Robot-assisted rehabilitation for total knee or hip replacement surgery patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This study was performed to update the current evidence and evaluate the effects of robot-assisted rehabilitation (RAR) in comparison with conventional rehabilitation (CR) in patients following total knee (TKR) or hip replacements (THR). METHODS: PubMed Central, OVID Medline, Cochrane Collaboration Library, and EMBASE for a comprehensive search for all relevant studies, from database inception to July 2022. The following inclusion criteria were used to determine eligibility for studies: randomized and matched controlled trials recruiting men and women who underwent TKR and THR; and studies examining the effect of RAR on outcome measures of physical function and pain. RESULTS: A total of 9 studies (230 patients) were included in this review and 4 were included in the meta-analysis. The meta-analysis of 2 studies showed that Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL) training for 5 days, significantly improved pain measured on a visual analogue scale, compared to CR in patients following TKR (SMD = 1.05, 95% confidence interval [Cl] 0.39–1.71). Heterogeneity for I(2) value was lower than moderate (tau^2 = 0.0121; I(2) = 5%; P = .30). There were 2 studies that assessed self-selected walking speed. The meta-analysis of these studies showed that HAL training was significantly superior to CR in patients following TKR (SMD = 48.70, 95% Cl -50.53 to 147.94) at 2 months. A high heterogeneity was detected (P < .01; I(2) = 97%). CONCLUSION: The result of this systematic review and meta-analysis suggest that RAR may be an effective treatment in TKR and THR patients. However, high-quality studies are needed to verify the long-term effect on their recovery.