Does stature of female affect Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score following knee arthroplasty surgery: an observational pilot study

Abstract

Background Knee osteoarthritis (OA) occurs frequently in females. So far, no study has evaluated postoperative outcome measures in females based on body height. We aimed to evaluate postoperative pain relief and Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) at 6 months in women following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). In this prospective, observational pilot study, 20 women, 50–70 years, American Society of Anesthesiologist (ASA) physical status I and II, undergoing TKA surgery were enrolled. The patients were allocated to Group I (n = 10), women with a height less than 153 cm, and Group II (n= 10), women with a height greater than 153 cm. All patients received paracetamol, diclofenac, and epidural analgesia postoperatively for up to 72 h. The primary outcome was a comparison of KOOS scores from preoperative baseline value to 6 months following TKA. Results The baseline demographics, KOOS, waist-hip ratio, and knee range of motion were similar. The height mean ± standard deviation (SD) (range) in Group I was 149.85 ± 3.28 (142.5–152.5) cm versus 157.25 ± 2.99 (155–165) cm in Group II, p = 0.001. KOOS score improved in patients of both Groups I and II as compared to the respective baseline. At 6 months, the KOOS pain score improved to 96.50 ± 3.14 [94.26–98.74 (89–100)] in Group I as compared to 89.40 ± 6.45 [84.79–94.01 (81–100)] in Group II, p value = 0.02. Conclusions Postoperative KOOS pain score at 6 months was superior in short stature versus normal stature women following TKA surgery.