Background: Patients undergoing total knee replacements constitute a suitable population to study the natural history of traumatic joint injuries.
Material and methods: We studied all the patients who received a TKA (Total knee arthroplasty) over the course of one year, in five different centers. The study included 474 patients who had undergone primary TKA for knee OA over a one-year period. In each patient, we analyzed age, sex, side of operation, weight, height and body mass index (BMI, kg/m2). BMI were stratified into four groups according to the WHO classification: normal (<25), overweight (>25 and <30), obese (>30 and <40), and morbidly obese (>40).
Results: In the TKA group, 74% of the patients were women, while in the THA group the percentage of men and women was similar. No differences were found in the sides operated on. Differences between both groups were found in knee alignment. Women were operated on more frequently for TKA, as there was a higher incidence of OA of the knee joints in women aged over 65.
Conclusions: Patients who required a total knee arthroplasty are likely to have previously undergone surgery or trauma to the knee joints.