Does design change in total knee arthroplasty implants affect patient-reported outcomes?

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Biomedical Engineering
• Clinical Outcomes Research

Background:

• Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) aims to restore function and alleviate pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis.
• Advancements in implant design are crucial for improving patient-reported outcomes and satisfaction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare early patient-reported outcomes between two generations of a cemented total knee arthroplasty system.
• To evaluate the impact of a design change in TKA on patient recovery and satisfaction.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective review of prospectively collected data from 121 first-generation and 123 second-generation cemented TKAs.
• Patient-reported outcome measures including Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score, Joint Reconstruction (KOOS-JR) and Knee Society (KS) scores were recorded at 6-month follow-up.

Main Results:

• No significant demographic differences were observed between the two TKA groups.
• Both generations showed significant improvement in KOOS-JR and KS scores from preoperative values.
• The second-generation TKA group demonstrated statistically significant higher KOOS-JR and KS functional scores at 6 months compared to the first generation.

Conclusions:

• The second-generation total knee system led to significantly better early patient-reported outcomes, specifically in KOOS-JR and KS functional scores.
• Patients demonstrated an acute positive response to the design modifications in the second-generation knee system.
• Both knee systems provided significant improvements, but the newer design showed superior early functional recovery.