Twenty-Five Percent of Patients Undergoing Knee Arthroscopy Use Psychotropic Medications

To estimate the prevalence of psychotropic medication (PTM) usage in patients undergoing knee arthroscopy and to identify knee pathologies associated with the use of PTMs.

A retrospective chart review was conducted. Subjects were identified using the billing database at a single institution. All eligible patients treated by 2 fellowship-trained orthopaedic sports medicine surgeons between 2017 and 2021 were analyzed; patients were included if they were at least 12 years old and had at least 6 months of documented follow-up. The following characteristics were gathered: age, sex, surgery laterality, ipsilateral knee surgery history, knee pathology, and use of PTMs if listed in patient charts within 6 months prior to surgery.

Records from 1,000 arthroscopic knee surgical procedures were examined (399 female and 601 male patients). From 2017 to 2021, 245 patients (24.5%) were prescribed at least 1 psychotropic drug. Female patients took PTM drugs at higher rates than male patients (odds ratio, 1.92; 95% confidence interval, 1.42-2.60; P < .001). An examination of drug classes revealed 106 antidepressant prescriptions (35.2%), 77 sedative hypnotics (25.6%), 38 stimulants (12.6%), 6 antipsychotics (2.0%), and 74 anticonvulsants/mood stabilizers (24.6%). Patients taking PTMs had lower adjusted odds of presenting with anterior cruciate ligament injury compared with their peers not taking PTMs (adjusted odds ratio, 0.55; 95% confidence interval, 0.32-0.82; P = .003).

The rate of PTM usage among patients undergoing knee arthroscopy was 24.5% based on 5 years of records from 1 institution. Female patients had a higher frequency of PTM use compared with their male counterparts.

PTM use is common among knee arthroscopy patients, with higher rates observed in female patients.