Abstract
Introduction As wearable devices become more sophisticated, their application in monitoring the post-surgical recovery curve following Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) may be used to assist with rehabilitation and general care. While there is growing interest in this area, much of the research involves studies with small samples, non-pragmatic designs, and short monitoring periods. This study aims to characterize the progress and recovery kinetics of remote monitoring in the early post-TKA period, using many patients and across multiple surgeons and institutions. Methods Between June 2018 and June 2021, adult patients undergoing primary unilateral partial or total Knee Arthroplasty for end-stage knee osteoarthritis were preoperatively recruited to wear a remote monitoring system to track their recovery. Patients were provided with device education and knee specific surface sensors. The data collected by the sensors were transmitted to a smartphone application. Patients wore the surface sensors for a period as defined by their surgeon (2-, 4-, or 6-weeks duration). Primary measures were maximal daily flexion, minimal daily extension, and Total Daily Steps (TDS). Secondary outcomes were patient-reported pain scores. Results A total of 435 patients were recruited into the study. The primary outcomes of flexion and extension did not significantly differ from baseline, and TDS improved significantly from preoperative baseline to 6 weeks postoperative follow up. All metrics improved relative to surgical intervention relative to 6 weeks postoperative. Conclusions This study demonstrates that remote monitoring using knee specific surface sensors can capture the expected recovery kinetics following knee replacement surgery. The data provided, range of motion and total daily step counts can be used by providers to set expectations for recovery following intervention. Further work is required to compare surface sensor monitoring against standard post-surgical outcome measures to evaluate whether superior results may result from remote monitoring.