Return to Work Following Isolated Opening Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic surgery
• Biomechanical engineering
• Rehabilitation medicine

Background:

• Medial compartment osteoarthritis and varus deformity often necessitate surgical intervention to alleviate pain and improve function.
• High tibial osteotomy (HTO) is a surgical procedure aimed at correcting alignment and reducing joint pressure in the medial compartment of the knee.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the typical return-to-work (RTW) timeline after high tibial osteotomy (HTO).
• To analyze RTW rates and durations based on the physical intensity of occupational duties.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective review of consecutive patients who underwent HTO, with a minimum 2-year follow-up.
• Data collection included subjective work questionnaires, pain assessments (visual analogue scale, Single Assessment Numerical Evaluation), and patient satisfaction surveys.

Main Results:

• Of 38 patients (average follow-up 9.0 years), 94.5% returned to work at an average of 2.9 months.
• Return-to-work rates were high across all occupational intensities (87.5%-100%), but duration varied (1.0-3.3 months).
• Nearly 40% of patients required subsequent knee arthroplasty within 6.1 years post-HTO.

Conclusions:

• High tibial osteotomy facilitates return to work for young, active patients with knee osteoarthritis or varus deformity.
• Occupations with higher physical demands may be associated with a longer return-to-work period.
• HTO serves as a temporizing measure, as a significant proportion of patients eventually require knee arthroplasty.