RESEARCH - Quality of life benefits seen with TKR

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Quality of Life Benefits Seen With Total Knee Replacement

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Aug 12 - Patients with severe osteoarthritis

who undergo total knee replacement have significant improvements in

health-related quality of life, new research shows.

The results also suggest that health outcomes are negatively

influenced by obesity and postdischarge complications, and that women

typically do not glean as much benefit from surgery as do men.

" Knee osteoarthritis is one of the major causes of pain and disability

in developed countries, particularly in aging populations, with the

consequent loss of health-related quality of life, " Dr. Montserrat

Nunez, at the Hospital Clinic in Barcelona, Spain, and colleagues

write in the August issue of Arthritis and Rheumatism. " The demand for

total knee replacement is increasing as patients gain considerable

pain relief and increased mobility and health-related quality of

life. "

In a 7-year prospective study, the researchers used the Western

Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and

Short Form 36 to assess health-related quality of life in

osteoarthritis patients undergoing total knee replacement. The team

also sought to identify the influence of sociodemographic, clinical,

intraoperative, and postoperative factors on health-related quality of

life, and to determine patient perceptions.

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Read the rest of the article here:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/707340

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