Findings presented at the annual meeting of the Association of Academic Physiatrists suggest that typical postoperative precautions followed after hip arthroplasty may increase inpatient rehabilitation time and slow overall recovery. 

The research team conducted a retrospective review of 68 hip arthroplasty patients, 31 of whom were admitted to inpatient rehabilitation without post-operative surgical precautions and 37 of whom were admitted with precautions. At discharge, they found that both groups had made similar progress in overall functional independence measures (FIM) scores and daily FIM improvements. However, the average length of stay for patients who entered rehabilitation without postoperative precautions typically was 9 days, compared to 12 days for patients with postoperative precautions. Learn more...