health Survey and Oxford Knee Questionnaire) and objective evaluations after total knee arthroplasty. Thirty-four patients were women and 14 were men. The mean age at followup was 71 years (range, 64-80 years) and the minimum followup was 20 months (mean, 28.5 months; range, 20-30 months). We found a positive correlation between range of motion and patient-oriented evaluations in some domains of the Short Form 36 and in the Oxford knee score.

Level of Evidence: Level II, therapeutic study. See the Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.