One-Surgeon vs Two-Surgeon Single-Anesthetic Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty: Revision and Mortality Rates From the Australian Orthopedic Association National Joint Replacement Registry

Simultaneous Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty May be Safe

Objectives  This study aims to analyze the safety of a simultaneous bilateral total knee arthroplasty (SBTKA) and to investigate patients' satisfaction with the procedure performed concomitantly. Methods  In a prospective study, we evaluated 45 patients undergoing SBTKA performed by two surgical teams. The mean age of the patients was 66.9 years; 33 subjects were female (73.3%) and 12 (26.6%) were male. We followed a protocol of intra- and postoperatively measures to ensure the safety of this procedure. We evaluated the surgery time and blood loss by hematocrit (Ht) and hemoglobin (Hb) levels on the first postoperative day, the percentage of patients who received a transfusion of packed red blood cells, and the number of required units. We also recorded perioperative complications, and, at the end of 3 months, we asked patients about their preference between the simultaneous or staged procedure. Results  The mean surgery time was 169 minutes. In the postoperative period, there was an average decrease of 28.2% in Htc and 27.0% in Hgb. A total of 16 patients (35.5%) received a transfusion of packed red blood cells (mean, 1.75 units per patient requiring a transfusion). There were 12 minor complications (26.6%) and 2 major complications (4.4%); furthermore, no patient had a clinical diagnosis of deep vein thrombosis, and there were no deaths. Conclusions:  The SBTKA procedure may be considered safe if performed in selected patients and with a care protocol to prevent complications. This type of procedure was unanimously approved by patients.

Prognostic Factors in Staged Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty-A Retrospective Case Series Analysis

BACKGROUND

Bilateral osteoarthritis of the knee is an indication for a bilateral total knee replacement (TKR) procedure. The goal of our study was to assess the sizes of the implants used during the first and second stages of TKR procedures in order to compare their size and identify the prognostic factors for the second procedure.

METHODS

We evaluated 44 patients who underwent staged bilateral TKR procedures. We assess the following prognostic factors from the first and second surgery: duration of anesthesia, femoral component size, tibial component size, duration of hospital stay, tibial polyethylene insert size, and the number of complications.

RESULTS

All assessed prognostic factors did not differ statistically between the first and second TKR. A strong correlation was found between the size of femoral components and the size of tibial components used during the first and second total knee arthroplasty. The mean duration of the hospital stay associated with the first TKR surgery was 6.43 days, whereas the mean duration of the second hospital stay was 5.5 days (p = 0.211). The mean sizes of the femoral components used during the first and second procedures were 5.43 and 5.2, respectively (p = 0.54). The mean sizes of the tibial components used during the first and second TKR procedures were 5.36 and 5.25, respectively (p = 0.382). The mean sizes of the tibial polyethylene inserts used during the first and second procedures were 9.45 and 9.34 (p = 0.422), respectively. The mean duration of anesthesia during the first and second knee arthroplasty was 117.04 min and 118.06 min, respectively (p = 0.457). The mean rates of recorded complications associated with the first and second TKR procedures were 0.13 and 0.06 per patient (p = 0.371).

CONCLUSIONS

We observed no differences between the two stages of treatment in terms of all analyzed parameters. We observed a strong correlation between the size of femoral components used during the first and second total knee arthroplasty. We noted a strong correlation between the size of tibial components used during the first and second procedure. Slightly weaker prognostic factors include the number of complications, duration of anesthesia and tibial polyethylene insert size.

Safety of one-stage bilateral total knee arthroplasty -one surgeon sequential vs. two surgeons simultaneous: a randomized controlled study

PURPOSE

This study aimed to examine the complications by comparing two surgeons simultaneous bilateral total knee arthroplasty (two-surgeon bilateral TKA) to one surgeon sequential bilateral total knee arthroplasty (single-surgeon bilateral TKA).

METHODS

Two hundred forty-six participants were prospectively randomized into two groups: two-surgeon bilateral TKA and single-surgeon bilateral TKA. While two surgeons performed simultaneous total knee arthroplasty in the two-surgeon bilateral TKA group, one surgeon performed sequentially in the single-surgeon bilateral TKA group. Ninety-day major, and minor complications rate, operative time, estimated blood loss (EBL) and patient-reported outcome measures were analysed.

RESULTS

The two surgeons operated in two-surgeon bilateral TKA group 246 knees in 123 patients, while the single surgeon operated in single-surgeon bilateral TKA group 246 knees of 123 patients. The median operating time was 120 (range 70-151) minutes in the two-surgeon bilateral TKA group and 140 (range 75-190) minutes in the single-surgeon bilateral TKA group (p < 0.001). The median EBL was higher in the two-surgeon bilateral TKA group (p < 0.001). The 90-day complications were two major complications (1.6%) in the two-surgeon bilateral TKA group and 11 (8.9%) in the single-surgeon bilateral TKA group (p = 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Two-surgeon simultaneous bilateral TKA is a safe method with lower complication rates compared with single-surgeon sequential bilateral TKA and can be preferred for experienced teams. However, peri- and post-operative care is required to decrease the risk of bleeding, particularly in patients undergoing two-surgeon simultaneous bilateral TKA.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

This study was retrospectively registered in a public trials registry ( https://clinicaltrials.gov/ , NCT04299516).