High BMI Patients Likely Young & Female

Patients who undergo total knee arthroplasty (TKA) with a high body mass index (BMI) are more likely to be female and not insured through Medicaid, according to E. Vulcano, writing in the August issue of The Journal of Arthroplasty.

Ettore Vulcano, M.D. and his colleagues who conducted the study, wrote in their report that, “Obese TKA candidates in our institution differ from their non-obese counterparts in a number of demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical characteristics. Such differences have implications in preoperative counseling of patients undergoing TKA surgery.”

Making use of their institution’s joint replacement registry, Vulcano prospectively identified 4, 718 patients with osteoarthritis who were undergoing TKA and categorized them into normal weight, overweight and three obesity classes.

Compared to normal weight patients, patients in the overweight and obesity classes had lower WOMAC pain, function and stiffness scores. Patients with a higher body mass index also tended to be younger than normal weight patients and also less likely to pay for services using Medicare. The researchers also found a positive correlation between increases in BMI and the proportion of patients with non-chronic diabetes, hypertension and depression. The study was sponsored by a grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.