In newspapers
A study published online March 14, 2017 Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that in terms of speed of recovery after total knee alternative, a home-based rehabilitation program is pretty much as good as one which begins with a hospital stay.
Researchers randomly assigned individuals with osteoarthritis undergoing total knee alternative to 2 groups for 10 weeks of treatment. Those in a single group received 10 days of inpatient rehabilitation followed by a clinician-supervised program that they attended two to 3 times per week for eight weeks. Those within the second group skipped hospital rehabilitation and went straight to a clinician-supervised program but then progressed to home exercises.
After 10 weeks, the mobility of the 2 groups was measured by how far the patients could walk in six minutes, and the researchers found no difference. Self-reported pain levels, function, and quality of life were also similar.
It isn’t clear why patients who began rehab at home benefited as much as patients who began rehab earlier, although the latter group had more access to physiotherapy and support after surgery. The researchers hypothesized that the house program encourages patients to be more lively and independent, which can aid recovery in the long run.
