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Background and purpose — Total hip arthroplasty (THA) is an effective and common procedure. However, persistent pain and analgesic requirement up to 2 years after THA surgery are common. We examined the trends in the utilization of analgesics before and after THA, overall, and in relation to socioeconomic status (SES) in a populationbased cohort. Patients and methods — We used the Danish Hip Arthroplasty Register to identify 103,209 patients who underwent THA between 1996 and 2018. Data on prescriptions and SES markers was obtained from Danish medical databases. Prevalence rates of redeemed prescriptions for analgesics with 95% confidence intervals were calculated for 4 quarters before and 4 quarters after THA for the entire THA population, and by 3 SES markers (education, cohabiting status, and wealth). Results — Overall, the prevalence of analgesic use prior to surgery was 42% at 9–12 months and 59% at 0–3 months before the THA. The prevalence of analgesics reached its highest at 64% 0–3 months after THA but declined to 27% at 9–12 months after THA. Low education, living alone, and having low wealth (low SES) were associated with higher prevalence of analgesics use both before and after THA. Interpretation — 59% of patients used analgesics 0–3 months before surgery, which could indicate that THA might not be considered the last option for treatment and that surgery criteria might depend more on factors such as patient preferences or hip function. Moreover, health professionals should prioritize the use of a detailed plan when phasing out analgesics after THA to counteract unnecessary use, especially when treating patients with low SES.

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Background and purpose: There is little evidence on improvement after revision total hip replacement (THR). Moreover, improvements may be associated with socioeconomic status (SES). We investigated whether changes in Harris Hip Score (HHS) differ among patients undergoing primary and revision THR, and their association with markers of SES. Patients and methods: We conducted a populationbased cohort study on 16,932 patients undergoing primary and/or revision THR from 1995 to 2018 due to hip osteoarthritis. The patients were identified in the Danish Hip Arthroplasty Registry. Outcome was defined as mean change in HHS (0–100) from baseline to 1-year follow-up, and its association with SES markers (education, cohabiting, andwealth) was analyzed using multiple linear regression adjusting for sex, age, comorbidities, and baseline HHS. Results: At 1-year follow-up, HHS improved clinically relevant for patients undergoing both primary THR: mean 43 (95% CI 43–43) and revision THR: mean 31 (CI 29–33); however, the increase was 12 points (CI 10–14) higher for primary THR. For primary THR, improvements were 0.9 points (CI 0.4–1.5) higher for patients with high educational level compared with low educational level, 0.4 points (CI 0.0–0.8) higher for patients cohabiting compared with living alone, and 2.6 points higher (CI 2.1–3.0) for patients with high wealth compared with low wealth. Interpretation: Patients undergoing primary THR achieve higher improvements on HHS than patients undergoing revision THR, and the improvements are negatively related to markers of low SES. Health professionals should be aware of these characteristics and be able to identify patients who may benefit from extra rehabilitation to improve outcomes after THR to ensure equality in health.

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