No abstract

Objective To assess the pain and functional disability levels corresponding to an indication for total joint replacement (TJR) in hip and knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods Design: international cross-sectional study in 10 countries. Patients: consecutive outpatients with definite hip or knee OA attending an orthopaedic outpatient clinic. Gold standard measure for recommendation for TJR: surgeon's decision that TJR is justified. Outcome measures: pain (ICOAP: intermittent and constant osteoarthritis pain, 0-100) and functional impairment (HOOS-PS/KOOS-PS: Hip/Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score Physical function Short-form, 0-100). Analyses: Comparison of patients with versus without surgeons' indication for TJR. ROC curve analyses and logistic regression were applied to determine cut-points of pain and disability defining recommendation for TJR. Results In all, 1909 patients were included (1130 knee/779 hip OA). Mean age was 66.4 (SD 10.9) years, 58.1% were women; 628/1130 (55.6%) knee OA and 574/779 (73.7%) hip OA patients were recommended for TJR. Although patients recommended for TJR (yes versus no) had worse symptom levels (pain, 55.5 [95% confidence interval 54.2, 56.8] vs. 44.9 [43.2, 46.6], and functional impairment, 59.8 [58.7, 60.9] vs. 50.9 [49.3, 52.4], respectively, both p<0.0001), there was substantial overlap in symptom levels between groups, even when adjusting for radiographic joint status. Thus, it was not possible to determine cut points for pain and function defining ‘requirement for TJR’. Conclusion Although symptom levels were higher in patients recommended for TJR, pain and functional disability alone did not discriminate between those who were and were not considered to need TJR by the orthopaedic surgeon.

Arthritis affects around 3 million people in Australia, representing about 15% of the population. Osteoarthritis is the leading cause of pain and disability among the elderly. Osteoarthritis is the third leading cause of life‐years lost due to disability. Obesity and joint injury are important potentially modifiable risk factors for the development of osteoarthritis. Obesity is also an important predictor of progression of osteoarthritis. Currently, about 19 000 hip and 20 000 knee replacements are performed for osteoarthritis in Australia each year. Prevalence of osteoarthritis and the need for total joint replacement surgery are likely to increase because of a combination of increasing risk factors (age, obesity, injury), increasing expectations for improved quality of life, and improved surgical and anaesthetic techniques making surgery possible for more people. Services to provide these cost‐effective procedures need to be increased. Primary and secondary prevention programs aimed at reducing obesity, preventing injury and improving rehabilitation and physical activity are urgently required.

Postal questionnaires have the potential to detect OA in the community. The clinical diagnosis can be confirmed by a trained metrologist. Further evaluation of this instrument is warranted in other populations.