Results of a new study that compared inpatient and outpatient satisfaction levels after total joint arthroplasty found that outpatients were just as satisfied, and in some cases more satisfied, than inpatients post-surgery.
Five things to know:
1. The study was led by Richard Berger, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush in Chicago, who recently surpassed 10,000 outpatient minimally invasive joint replacements — the first physician in the U.S. to reach this milestone.
2. The researchers found a 90 percent satisfaction rate in patients who stayed overnight, with an even higher satisfaction rate for those who opted to leave the same day.
3. The research team also included Chris Culvern, MS, director of research for joint replacement at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Gregory Manista, MD, clinical research coordinator at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush in Chicago, and orthopedic fellow trainees Vasili Karas, MD, and Linda Suleiman, MD.
4. The research was presented at a recent meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons in Las Vegas and is the first study to examine patient satisfaction when all patients are given a choice between same-day discharge and being admitted for a one-night stay at the hospital.
5. Each patient had the same surgeon, hospital, anesthetist and nurse, with the only difference being whether the patient opted to go home on the day of surgery or stay overnight in the hospital.
"I am not surprised by these findings. I have performed more than 10,000 outpatient joint replacements with not only enormous clinical success, but these patients have been even happier by returning to the comfort of their own home the same day," said Dr. Berger.