Time Burden of Standardized Hip Questionnaires

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Health Outcomes Research
• Patient Assessment

Background:

• Standardized scales are used to assess outcomes after total hip arthroplasty (THA).
• Existing questionnaires can be time-consuming for patients and clinicians.
• There is limited data on the time required to complete these assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To measure the completion time of common THA questionnaires.
• To identify variations in completion time among different scales.
• To evaluate the influence of age, gender, and education on completion time.

Main Methods:

• Seven common hip scoring systems were selected.
• 70 subjects completed questionnaires randomly, unaware of timing.
• Completion times were analyzed for mean duration and variation, stratified by demographics.

Main Results:

• Completion times varied significantly across the seven scales.
• Older patients (≥55 years) took longer to complete questionnaires than younger patients.
• No significant association was found between completion time and gender or education level.

Conclusions:

• Current THA assessment questionnaires can be burdensome and time-inefficient.
• Task-induced fatigue may lead to inaccurate patient assessments.
• There is a need for a more time-efficient, comprehensive assessment tool for THA.