Abstract
Stiffness after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) can lead to decreased function and patient
dissatisfaction. Manipulation under anesthesia (MUA) is often performed to improve
range of motion (ROM); however, there is no consensus on indications or timing. The
purpose of this study was to compare clinical results and patient-reported outcome
measures (PROMs) between patients who underwent MUA versus those with an uncomplicated
postoperative course following primary TKA. This was an institutional review board-approved
retrospective review of 116 consecutive patients who underwent MUA from 2013 to 2019
following primary TKA due to stiffness. Indication for MUA was failure to achieve
105 degrees of knee flexion at 6 weeks following surgery. Five patients underwent
revision surgery and 15 patients from the MUA group were excluded: 12 lost to follow-up
and 3 deaths. The remaining 96 MUA patients were matched to 288 TKAs who did not require
MUA or revision, all with a minimum 2-year follow-up. Patients who underwent MUA were
younger (60.7 vs. 66.3 years, p < 0.001) and had less preoperative knee flexion (105.4 vs. 110.7 degrees, p < 0.001). There were five (4.9%) revisions in the MUA group: two instability, two
chronic pain, and one arthrofibrosis. There were no differences between the groups
with respect to postoperative Knee Society Knee Score, Western Ontario and McMaster
Universities Osteoarthritis, Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score for Joint
Replacement, Forgotten Joint Score-12, satisfaction, or complications. Satisfaction
rates were 88.5% among MUA patients and 89.6% among non-MUA patients (p = 1.0). Patients undergoing MUA following TKA, using the criteria of failure to achieve
105 degrees of flexion by 6 weeks postoperatively, were able to achieve similar PROMs
and satisfaction compared with a control group with a low incidence of revision due
to persistent arthrofibrosis.
Keywords
total knee arthroplasty - manipulation under anesthesia - range of motion - patient-reported
outcome measures - satisfaction