Photo: UMass Chan
A research team led by David C. Ayers, MD, was recognized with the Chitranjan S. Ranawat Award from the Knee Society at the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons Annual Meeting for impactful new research identifying important factors in total knee replacement that predict outcomes five years after surgery.
The study is co-authored by members of UMass Chan’s Function and Outcomes Research for Comparative Effectiveness in Total Joint Replacement, or FORCE-TJR, team, including Dr. Ayers, the Arthur M. Pappas, MD, Professor and chair emeritus and distinguished professor of orthopedics & physical rehabilitation; Hua Zheng, PhD, assistant professor of orthopedics & physical rehabilitation; Wenyun Yang, MS, assistant professor of orthopedics & physical rehabilitation; and Mohamed Yousef, MD, PhD, a resident in the UMass Chan orthopedic surgery residency program and former research fellow in FORCE-TJR.
“This will enable patients and surgeons to improve patient outcomes with regard to pain, physical function and quality of life by optimizing modifiable risk factors preoperatively,” Ayers said.
The manuscript is currently available online and will be published in the Journal of Arthroplasty. It identifies the following key predictors for patient outcomes five years after total knee replacement: patient age, BMI, medical and musculoskeletal comorbidities; baseline pain and functional status; and mental health. By understanding these factors, surgeons can better stratify patients based on risk, customize perioperative and postoperative management, and set realistic expectations for recovery and functional improvement. This algorithm will assist patients and surgeons in shared decision making as they choose the most appropriate time to proceed with surgery.
“Identifying and addressing these predictive factors fosters personalized treatment plans, reduces the likelihood of complications, and improves long-term outcomes and patient satisfaction,” Ayers said.
This study was initially made possible by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. In 2010, $12 million was awarded to the UMass Chan Department of Orthopedics & Physical Rehabilitation to develop and implement FORCE-TJR, a nationwide, comparative effectiveness consortium and comprehensive database of total joint replacement surgical and patient-reported outcomes.
“This will enable patients and surgeons to improve patient outcomes with regard to pain, physical function and quality of life by optimizing modifiable risk factors preoperatively,” said Ayers.
The FORCE-TJR research team also won this award in 2008.
