Introduction:

Classically the results of any joint replacement surgery are evaluated at a minimum of 5 years. This period could be considered excessive to evaluate the functional results of this procedure. The objective of this study is to compare functional and quality of life results to 1 and five years of follow-up following a total knee replacement (TKR).

Material and methods:

Prospective observational study. All patients visited one year after the implantation of TKR were included. All of these filled out the SF-36 questionnaire and the KSS valuation scale. Both were administered again at age five after surgery.

Results:

689 patients were initially included in the study (163 men [23.7%] and 526 women [76.3%]) with an average age of 72.2 years. At age 5,585 (84.9%) of these patients were re-analyzed. While the knee section of the KSS scale remained similar in these two periods, the function section of the KSS titration scale showed a slight worsening over time (p = 0.008). With respect to SF-36, the physical summation worsened at five years (p = 0.00) and the mental summation remained stable (n.s.) between the year and five years after surgery.

Discussion:

Five years after a TKR, the physical exam does not vary from the year of surgery. However, the subjective evaluation measured by the function-KSS section and the physical SF-36, worsen slightly during this period. This could be due to aging patients.