Investigation of mid-term functional skills and psychological factors in female patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty

Abstract

Background/Aim: Previous studies have yielded conflicting clinical, psychological, and functional outcomes in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA). This study aimed to more precisely evaluate the clinical outcomes, mid-term general physical and psychological health status, functional abilities, and improvements in patients’ quality-of-life undergoing TKA. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 25 female patients older than 55 years who underwent unilateral TKA due to osteoarthritis (OA). The Five Repetition Sit-to-Stand Test (5STS), Stair-Climbing Test (SCT), 6-Minute Walking Test (6MWT), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK), and Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) scores of the patients were evaluated using means. Meanwhile, the Lower Limb Length (LLL), Navicular Drop Test (NDT), Proprioception Assessment, Foot Posture Index (FPI-6), Foot Function Index (FFI), Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), and Oxford Knee Score (OKS) were evaluated by comparing the operated (OP) sides that underwent TKA with the non-operated (NONOP) sides diagnosed with OA. Results: The study found that LLL (P=0.001), abduction/adduction forefoot on rearfoot (ABD) (P=0.017), and T.FPI-6 (P=0.014) in the FPI-6 parameters, as well as KOOS (P<0.001), OKS (P<0.001), LEFS (P<0.001), and FFI (P<0.001) results, were significantly in favor of the OP limb. Besides some parameters in FPI-6, no significant difference was found between the OP and NONOP extremities in terms of prone and supine proprioception values (P>0.05). Conclusion: Overall, it was found that TKA plays a crucial role in recovery and regaining functional skills. Including preoperative evaluations with a control group and patients of both sexes in future studies and examining the relationships between the conducted tests and scales may contribute to better evaluating the results.