More than one-third of total knee replacements in the United States were classified as "inappropriate" using a patient classification system developed and validated in Spain, according to a study published Arthritis & Rheumatology.
The study, led by Daniel Riddle, PT, from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, examined the criteria used to determine the appropriateness of total knee arthroplasties — a modified version of the appropriateness classification system that was used to access participants in a prospective five-year study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health in Spain.
Data from 205 knee replacement patients was examined for the current study and the mean age of patients was 67 years. The study found that 44 percent of surgeries were classified as appropriate, 22 percent as inconclusive and 34 percent were deemed inappropriate. The characteristics of patients undergoing surgery were varied.
"Our finding that one-third of knee replacements were inappropriate was higher than expected and linked to variation in knee pain OA severity and functional loss. These data highlight the need to develop patient selection criteria in the U.S.," concluded Dr. Riddle.
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