The researchers examined 4,733 hip or knee replacement cases within a 39-county Medicare hospital referral cluster. The researchers found:
• 77 percent of patients used post-acute care services after surgery.
• 54.2 percent of the patient who underwent preoperative physical therapy used post-acute care services.
• 79.7 percent of patients who didn’t undergo preoperative physical therapy used post-acute care services.
• Preoperative physical therapy was associated with 29 percent post-acute care reduction when adjusting for demographics and comorbidities.
• Preoperative physical therapy was associated with an $871 reduction in the episode payment, largely driven by the skilled nursing facility, home health agency and inpatient rehabilitation payments.
The average skilled nursing facility payments were $1,093, home health agency patients were $527 and the inpatient rehabilitation was $172.
More articles on orthopedic surgery:
Dr. Jonathon Salava joins Cabell Huntington Hospital
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North Shore Medical Center names Dr. Todd O’Brien orthopedic surgery department chairman
