October 05, 2016
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Lupus did not increase risk for adverse events in first 6 months after knee arthroplasty

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Compared to patients with osteoarthritis, patients with lupus did not have an increased risk for adverse events in the first 6 months after a total knee arthroplasty, according to a study of 166 patients.

Researchers compared adverse events within 6 months among patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty (TKA) between 2007 and 2014 at a single institution. They matched 52 cases of lupus to 104 cases of osteoarthritis based on age, sex, year of surgery and procedure type. Between groups, there was no difference in follow-up. The researchers collected adverse events through chart review and registry responses. To determine predicting factors of the adverse events, the researchers compared baseline characteristics and performed a regression analysis.

Patients with lupus had more comorbidities (38.4% vs. 17.3%), a higher percentage of steroid use (28.8% vs. 1.9%) and a higher percentage of perioperative stress-dose steroid use (30.8% vs. 2.9%). However, patients with lupus did not experience more major, minor or total adverse events. In addition, adverse events did not increase among patients who used stress-dose steroids. After controlling for comorbidities and diagnosis, investigators found neither lupus nor having more than one comorbidity were associated with an increased risk for adverse events.

The researchers concluded these findings should inform recommendations for patients with lupus who are considering TKA. – by Will Offit

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.