Total knee arthroplasty, or knee replacement surgery, produces only modest improvements in daily walking that plateau after one year, a new longitudinal study finds.
Researchers used wearable sensors to track the real-world walking of 31 patients with severe knee osteoarthritis before surgery, then at one and two years post-op. They compared the results to 31 healthy adults.
One year after surgery, patients showed gains in gait speed and walking activity. However, their average gait speed remained 0.10 meters per second slower than that of the healthy control group.
The most significant finding: Walking performance did not improve further between the one-year and two-year marks. In contrast, patient-reported outcomes, like reduced pain and improved function, showed clear and lasting benefits.
Experts say the results highlight the need for patients to have realistic expectations about mobility recovery after knee replacement.