In a study published in the Journal of Arthroplasty, patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty following a periarticular fracture had worse overall revision-free survival at 20 years compared with patients who underwent the procedure for osteoarthritis.
Researchers conducted a retrospective review comparing 19,641 patients who underwent primary TKA for osteoarthritis with 531 patients with a history of distal femur or proximal tibia fractures who also underwent TKA.
Here are four points:
1. Risks for revision TKA, infection and complications were significantly increased in the post-traumatic group compared with the osteoarthritis group.
2. Looking at 20-year survival as free of revision, investigators found the post-traumatic group had 67 percent survival versus 75 percent for the osteoarthritis group.
3. Overall survival, as deemed as free of an additional procedure, at 20 years was 55 percent in the post-traumatic group versus 70 percent in the osteoarthritis group.
4. By 20 years, the infection-free survival for the post-traumatic group was significantly worse compared with that of the osteoarthritis group (91 percent versus 96 percent).