What proportion of patients report long-term pain after total hip or knee replacement for osteoarthritis? A systematic review of prospective studies in unselected patients

Total hip or knee replacement is highly successful when judged by prosthesis-related outcomes. However, some people experience long-term pain.

To review published studies in representative populations with total hip or knee replacement for the treatment of osteoarthritis reporting proportions of people by pain intensity. DATA SOURCES: MEDLINE and EMBASE databases searched to January 2011 with no language restrictions. Citations of key articles in ISI Web of Science and reference lists were checked. STUDY ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA, PARTICIPANTS AND INTERVENTIONS: Prospective studies of consecutive, unselected osteoarthritis patients representative of the primary total hip or knee replacement population, with intensities of patient-centred pain measured after 3 months to 5-year follow-up. STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHODS: Two authors screened titles and abstracts. Data extracted by one author were checked independently against original articles by a second. For each study, the authors summarised the proportions of people with different severities of pain in the operated joint.