Enhanced Recovery Program: Does Preoperative Education Reduces Length of Hospital Stay in Primary Hip and Knee Arthroplasty?

Introduction Total knee and hip arthroplasty significantly improve the quality of life in people suffering from end-stage hip and knee arthritides. Enhanced recovery programs have shown improved outcomes following elective arthroplasty by decreasing patients’ anxiety, postoperative pain and reducing the length of hospital stay (LOS). The aim of our study is to evaluate the impact of preoperative education programs on LOS in patients undergoing hip and knee arthroplasty. Methods Retrospective data was collected from a consecutive series of 520 patients’ charts and the Irish National Orthopaedic Register (INOR) for those who underwent hip or knee arthroplasty from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018 in our hospital. The LOS study compared 226 patients in the Educational Group (EG) who attended the Hip & Knee School (Preoperative Education Class) with 294 patients in the Conventional Group (CG) who did not attend the hip and knee educational program. Results We identified that LOS decreased to 5.2 days in EG from 5.5 days in CG (p-value equals 0.26, statistically insignificant, t = 1.1093, df = 518), with a mean difference of only 0.3 days (95% CI). Conclusion Preoperative education does not reduce the LOS in primary hip and knee arthroplasty.