Predictors of Satisfaction Following Total Knee Arthroplasty

Despite the success of total knee arthroplasty (TKA), numerous studies report that nearly one in five patients who underwent TKA was unsatisfied with their outcome. The purpose of our study was to identify the preoperative factors predictive of satisfaction following well-performed TKA. Using improvement in patient-reported outcomes less than the minimally clinically important change as an indicator of dissatisfaction in a cohort of primary TKA patients, we found that patients with greater preoperative pain and disability with less severe degradation in health-related quality of life were more likely to be satisfied with the result of TKA. Balancing severity of symptoms and impact to quality of life is important when counseling patients considering TKA.