Demographics and Crude Complication Rates After Total Knee Replacement With and Without Previous Knee Fusion
| Demographic factor | Fusion | No fusion |
|---|---|---|
| Mean age, yr | 60.9 | 69.6* |
| Follow-up, yr | 2.8 | 2.4 |
| Male sex, % | 61.1 | 38.0† |
| Diagnosis not osteoarthritis, % | 33.3 | 8.8* |
| Comorbid conditions > 1, % | 11.1 | 3.2§ |
| Mean hospital volume, no./yr | 106.8 | 143.9 |
| Mean surgeon volume, no./yr | 38.5 | 49.5 |
| Mean length of hospital stay, d | 13.1 | 10.3† |
| Complication present at index admission, % | 22.2 | 10.3 |
| Revision within 4 yr, % | 5.6 | 2.0 |
| Fusion or re-fusion within 4 yr, % | 11.1 | 0.1‡ |
| Excision within 4 yr, % | 16.7 | 0.8‡ |
| Patellar replacement or patelloplasty. % | 27.8 | 85.3‡ |
| Infection within 4 yr, % | 11.1 | 2.2 |
| Urinary tract infection at index admission, % | 5.6 | 2.0 |
| Deep venous thrombosis within 3 mo of index admission, % | 5.6 | 2.6 |
Student’s t-test was used for continuous variables, the χ2 test for categorical variables (with continuity correction). Fisher’s exact test was used when 1 or more cells had fewer than 5 expected counts. Comparisons between patients who underwent hip fusion takedown and those who did not may be biased since no adjustment was made for other potentially confounding factors.
↵* p < 0.01,
↵† p < 0.05,
↵‡ p < 0.0001,
↵§ p < 0.001