A Comparison Between Polyethylene Exchange and Full Revision for Arthrofibrosis Following Total Knee Arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Arthrofibrosis is a debilitating postoperative complication and a major cause of patient dissatisfaction following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). There is no consensus regarding the optimal treatment for stiffness after TKA. For cases not amenable to manipulation under anesthesia (MUA), one component or full revision are both suitable options. In a value-based healthcare era, maximizing cost-effectiveness with optimized clinical outcomes for patients remains the ultimate goal. As such, we compared (1) Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Scores for Joint Replacement (KOOS, JR), (2) range of motion (ROM), as well as (3) complication rates, including MUA and lysis of adhesions (LOA), between polyethylene exchange and full component revision for TKA arthrofibrosis. METHODS: Patients were queried from an institutional database who underwent revision TKA for arthrofibrosis between January 1, 2015, and April 31, 2021. There were 33 patients who underwent full revision and 16 patients who underwent polyethylene exchange. Demographics and baseline characteristics between the cohorts were analyzed. Postoperative outcomes included MUA, LOA, and re-revision rates as well as KOOS, JR, and extension and flexion ROM at a mean follow-up of 3.8 years. Baseline comorbidities, including age, body mass index, alcohol use, tobacco use, and diabetes, were comparable between the full revision and polyethylene exchange revision cohorts (P > .05). The one and full component revisions had similar preoperative KOOS, JR (43 versus 42, P = .85), and flexion (81 versus 82 degrees, P = .80) versus extension (11 versus 11 degrees, P = .87) ROM. RESULTS: The full component revision had higher KOOS, JR (65 versus 55, P = .04), and flexion (102 versus 92 degrees, P = .02), but similar extension (3 versus 3 degrees, P = .80) ROM at final follow-up compared to the polyethylene exchange revision, respectively. The MUA (18.2 versus 18.8%, P = .96) and LOA (2.0 versus 0.0%, P = .32) rates were similar between full component and polyethylene exchange revisions. There was one re-revision (3.0%) for the cohort of patients who initially underwent full revision. There were four full re-revisions (25.0%) and two polyethylene exchange re-revisions (12.5%) performed in the cohort of patients who initially underwent a polyethylene exchange revision. CONCLUSIONS: The full component revision for stiffness after TKA showed favorable KOOS, JR, ROM, and outcomes in comparison to the polyethylene exchange revision. While the optimal treatment for stiffness after TKA is without consensus, this study supports the use of the full component revision when applied to the institutional population at hand. It is imperative that homogeneity exists in preoperative definitions, preoperative baseline patient demographics, ROM and function levels, outcome measures, and preoperative indications, as well as the inclusion of clinical data that assesses complete exchange, single exchange, and tibial insert exchange.

The Effect of Insurance Type on Length of Stay Following Total Knee Arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: With the expansion of the Affordable Care Act in 2014, there has been a growing interest in how the Medicaid population will affect postoperative outcomes following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Studies have shown that lower socioeconomic status, non-Caucasian race, women, cardiac and renal disorders, and younger age have been associated with increased lengths of stay (LOS) after TKA. The primary purpose of our study was to compare the total complications and LOS among patients undergoing TKA who have cash, commercial, government, Medicaid, and Medicare insurances. METHODS: We queried a national, all-payer administrative claims database from 2016 to 2022 among patients undergoing TKA who had cash (n = 3,923), commercial (n = 966,169), government (n = 25,644), Medicaid (n = 56,184), and Medicare (n = 524,034) insurances. We compared and analyzed various baseline demographics, total complications, and LOS (<1 day, 1 to 2 days, 3 to 4 days, and >4 days), between the insurance types. RESULTS: Medicaid and Medicaid insurance types had patients who had the most comorbidities at baseline, including a comorbidity index >3 (P < 0.0001), women, alcohol abuse, diabetes, obesity, tobacco use, chronic kidney disease, and congestive heart disease (all P < 0.0001). In accounting for comorbidities, Medicaid was the biggest risk factor for total complications (P < 0.001) as well as increased LOS after TKA at 4 to 6 days, 7 to 9 days, and >9 days (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Medicaid insurance is a risk factor for increased total complications and LOS following TKA. Appropriate preoperative and perioperative management of these patients is essential in order to mitigate the risk and burden on the health care system in this population.