Page 157 - The value of total hip and knee arthroplasties for patients

Return to work after total hip and knee arthroplasty: results from a clinical study
The other patients either did different tasks, performed less tasks, worked different hours or received work-related adaptions or devices. Of the preoperatively working patients, slightly more than half had been in contact with an occupational physician about return to work either preoperatively or postoperatively.
Table 2 Characteristics of preoperative work situation in working patients undergoing Total Hip or Knee Arthroplasty (THA orTKA)
Self-employed; yes
Hours working per week preoperatively; mean, SD
Absence from work in connection with the hip/knee complaints in last year
Not at all
Less than 4 weeks More than 4 weeks Unknown
Adaptions at work, N (%)
None
Different tasks
Less tasks
Change of working hours Work-related adaptions or devices Unknown
Receiving workers compensation, N (%)
None
Yes, in connection with the hip/knee complaints Yes, in connection with other health complaints Unknown
THA (N=71)
12 (17%) 32 (12.7)
43 (61%) 7 (10%) 12 (17%) 9 (13%)
37 (77%) 3 (6%)
6 (9%)
1 (2%)
1 (2%) -
57 (80%) 2 (3%)
3 (4%)
9 (13%)
TKA (N=64)
9 (16%) 31 (12.2)
36 (56%) 6 (9%) 12 (19%) 10 (16%)
33 (52%) 7 (11%) 3 (5%)
4 (6%)
2 (3%) 15 (23%)
51 (80%) 4 (6%)
3 (5%)
6 (9%)
Return to work and clinical outcomes 8 Table 3 describes the work status and changes in clinical outcome measures 1
year afterTHA orTKA in patients who were working preoperatively.Two and five
patients who were working preoperatively were retired 1 year after surgery in the
THA and TKA groups, respectively. For the 64 and 56 patients who were working both preoperatively and 1 year thereafter, the mean time to return to work was 12.5 weeks (SD 7.6; median 12; minimum 1; maximum 40 weeks) and 12.9 weeks (SD 8.0; median 12; minimum 1; maximum 36 weeks) in the THA and TKA groups, respectively. Of the 64 and 53 patients returning to work of whom the number of hours working per week 1 year postoperatively was known, 9 (14 %) and 10 (19 %) patients worked less hours than preoperatively in the THA and TKA groups (mean decrease of 16 (SD 11.5; minimum 5; maximum 35) and 14 (SD 12.5; minimum 2; maximum 38) hours, respectively). Comparison of working hours before and after surgery shows significant differences in bothTHA (p = 0.044) andTKA (p = 0.018).
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